cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Combined therapy for cancer of the anal canal.

Nineteen patients with squamous-cell cancer of the anal canal have been treated with combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy, followed by appropriate surgery. The authors are convinced that the combined therapy is effective enough to avoid abdominoperineal resection if disappearance of the lesion is proven by adequate examination and biopsy. Although they believe cancers 5 cm or less in maximum diameter are generally adequately managed in this manner, experience is still too limited to justify, a recommendation, to change currently accepted management.
Chemical and Anatomical Plasticity of Brain Changes in brain through experience, demanded by learning theories, are found in experiments with rats

JOURNAL OF NEUROPSYCHIATRY 459 Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 1956; 82:261268 9. Rosen.zweig MR, Krech D, Bennett EL: Heredity, environment, brain biochemistry, and learning, in Current Trends in Psychological Theory. Pittsburgh, PA, University of Pittsburgh Press, 1961, pp 87-110 10. Rosen.zweig MR, Krech D, Bennett EL, Diamond MC: Effects of environmental complexity and training on brain chemistry and anatomy: a replication and extension. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 1962; 55:429-437 11. Volkmar FR, Creenough WT: Rearing complexity affects branching of dendrites in the visual cortex of the rat. Science 1972; 176:14451447 12. Bailey CH, Kandel ER: Structural changes accompanying memory storage. Annu Rev Physiol 1993; 55:397-426
Ultrasound Contrast Agents in the Study of Kidney Function in Health and Disease

Ultrasound contrast agents are gas filled microbubbles that enhance the ultrasound image. They behave similarly to red blood cells and cross all capillary beds; making contrast enhanced ultrasonography (CEU) a suitable technique to study vasculature and tissue blood flow. Ultrasound contrast agents have been found to be safe after intravenous injection. CEU has been used extensively in the field of cardiology. Currently, study of renal vasculature and renal blood flow requires complicated, time consuming and expensive techniques, which are not commonly used in clinical settings. CEU potentially may serve as a relatively noninvasive and safe technique for studying renal hemodynamics in health and disease. In this article we have reviewed the literature on the use of CEU in the study of kidney disease.
Estimations in the normal regression empirical bayes model

Estimation of several normal means, with emphasis on the normal regression empirical Bayes model, is considered. Within this model, the empirical Bayes estimator is of Stein type. A hierarchical Bayes analysis provides a family of minimax estimators. The performances of the empirical Bayes and hierarchical Bayes estimators are also compared. The shrinkage behavior of those estimators is shown in an application to the two-way classification.
PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS: THEY MAY AFFECT YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE

One hallmark of a profession is that it creates participatory organizations that offer educational opportunities, publish, and lobby in support of the field. These same professional associations also study and address problems and bring members together for sharing and networking. In the library profession we have several major national and international organizations such as the Special Libraries Association, the American Library Association, and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions.
A Turn Toward Avoidance? Selective Exposure to Online Political Information, 2004–2008

Scholars warn that avoidance of attitude-discrepant political information is becoming increasingly common due in part to an ideologically fragmented online news environment that allows individuals to systematically eschew contact with ideas that differ from their own. Data collected over a series of national RDD surveys conducted between 2004 and 2008 challenge this assertion, demonstrating that Americans’ use of attitude-consistent political sources is positively correlated with use of more attitudinally challenging sources. This pattern holds over time and across different types of online outlets, and applies even among those most strongly committed to their political ideology, although the relationship is weaker for this group. Implications for these findings are discussed.
Autonomous Corium Reactor for Terrestrial Applications

Current reactors utilize complex systems for safety and operation. The proposed design concept employs metal fuel in a molten state, within a silicon carbide crucible. It takes advantage of physics features to ensure safe reactor operation without human intervention. This molten fuel concept provides large thermal feedback in the fuel due to strong temperature dependent thermophysical properties. Fuel boiling phenomena potentially allows for fuel mass relocation/removal to isolated condensation regions to ensure a critical geometry throughout life. The strong tendency for natural circulation in liquid metals suggests a lead-based coolant to provide load following capability. A reactor meltdown becomes a normal operational state ensuring that core damage is minimized. Preliminary calculations show favorable reactor behavior and control at 100MWt; however, material compatibility and alloy integrity have not been studied. The reactor concept minimizes the need for human involvement in reactor operation, reduces the complexity of supporting systems, and can be deployed remotely for terrestrial thermal power and battery needs for periods greater than 25 years.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
Peer chart audits: A tool to meet Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) competency in practice-based learning and improvement

The Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) supports chart audit as a method to track competency in Practice-Based Learning and Improvement. We examined whether peer chart audits performed by internal medicine residents were associated with improved documentation of foot care in patients with diabetes mellitus. A retrospective electronic chart review was performed on 347 patients with diabetes mellitus cared for by internal medicine residents in a university-based continuity clinic from May 2003 to September 2004. Residents abstracted information pertaining to documentation of foot examinations (neurological, vascular, and skin) from the charts of patients followed by their physician peers. No formal feedback or education was provided. Significant improvement in the documentation of foot exams was observed over the course of the study. The percentage of patients receiving neurological, vascular, and skin exams increased by 20% (from 13% to 33%) (p = 0.001), 26% (from 45% to 71%) (p < 0.001), and 18% (51%–72%) (p = 0.005), respectively. Similarly, the proportion of patients receiving a well-documented exam which includes all three components – neurological, vascular and skin foot exam – increased over time (6% to 24%, p < 0.001). Peer chart audits performed by residents in the absence of formal feedback were associated with improved documentation of the foot exam in patients with diabetes mellitus. Although this study suggests that peer chart audits may be an effective tool to improve practice-based learning and documentation of foot care in diabetic patients, evaluating the actual performance of clinical care was beyond the scope of this study and would be better addressed by a randomized controlled trial.
Identity-based political inequality and protest: The dynamic relationship between political power and protest in the Middle East and North Africa

In this study, I evaluate the effect of identity-based political inequalities on the probability of nonviolent and violent resistance in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). During the Arab Spring, many states with higher levels of ethnic and religious political inequalities experienced lengthy resistance movements and violence, while states with lower levels of political inequalities largely experienced less volatility. I find support for my expectations using data spanning 1960–2011. Not only do results suggest that in MENA states with higher levels of identity-based political inequalities experience more conflict, but results from a global analysis suggest that this relationship is particularly robust within MENA. Sub-Saharan Africa is also conflict prone; however, the onset of nonviolent and violent movements is lower than MENA.
An optimal algorithm for the minimum edge cardinality cut surface problem

The minimum edge cardinality cut surface problem is a problem in computational topology with applications to areas such as solid modeling, scientific visualization, medical imaging and computer graphics, where non-manifold surfaces need to be converted to manifold ones. This problem was first studied in [11] (see also [12]), where heuristics are proposed. However no guarantees regarding the quality of the cut surface constructed are provided. In this paper we present a linear time construction and show that the cut surface constructed has minimum edge cardinality.
Plucks and bows are categorically perceived, sometimes.

Cutting and Rosner (Perception & Psychophysics, 1974,16, 564–570) reported that sawtooth wavetrains were perceived categorically when an array was varied in linear rise time increments. That is, rapid rise time stimuli were identified as plucked strings and slower rise time stimuli as bowed strings, and pluck-bow comparisons were relatively easy to discriminate but pluck-pluck and bow-bow comparisons were not. Such results indicate the general equivalence of identification and discrimination tasks. Rosen and Howell (Perception & Psychophysics, 1981,30, 156–168), however, report that categorical perception does not occur for these sounds for two reasons. First, the original stimuli did not have the rise times reported by Cutting and Rosner. Second, the perception of these stimuli more closely follows a prediction from a Weber fraction. Acknowledging the first fact to be true, in part due to difficulties in digital-to-analog conversion, I set out to replicate and extend the results of Rosen and Howell. In Experiment 1, I found that stimuli with equal linear increments of rise time are not perceived categorically; but they are not perceived to follow closely a logarithmic relation either. In Experiment 2, I found that stimuli with equal logarithmic increments of rise time were generally perceived categorically. Experiment 3 replicated the results of both experiments. Thus, plucked and bowed music-like sounds can sometimes be found to be perceived in a categorical manner. However, categorical perception is not found with stimuli generated in the manner of Cutting and Rosner (1974) or Rosen and Howell (1981), and the phenomenon generally seems subject to rather stringent, if not curious, stimulus conditions. Moreover, and more deeply, categorical perception seems hardly the bedrock phenomenon it once appeared to be, whether in speech or in any other domain.
Spread of cochlear excitation during stimulation with pulsed infrared radiation: inferior colliculus measurements

Infrared neural stimulation (INS) has received considerable attention over the last few years. It provides an alternative method to artificially stimulate neurons without electrical current or the introduction of exogenous chromophores. One of the primary benefits of INS could be the improved spatial selectivity when compared with electrical stimulation. In the present study, we have evaluated the spatial selectivity of INS in the acutely damaged cochlea of guinea pigs and compared it to stimulation with acoustic tone pips in normal hearing animals. The radiation was delivered via a 200 μm-diameter optical fiber, which was inserted through a cochleostomy into the scala tympani of the basal cochlear turn. The stimulated section along the cochlear spiral ganglion was estimated from the neural responses recorded from the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus (ICC). ICC responses were recorded in response to cochlear INS using a multichannel penetrating electrode array. Spatial tuning curves were constructed from the responses. For INS, approximately 55% of the activation profiles showed a single maximum, ~22% had two maxima, and ~13% had multiple maxima. The remaining 10% of the profiles occurred at the limits of the electrode array and could not be classified. The majority of ICC spatial tuning curves indicated that the spread of activation evoked by optical stimuli is comparable to that produced by acoustic pips.
Garnet-Clinopyroxenite from the Red Mountain Pluton, Alaska

Several lens-shaped and irregular masses of garnet-clinopyroxenite occur along the north margin of the Red Mountain pluton, near Seldovia, Alaska. The pluton is composed of intercalated dunite, clinopyroxenite, and banded chromite layers. The chromite layers appear to dip toward the center of the mass, but they have been deformed, and in some places display isoclinal overturned folds. The garnet-clinopyroxenite bodies are compositionally layered and appear to have been deformed along with the host peridotite. The garnet-clinopyroxenite bodies have whole-rock compositions analogous to alkali-poor anorthite gabbro or mafic anorthosite. Garnet compositions are dominated by the pyrope, grossularite, and almandine components, and the clinopyroxene bodies are rich in Ca-Tschermaks molecule (CaAl 2 SiO 6 ). Although crystallization from the liquidus is a possibility, textures, structures, and the chemical composition of the constituent mineral phases indicate that the garnet-clinopyroxenite has equilibrated in the solid state at pressures of 15 to 25 kb and temperatures of 1100°C to 1300°C. Such P-T parameters suggest an upper-mantle origin for the garnet-clinopyroxenite and the enclosing pluton.
The SIT image Vidicon as a gas-phase fluorescence detector for gas chromatography.

Abstract The feasibility of using an SIT Vidicon as a gas-phase fluorescence detector for gas chromatography is demonstrated. Operation of the SIT in both the “real time” and integration modes is discussed. The SIT system can subtract stored signals (spectra) from one another, so that background correction is possible and the spectral selectivity of vapor-phase fluorescence detection is enhanced. Gas-phase spectra and limits of detection for several polyaromatic hydrocarbons are given; the SIT gives limits of detection about a factor of five larger than those obtained with a photomultiplier (PM) tube (operated in a nonscanning mode).The relative merits of using the SIT system or a fast scanning (PM) system for measuring transient signals are discussed.
Increased mucosal CD4+ T-cell activation following vaccination with an adenoviral vector in rhesus macaques

Background The possibility that vaccination with Adenoviral vectors increased mucosal T-cell activation remains a central hypothesis to explain the potential enhancement of HIV acquisition within the STEP trial. Modeling this within rhesus macaques is complicated because human Adenoviruses, including Adenovirus type 5 (HAd5), do not productively infect macaques. We created a vector based upon a naturally occurring rhesus macaque Adenovirus (SAdV7) to test whether vaccination with as pecies-specific Adenoviral vector enhances mucosal T-cell activation within the natural host.
Nearly arc-length parameterized quintic-spline interpolation for precision machining

Abstract The paper presents a method of interpolating a set of discrete data points to form a composite quintic spline for application in precision machining. Precision machining requires tight machining tolerance, i.e. the preselected data points on the original curve are approximately evenly distributed according to a small total curvature between two consecutive data points. With this restriction, the resultant composite quintic splines, in comparison with cubic splines, are closer to being arc-length parameterized. The quintic splines are also likely to have shapes that are close to those of the original curves with no unwanted high-order oscillations. Curves with these properties should be useful for reverse engineering and online motion-command generation for precision machining.
Parental Perception of a Baby Sign Workshop on Stress and Parent-Child Interaction.

Introduction: Baby sign language is gaining in popularity. However, research has indicated a lack of empirical research supporting its use. In addition, research suggests that baby sign training may increase stress levels in parents. Methods: Nine families with children ranging in age from six months to two years; five months participated in a baby sign workshop. Survey data were analysed to determine parental stress levels as a result of the workshop or using signs with their children. Additionally, information from parents regarding parent–child interactions was recorded. Results: The data suggests that the use of baby signs enhanced parent–child communication, strengthened the parent–child bond, and reduced frustration. Furthermore, the data indicated that the use of baby signs with infants did not cause increased stress on parents. Key aspects of baby sign training that seem to reduce and inhibit stress in parents are discussed.
Effects of d bands on semiconductor sp Hamiltonians

The effects of Mn d electrons on the appropriate description of band-edge states in II-VI diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMS) is examined. In the absence of a magnetic field, such states are reasonably described by an ``effective'' sp band k\ensuremath{\cdot}p Hamiltonian with matrix elements which include the effects of sp-d hybridization. At k=0, the addition of a nonzero-spin polarization leads to an effective sp Hamiltonian with the same form as that of the usual mean-field exchange Hamiltonian for DMS. The consistency of the explicit relationships derived here between microscopic and effective parameters is demonstrated for the case of ${\mathrm{Cd}}_{1\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{x}}$${\mathrm{Mn}}_{\mathrm{x}}$Te. Both the electron and light-hole effective masses in this system are predicted to increase because of sp-d hybridization.
Prognostic Value of the Monoethylglycinexylidide Liver Function Test in Assessing Donor Liver Suitability

Background: Liver graft assessment prior to transplantation continues to be controversial. Various donor organ parameters must be evaluated to ensure that the transplanted organ will function and that the number of organs discarded will be minimized. Recent attempts to quantify liver function have utilized the metabolism of lidocaine to monoethylglycinexylidide (MEGX), and the MEGX test has been employed to evaluate the functional characteristics of donor livers prior to transplantation, with conflicting results. Objective: To ascertain the role of quantitating the metabolic rate of lidocaine in predicting the results of liver transplantation. Methods: Consecutive liver donors (N=37) underwent quantitation of the amount of lidocaine converted to MEGX at 15 minutes. The donor patients were divided arbitrarily into efficient and poor lidocaine metabolizers, and the results of liver transplantation were evaluated. Results: Patients who received livers that produced MEGX values of 80 ng/mL or less in 15 minutes had no definable alteration in transplantation outcome compared with patients who received livers that were more efficient lidocaine metabolizers. In a collected series, 46 patients who received livers that produced MEGX values of 80 ng/mL or less had a 1-month graft survival rate of 89% (41/46), while 74 patients who received livers that produced MEGX values greater than 80 ng/mL had a 1-month graft survival rate of 86% (64/74). Conclusions: The MEGX test had no practical utility in predicting liver graft functional status. Arch Surg. 1996;131:1099-1102
Theory of the interfacial potential distribution and reversible voltammetric response of electrodes coated with electroactive molecular films.

An analytical expression for the interfacial potential distribution at metal electrodes coated with monolayer and submonolayer films of electroactive molecules is reported. The driving force for reversible electron transfer between the metal and electroactive adsorbate is calculated from the interfacial potential distribution and is used to predict the current-voltage wave shape in cyclic voltammetric experiments
Intelligent Sensing and Classification in DSR-Based Ad Hoc Networks

Wireless ad hoc networks have fundamentally altered today's battlefield, with applications ranging from unmanned air vehicles to randomly deployed sensor networks. Security and vulnerabilities in wireless ad hoc networks have been considered at different layers, and many attack strategies have been proposed, including denial of service (DoS) through the intelligent jamming of the most critical packet types of flows in a network. This paper investigates the effectiveness of intelligent jamming in wireless ad hoc networks using the Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) and TCP protocols and introduces an intelligent classifier to facilitate the jamming of such networks. Assuming encrypted packet headers and contents, our classifier is based solely on the observable characteristics of size, inter-arrival timing, and direction and classifies packets with up to 99.4% accuracy in our experiments.
A study of the thermotransport behavior of cobalt in thorium

The heat of transport,Q*, for cobalt in α-thorium was determined by a combination of single-phase, steady-state and two-phase, nonsteady-state techniques. The heat of transport,Q*, is temperature-dependent, decreasing from +20 kj/mol at 1125 K to s-60 kJ/mol at 1460 K. This is best described by a linear relation,Q* = 214 s-0.24T kJ/mol. The observed temperature dependence ofQ* can perhaps be attributed to the electronic contribution to the heat of transport, as postulated in Hehenkamp’s model.
Writing Wrongs in Sociology

Anyone who tells you he writes publishable first drafts, John Kenneth Galbraith once remarked, is either a liar or a fool. Galbraith, a prolific, lucid author, knew what he was talking about: the incessant redrafting; the detritus of cute but distracting tricks, name-dropping, portentous references, unfinished thoughts, confusing juxtapositions, and circumlocutions that somehow filters into the first drafts of seasoned
Discrete land uses and transportation walking in two U.S. cities: the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

This study examines associations of disaggregate land uses with self-reported walking for transportation among participants of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) in Forsyth County, NC and New York, NY. Network distance to each use (in miles), intensity (number of uses per 1/2-mile network buffer) of each use and diversity (number of different uses per 1/2-mile network buffer) of uses were calculated using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Associations with odds of meeting recommended physical activity levels (150 min/week) were examined after controlling for individual- and census-tract-level covariates. Greater distance to and lower intensity of pedestrian-oriented uses, specifically those for social interactions, were associated with lower odds of meeting recommendations in NY. Results suggest that land uses linked to social interactions may be useful for encouraging increased transportation walking.
Modification of photochemical reactivity by zeolites: consequences of rotational restriction on Norrish type II reaction of alkanophenones

The photolysis of several alkanophenones in monovalent cation exchanged faujasites and in pentasil zeolites, occured with expected γ-hydrogen abstraction and the ratio of the products derived differed; cyclobutanol formation was completely suppressed in pentasils, probably due to restruction of the rotational motion of the central σ bond present in the Norrish type II derived 1,4-diradical.
The Unique and Combined Effects of Homelessness and School Mobility on the Educational Outcomes of Young Children

This study examined the unique and combined associations of homelessness and school mobility with educational well-being indicators, as well as the mediating effect of absenteeism, for an entire cohort of third-grade students in Philadelphia. Using integrated archival administrative data from the public school district and the municipal Office of Supportive Housing, multilevel linear models were estimated to test these associations while adjusting for nesting of students within schools. Findings demonstrated that homelessness had a unique association with problems in classroom engagement, school mobility was uniquely related to both academic achievement and problems in classroom engagement, and experiencing both homelessness and school mobility was the most detrimental for both forms of educational well-being. Absenteeism was found to partially mediate the relations between homelessness, school mobility, and problems in task engagement. Results provide support for the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Ac...
The dynamic behavior of continuous solution polymerization reactors—IV. Dynamic stability and bifurcation analysis of an experimental reactor

Abstract The dynamic behavior of the solution polymerization of vinyl acetate in a CSTR is analyzed. Preliminary experimental results showing the presence of limit cycles for this class of reactors are presented and a detailed bifurcation analysis of a mathematical model of the laboratory scale reactor is carried out using numerical continuation techniques. The method relies on the continuation of the loci of four types of special points in two parameters. This enables the classification of parameter space into regions where qualitatively different steady-state and dynamic phenomena are observed. These phenomena include S-shaped, isola- and mushroom-type multiplicities, as well as various periodic bifurcations. The combination of steady-state and period bifurcations result in a wide variety of possible structures. A new type of bifurcation diagram, not previously observed, has been found in parameter space. Detailed experimental evidence on the presence of limit cycles for this class of reactors will be presented in subsequent parts of this series.
Repair of Stiction Failed MEMS Using Structural Vibrations

It has been shown in recent times that the use of structural vibrations is a viable approach in repairing stiction failed MEMS cantilever beams. It has also been observed that such a technique is sensitive to various parametric values associated with the de-sticking of these beams. In the current paper we present experimental results which characterize the ideal cantilever beam. An analytical model of stiction failed MEMS cantilever beams under electrostatic actuation is presented. Physical parameters such as stiffness, bending rigidity, damping, excitation voltage, etc. are incorporated in terms of Mathieu parameters to study the stability of the system. An experimental characterization of natural frequency, Young’s Modulus, and damping ratio, which form important components of the analysis, is presented. Accompanying these results is a description of the experimental set up used for finding these parameters. Experiments were performed at both atmospheric and vacuum pressures. An interferometric microscope mounted above the glass window of the vacuum chamber was used to determine the crack length of each beam and observe the profiles of the arrays of microcantilevers in-situ. A Laser Doppler Vibrometer was used for determination of characterization parameters. The microcantilevers were fabricated using the SUMMiT IV process of Sandia National Laboratories. Structural vibrations were induced by placing an alternating voltage on a cofabricated actuation pad located under the microcantilevers near their anchor point. Theoretical modeling shows the dependence of physical parameters that lead to stiction repair.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
The Petticoat Inspectors: Women Boarding Inspectors and the Gendered Exercise of Federal Authority

In the early twentieth century, anti-white-slavery activists sought to construct a new position for women inspectors in the Immigration Bureau. These activists asserted that immigrant girls traveling without a family patriarch deserved the U.S. government's paternal protection, yet they argued that women would be best suited to provide this protection because of women's purported maternal abilities to perceive feminine distress. By wielding paternal government authority—marked by a badge, the ability to detain, and presumably the power to punish—these women could most effectively protect the nation's moral boundaries from immoral prostitutes while also protecting innocent immigrant girls from the dangers posed by solitary travel. In 1903 the Immigration Bureau launched an experiment of placing women among the boarding teams at the port of New York. The experiment, however, was short-lived, as opponents of the placement of women in such visible positions campaigned against them. This episode reminds us that the ability to represent and exercise federal authority in the early twentieth century was profoundly gendered; and women's increased participation in government positions during the Progressive Era was deeply contested.
Effects of Bovine Somatotropin on Milk Yield and Composition, Body Weight, and Condition Score of Holstein and Jersey Cows

Abstract Forty cows (20 Holstein, 20 Jersey) were administered 0, 5, 10, 15, or 20mg of recombinantly derived bST daily to determine the effect on milk yield, milk composition, body weight, and body condition score. Administration of bST was from 75±7 d through 305 d postpartum. A total mixed diet of 45% corn silage and 55% of a concentrate mixture (dry basis) was provided for ad libitum intake. Milk yield of Holstein and Jersey cows administered 20mg of bST increased 25.3 and 22.8%, respectively, over controls. Fat-corrected milk from Holsteins and Jerseys that were administered 20mg of somatotropin increased 32.2 and 18.7% over controls, but Jersey response was greatest when 15mg of bST were administered (27.1% over controls). Dry matter intake of the 20mg bST group was 13.5% greater than DM intake of controls. Apparent efficiency of production increased linearly with increasing somatotropin. There was no significant change in body weight, but body condition score declined linearly with increasing somatotropin. Most milk composition measures were unaffected by somatotropin. Jersey and Holstein milk yield increased quadratically and linearly, respectively, with somatotropin dose.
Further Evidence on the Impact of SFAS 52 on Analysts' Earnings Forecasts

This study examines the impact of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards Number 52 (SFAS 52) on analysts' earnings forecasts. Value-Line forecasts of multinational firms' earnings were examined for the years 1979-1984. Forecast errors did not exhibit a significant linear trend. However, the results show a decline in signed forecast errors from the pre-SFAS 52 to the post-SFAS 52 period reflecting a change from an overstatement bias to relatively unbiased forecasts. Overall, the results suggest that (1) overstatement errors were greater in the pre-SFAS 52 period than in the post SFAS 52 period, and (2) overstatement errors in the year that SFAS 52 was adopted were greater than surrounding years. In addition, a strong negative relation was found between 1981 signed forecast errors and both revisions in forecasts and the income effect of the accounting change.
SPECIFICITY AND VERSATILITY IN TGF-β SIGNALING THROUGH SMADS

AbstractThe TGF-β family comprises many structurally related differentiation factors that act through a heteromeric receptor complex at the cell surface and an intracellular signal transducing Smad complex. The receptor complex consists of two type II and two type I transmembrane serine/threonine kinases. Upon phosphorylation by the receptors, Smad complexes translocate into the nucleus, where they cooperate with sequence-specific transcription factors to regulate gene expression. The vertebrate genome encodes many ligands, fewer type II and type I receptors, and only a few Smads. In contrast to the perceived simplicity of the signal transduction mechanism with few Smads, the cellular responses to TGF-β ligands are complex and context dependent. This raises the question of how the specificity of the ligand-induced signaling is achieved. We review the molecular basis for the specificity and versatility of signaling by the many ligands through this conceptually simple signal transduction mechanism.
Integrating in dark matter astrophysics at direct detection experiments

Abstract We study the capabilities of the Majorana Demonstrator , a neutrinoless double-beta decay experiment currently under construction at the Sanford Underground Laboratory, as a light WIMP detector. For a cross section near the current experimental bound, the Majorana Demonstrator should collect hundreds or even thousands of recoil events. This opens up the possibility of simultaneously determining the physical properties of the dark matter and its local velocity distribution, directly from the data. We analyze this possibility and find that allowing the dark matter velocity distribution to float considerably worsens the WIMP mass determination. This result is traced to a previously unexplored degeneracy between the WIMP mass and the velocity dispersion. We simulate spectra using both isothermal and Via Lactea II velocity distributions and comment on the possible impact of streams. We conclude that knowledge of the dark matter velocity distribution will greatly facilitate the mass and cross section determination for a light WIMP.
Qualifications of Corporate Board Committee Members

Board committees, the most critical subgroups of corporate governance, are examined in terms of the director qualifications of type, tenure, age, internal activity, and external activity. Compariso...
Fluorouracil and the New Oral Fluorinated Pyrimidines

OBJECTIVE:To briefly review the biotransformation and bioavailability of fluorouracil (5-FU); discuss the effects of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DpD) on the efficacy and toxicity profiles of 5-FU; and review a new class of drugs known collectively as the oral fluorinated pyrimidines, which inhibit or circumvent DpD activity and, when administered with 5-FU, alter its pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties.DATA SOURCES:A MEDLINE literature search was conducted (1966–March 1999), using the search terms fluoropyrimidines, fluorouracil, 5-FU, fluorinated pyrimidines, capecitabine, eniluracil, uraciltegafur, uracilftorafur, UFT, S1, BMS-247616, and BOF-A2. Reference lists, bibliographies of pertinent articles, and abstracts from the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium annual meetings were also identified and reviewed. Both preclinical and clinical literature were reviewed and analyzed.DATA SYNTHESIS:The new oral fluorinated pyrimidines appear to produc...
Nanosecond Switchable Polymerized Crystalline Colloidal Array Bragg Diffracting Materials

We fabricated a mesoscopically periodic array of novel colloidal particles containing absorbing dye embedded in a polyacrylamide hydrogel through the use of crystalline colloidal self-assembly. These colloidal particles are highly fluorinated (see accompanying paper) and have a very low refractive index, which can be easily refractive index matched to a predominantly aqueous medium. Thus, we were able to prepare a material where the real part of the refractive index was matched, while preserving a periodic modulation of the imaginary part of the refractive index. Previously we theoretically predicted that such a material could be used as a nanosecond optical switch (Kasavamoorthy, Super, and Asher, J. Appl. Phys. 1992, 71, 1116), and more recently experimentally demonstrated this optical switching (Pan et al., Phys. ReV. Lett. 1997, 78, 3860). Under low light intensities the crystalline colloidal arrays (CCA) is refractive index matched to the medium and does not diffract. However, high incident intensity illumination within the dye absorption band heats the particles within nanoseconds to decrease their refractive index. This results in a mesoscopically periodic refractive index modulation with the periodicity of the CCA lattice. The array "pops up" to diffract light within 2.5 ns. These intelligent CCA hydrogels may have applications in optical limiting, optical computing, and nanosecond fast optical switching devices, etc.
Psychiatric Diagnoses of Infants and Toddlers Referred to a Community Mental Health System

There has been increased interest in improving mental health assessment and treatment of young children. However, there are limited data regarding the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among infants and toddlers. The recent development of measures and classification systems that are specific to this age group has enabled researchers to begin to investigate the social, emotional, and behavioral problems of young children. The present study reviews the major research that has been conducted in this area and examines the prevalence of psychiatric diagnoses of infants and toddlers referred to a public community mental health system. The current investigation also compares the frequency of diagnoses of children who have been evaluated based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (4th edition) with another group of children who were diagnosed based on the Diagnostic Classification: 0-3 system. Although there were some differences between the two samples and classification systems, analysis indicated that parent-child relational problems, adjustment difficulties, regulatory problems, and developmental disorders are some of the more common diagnoses prevalent among young children referred for outpatient treatment. As diagnostic measures and classification systems continue to improve, clinicians will have a better understanding of the mental health problems and treatment needs of young children.
H7N9: preparing for the unexpected in influenza.

In the years prior to 2013, avian influenza A H7 viruses were a cause of significant poultry mortality; however, human illness was generally mild. In March 2013, a novel influenza A(H7N9) virus emerged in China as an unexpected cause of severe human illness with 36% mortality. Chinese and other public health officials responded quickly, characterizing the virus and identifying more than 400 cases through use of new technologies and surveillance tools made possible by past preparedness and response efforts. Genetic sequencing, glycan-array receptor-binding assays, and ferret studies reveal the H7N9 virus to have increased binding to mammalian respiratory cells and to have mutations associated with higher virus replication rates and illness severity. New risk-assessment tools indicate H7N9 has the potential for further mammalian adaptation with possible human-to-human transmission. Vigilant virologic and epidemiologic surveillance is needed to monitor H7N9 and detect other unexpected novel influenza viruses...
Assessment of the standardized reporting guidelines electrocardiogram classification system: The presenting electrocardiogram predicts 30-day outcomes

Supported by a grant from the Emergency Medicine Foundation. Study objectives: Standardized reporting criteria for risk stratification studies of patients with potential acute coronary syndromes have been proposed. We seek to determine whether the categories in the recommended 6-item ECG classification system predict rates of 30-day death, myocardial infarction, and revascularization. Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study of emergency department (ED) chest pain patients who presented to a tertiary care center during a 32-month period. The treating physician classified all ECGs into defined categories. Patients were followed up for 30 days to determine death, myocardial infarction, or revascularization. Our main outcome was the rate of triple composite endpoint of death, myocardial infarction, and revascularization at 30 days from ED presentation in relation to the ECG classification category. Results: There were 3,814 patients who presented to the ED a total of 4,487 times during the study period. Patients had a mean (±SD) age of 51.8±15.9 years, were more likely to be female (59%) than male patients, and were most commonly black (68%). The relationship between initial ECG classification and 30-day outcome was highly significant ( P Conclusion: The ECG classification system that is being recommended in the standardized guidelines predicts 30-day composite rates of death, acute myocardial infarction, and revascularization.
Metazoan Endoparasites of 13 Species of Central American Anoles (Sauria: Polychrotidae: Anolis) with a Review of the Helminth Communities of Caribbean, Mexican, North American, and South American Anoles

Abstract Four hundred twenty-six specimens representing 13 species of Anolis, A. auratus, A. biporcatus, A. capito, A. frenatus, A. humilis, A. limifrons, A. lionotus, A. pachypus, A. pentaprion, A. poecilopus, A. townsendi, A. tropidogaster, and A. woodi, from Central America were examined for metazoan endoparasites. Five species of Digenea (Brachycoelium salamandrae, Mesocoelium monas, Parallopharynx arctus, Parallopharynx gonzalezi, and Urotrema shirleyae), 2 species of Cestoda (Mathevotaenia panamaensis and tetrathyridia of Mesocestoides sp.), 18 species of Nematoda (mature individuals of Africana telfordi, Cosmocercoides variabilis, Cyrtosomum penneri, Entomelas duellmani, Falcaustra costaricae, Hedruris heyeri, Oswaldocruzia nicaraguensis, Oswaldofilaria brevicaudata, Parapharyngodon cubensis, Physaloptera retusa, Piratuba digiticauda, Rhabdias anolis, Rhabdias nicaraguensis, Skrjabinelazia galliardi, Skrjabinelazia intermedia, Spauligodon anolis, Strongyluris panamaensis, and ascaridid larvae), 3 s...
Cold War Political Thought: Art, Existentialism, Beat Poetry and Political Thinking

In what has been termed the "gray dawn of peace" in the late 1940's, the American avant-gardes – literary, artistic and, academic – worked out their conflicted attitudes toward the almost simultaneous announcements of "victory" over Fascism in 1945 and a new "war" against Communism proclaimed by President Truman in 1947. The world they had won, and were now losing once again, presented a series of confounding ironies, some obvious and some less so, and only some of which I can touch on today: 1) The shock of the "new" as Liberals in Washington shifted rightward, rejecting the "cheerful nay-saying" of "radicals" in the arts, humanities and social sciences, even while celebrating the American "freedoms" that produced them. 2) In the era of HUAC and the Army-McCarthy hearings, a heightened (safer?) retreat to the classic "anti-bourgeoisie" perspective on the part of the avant-garde expressed in attacks on the "culture of conformity" and "mass democracy". Particular targets were the post-War boom in new 1950's suburban middle class suburbs and its twin cultures of "Reader's Digest' and the "organization man". 3) While the domestic American cultural elites, particularly in major urban centers such as New York, were under attack by Congress for their previous Trotskyite-Stalinist fellow-traveling sympathies, New York arts and letters were being exported by the Truman Administrations CIA and State Department as exemplars of American freedom of expression and aesthetic excellence. 4) In addition to the visual arts, the specifically Modernist aesthetic of "risk taking and, ecstatic spontaneity" in the face of the cold war mentality generated new cultural movements specifically American riffs on French Existentialism, together with improvisation in poetry ("Beat") and Jazz, all of which were labeled "cool" – i.e. apolitical, abstract, foregrounding individual rather than collectivist values ("socialist" or "American" realism).5) In the social sciences, particularly Political Science, the "empirical" and the "behavioral" turns also resisted "ideology" by capturing "experience" through aggregate patterns of individual voting behavior and morphologies of institutional response, while engaging in a vigorous internal critique about the future of Liberalism.
Effect of premixing length and flameholder design on NO(x) emissions

A flame-tube study was performed to determine the effects of premixing length and flameholder design on NO(x) emissions with premixed, prevaporized Jet-A fuel. Two premixing lengths and two flameholder designs were studied with greater than 99 percent combustion efficiency at 755-866 K inlet temperature and 10 to 15 atm inlet pressure. An operating window was defined with over 99 percent combustion efficiency, together with flameholder pressure drops to prevent autoignition and flashback in the premixing, prevaporized combustion system. (Author)
Catalan's Equation in K(t)

(1974). Catalan's Equation in K(t) The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 81, No. 4, pp. 371-373.
Delayed effects of experimental maternal diabetes on plasma cholesterol level and vascular prostacyclin synthesis in the offspring.

AbstractThe effect of streptozotocin-induced diabetes during pregnancy in rats on prostacyclin synthesis in aorta and heart of offsprings was investigated. Although the aortic and heart syntheses of 6-keto-PGFlα in the offsprings of diabetic rats were not altered at birth, a significant rise in aorta and a decrease in the heart were evident at weaning. At weaning, offsprings of diabetic rats also show a significant rise in plasma cholesterol. These studies show that maternal diabetes might cause effects in the offspring which might become evident in later life.
Field-scale numerical modeling of breaching as a mechanism for generating continuous turbidity currents

The term “breaching” refers to the slow, retrogressive failure of a steep subaqueous slope, so forming a nearly vertical turbidity current directed down the face. This mechanism, first identified by the dredging industry, has remained largely unexplored, and yet evidence exists to link breaching to the formation of sustained turbidity currents in the deep sea. In this paper we model a breach-generated turbidity current using a three-equation, layer-averaged model that has as its basis the governing equations for the conservation of momentum, water, and suspended sediment of the turbidity current. In the model, the turbidity current is divided into two regions joined at a migrating boundary: the breach face, treated as vertical, and a quasi-horizontal region sloping downdip. In this downstream region, the bed slope is much lower (but still nonzero), and is constructed by deposition from a quasi-horizontal turbidity current. The model is applied to establish the feasibility of a breach-generated turbidity current in a field setting, using a generic example based on the Monterey Submarine Canyon, offshore California, USA.
Mixed Reactions: How Religious Motivation Explains Responses to Religious Rhetoric in Politics

This article hypothesizes that religious motivation can explain varied responses to the political use of religious rhetoric. Religious motivation—religion’s place in an individual’s life—is an impo...
Aligning semi-improvised music audio with its lead sheet

Existing audio-score alignment methods assume that the audio performance is faithful to a fully-notated MIDI score. For semi-improvised music (e.g. jazz), this assumption is strongly violated. In this paper, we address the problem of aligning semi-improvised music audio with a lead sheet. Ourapproachdoesnotrequirepriortrainingonperformances of the lead sheet to be aligned. We start by analyzing the problem and propose to represent the lead sheet as a MIDI file together with a structural information file. Then we propose a dynamic-programming-based system to align the chromagram representations of the audio performance and the MIDI score. Techniques are proposed to address the chromagramscaling, keytranspositionandstructuralchange (e.g. a performer unexpectedly repeats a section) problems. We test our system on 3 jazz lead sheets. For each sheet we align a set of solo piano performances and a set of fullband commercial recordings with different instrumentation and styles. Results show that our system achieves promising results on some highly improvised music.