cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Safety and efficacy of a new device for inducing ejaculation in men with spinal cord injuries

Prospective case series. Male infertility is a common sequela of spinal cord injury (SCI). Fatherhood is a goal in this group of young patients; however, most are anejaculatory. Penile vibratory stimulation is recommended as the first line of treatment for this condition. Our study evaluated the safety and efficacy of a new device designed to induce ejaculation in these patients. The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, Miami, FL, USA. The Viberect-X3 (Reflexonic, Frederick, MD, USA) was applied to 30 consecutive anejaculatory men with SCI whose level of injury was T10 and rostral. The ejaculatory success was 77% (23/30). No adverse events occurred, and there were no malfunctions of the device. In this first report on the efficacy of the Viberect-X3 for treatment of anejaculation in men with SCI, we conclude that the device is safe and effective for inducing ejaculation in men with SCI. Recommendation of the Viberect-X3 versus other devices intended for this purpose should not be made until randomized controlled trials are performed.
Of Dandies, Flirts, and Cockatoos: Shakhovskoi's Antitheatrical Lesson to Coquettes

Prince A. A. Shakhovskoi's comedy, A Lesson to Coquettes, or the Lipetsk Waters (Urok koketkam, iii Lipetskie vody), presents an interesting puzzle for scholars of Russian theater and culture. The play's debut in 1815 created an instant sensation by openly lampooning the poetry ofV. A. Zhukovskii, who sat with five of his close associates in the third row of St. Petersburg's Malyi Theater for the premiere.! While most spectators in the theater laughed at the ridiculously sentimental versifying of the character Fialkin on stage, Zhukovskii and his friends in the audience interpreted A Lesson to Coquettes as the opening shot in a literary battle between two hostile camps stockpiling troops and arms for well over a decade. The ensuing five-year war, between cultural conservatives such as Shakhovskoi and supporters of Romanticism, ended only when the playwright formally apologized to Zhukovskii several years later.2 Termed the "Lipetsk flood" (lipetskii potop), the deluge of epigrams, poems, and verbal attacks against Shakhovskoi dominated the cultural scene of St. Petersburg for several years, inspiring the creation of Arzamas, one of early nineteenth-century Russia's most remarkable literary societies. Due to the participation of prominent men of letters such as Zhukovskii, P. A. Viazemskii, and A. S. Pushkin, scholars have examined the Lipetsk flood in detail, but they have neglected to explain the widespread popularity of A Lesson to Coquettes with Russian theater-goers of the early nineteenth century and to discuss the wider significance of the play, in which
Testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, and spatial task performances of males

Fifty-eight male college students were administered two spatial tests—the Minnesota Paper Form Board (MPFB) and the Stafford Identical Blocks Test (SIBT). Testosterone (T) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) levels extant during testing were determined from four blood samples collected over the course of testing. Neither T nor DHT showed significant relationships to spatial ability, but the ratio DHT/T was significantly correlated with the MPFB scores. Subjects whose T and DHT values deviated most from the group means had significantly higher mean spatial test scores. The DHT/T deviation scores and T deviation scores were uncorrelated and together accounted for about 15% of the variance in the composite spatial ability scores. Given the inconsistency of previous findings regarding a relationship of T to spatial ability, the present results suggest that future studies should assess DHT as well as T, and that data should be carefully examined for possible curvilinear relationships as well.
Some Notes on Para-Technical Factors in Cross-Cultural Consultation

Technical consultation, in the framework of economic development programs, is a vitally important arena of cross-cultural encounters. Aside from the academic interest in learning of the dynamics and ramifications of events in this seminal "acculturation situation," a study of the processes occurring in the technical consultation could be of practical importance. The most excellently conceived development plans must depend for their implementation on human factors, one set of which come into play in the cross-cultural consultation—Western consultant on the one hand, and non-Western consultee on the other. While the formal criteria for determining transactions in this relationship are purely technical, the actual agenda (and thus the outcome) are determined in part by a host of other factors, here termed "para-technical"
Abundances in Stars from the Red Giant Branch Tip to Near the Main-Sequence Turnoff in M71. I. Sample Selection, Observing Strategy, and Stellar Parameters

We present the sample for an abundance analysis of 25 members of M71, with luminosities ranging from the red giant branch tip to the upper main sequence. The spectra are of high dispersion and of high precision. We describe the observing strategy and determine the stellar parameters for the sample stars using both broadband colors and fits of Hα profiles. The derived stellar parameters agree with those from the Yale2 stellar evolutionary tracks to within 50–100 K for a fixed log g, which is within the level of the uncertainties.
Decentralized pursuit learning automata in batch mode

Learning Automata (LA) and Genetic Algorithms (GA) have been used for a long time to solve problems in different domains. However, there is criticism that LA has slow rate of convergence and both LA and GA have the problem of getting stuck in local optima. In this paper we tried to solve the multi-objective problems using LA in batch mode to make the learning faster and more accurate. We used Decentralized pursuit learning automaton as LA and NSGA2 as GA. Problems where evaluation of fitness function is a bottleneck like SWAT, evaluation of individuals in parallel can give considerable speed-up. In the multi-objective LA, different weight pairs and individual designs can be evaluated independently. So we created their parallel versions to make them practically faster in learning and computations and extended the parallelization concept with the batch mode learning.
The Impact of the Dual Alliance upon the Slavs of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy: A Centennial Reappraisal

The Alliance of 1879 with Germany was one of the truly fateful steps taken by the Austro-Hungarian monarchy in the forty years before its demise. The diplomatic and strategic ramifications of this momentous agreement have been discussed in the historical literature for decades, but its impact upon the monarchy's 21-million subjects of Slavic nationality or ethnicity has not.1 This omission can perhaps be explained by the relatively slight influence that Slavic leaders and their followers had upon the makers of the monarchy's foreign policy. Although the seven Slavic nationalities by 1910 constituted 47.2 percent of Austria-Hungary's population, they remained, as they had always been, complete outsiders on foreign policy. To them, as indeed to most subjects of the Emperor Franz Joseph, diplomatic matters and political events abroad were of slight concern, and even if not, information about them was modest among the general public. Still, if the international relationships of the monarchy conveyed little sense of immediacy, this vital function of the state administration ultimately affected the most humble of persons. The intent here is to examine the Dual Alliance not through the eyes of those who arranged and implemented it, but of those who were Slavic outsiders, and to see how the Alliance affected their loyalty and commitment to the monarchy.
A second ascending visual pathway from the optic tectum to the telencephalon in the pigeon (Columba livia)

Previous studies in the pigeon (Karten and Revzin: Brain Res. 2:368-377, '66; Karten and Hodos: J. Comp. Neurol. 140:35-52, '70) have described an ascending tectofugal visual pathway from the optic tectum to the ectostriatum by way of the nucleus rotundus of the thalamus. This present study used anterograde autoradiographic and retrograde horseradish peroxidase pathway-tracing techniques to investigate another ascending tectofugal pathway in the pigeon. Injections of 3H-proline/leucine confirmed a previous report that the optic tectum projects to the nucleus dorsolateralis posterior of the thalamus (DLP). This projection is predominantly ipsilateral and is confined to a large-celled caudal region of the nucleus (DLPc); the rostral region of the nucleus (DLPr) is not tectorecipient. Injections of horseradish peroxidase in DLPc labeled cells predominantly ipsilaterally in layers 8-15 of the optic tectum. Injections of 3H-proline/leucine placed in the DLPc labeled a discrete region of the ipsilateral telencephalon. Similar injections of DLPr labeled a contiguous, but more rostral, region of the neostriatum intermedium. Nissl- and silver-stained material indicated that the region in which DLP terminates is cytoarchitecturally distinct from ventromedial ectostriatal core and belt. Injections of horseradish peroxidase at various locations in the neostriatal DLP terminal field demonstrated a rostrocaudal ordering of the DLP projection upon the neostriatum intermedium. Single-unit recording demonstrated that cells in DLPc respond to whole-field illumination at the same latency as cells in the nucleus rotundus, indicating that the tecto-DLPc-neostriatal pathway transmits visual information to the telencephalon. We suggest that comparable pathways may exist in both reptiles and mammals.
INDOOR ASBESTOS POLLUTION: APPLICATION OF HAZARD CRITERIA

Asbestos contamination of relatively contained environments within structures can occur under many conditions and in association with various activities. Such contamination persists and can potentially expose all structure users. The more significant contamination levels are associated with disturbance of friable asbestos-containing materials, although bonded material is also capable of fiber dissemination under special conditions. Application of occupational government standards for limitation of exposure, both presently in force and proposed or recommended, indicates that levels found in some situations exceed those considered potentially carcinogenic.
Impact of Locus of Control on Health Message Effectiveness

This article examined how individuals' locus of control might moderate the effect of health message frames. An experiment was conducted whereby participants read either individual- or social-responsibility message frames after their locus of control was primed. Results indicated that messages presented in individual-responsibility frames were more persuasive when people were primed with internal locus of control, whereas social-responsibility framed appeals were more persuasive when people were primed with external locus of control. These results were found for individuals in both high and low cognitive load conditions. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.
Fatigue Behaviors of Self-Piercing Rivets Joining Similar and Dissimilar Sheet Metals

Abstract This paper summarizes the fatigue test results of self-piercing rivet (SPR) joints between similar and dissimilar sheet metals. The influences of material grades, material thickness, piercing direction and the use of structural adhesive on the rivet samples’ fatigue behaviors were investigated. Fatigue test results indicate that SPR joints have superior fatigue strength than resistance spot weld (RSW) joints for the same material combinations. The application of structural adhesive also significantly enhances the fatigue strength of the joint samples; this is particularly true for the lap-shear loading configuration. In addition, different piercing directions for SPR joints have a noticeable effect on the static and fatigue strength of the joints. The joint fatigue results presented in this paper offer design engineers the durability data for SPR joints with various material combinations under different loading conditions. Moreover, it provides manufacturing engineers with some insights on the effects of different manufacturing parameters on the strength and durability of these joints.
Abstract 79: The compartmentalization of folate metabolism depends on two isoforms of folylpoly-γ-glutamate synthetase and the mitochondrial folate transporter

Proceedings: AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010‐‐ Apr 17‐21, 2010; Washington, DC The reactions of folate metabolism are distributed between the cytosolic and mitochondrial compartments of mammalian cells and both components are essential for mammalian cell survival. The enzyme folylpoly-γ-glutamate synthetase (FPGS) has been shown to be essential for the intracellular retention of folates as polyglutamate derivatives. The fpgs gene produces two transcripts, one for an isoform with a leader peptide targeting it to the mitochondrial matrix, and the other is transcribed without this sequence, so that the encoded isoform remains in the cytosol. Transfer of folates into the mitochondrial matrix is mediated by an inner mitochondrial membrane transport protein, the mitochondrial folate transporter (MFT). Either deletion of the MFT or of mitochondrial FPGS is cytotoxic and renders the cell auxotrophic for glycine; the mechanism of this effect is far from apparent. To better understand this compartmentalization, we generated cell lines that express only the cytosolic or mitochondrial isoform of FPGS under tetracycline-inducible control in FPGS-null AuxB1 cells. Western blot analysis of the FPGS protein in these cell lines indicate that both FPGS isoforms are expressed near endogenous levels in the presence of doxycycline and that each cell line solely expresses the FPGS isoform in the respective compartment. Clonogenic survival of each doxycycline-induced cell line demonstrates a cellular requirement for each FPGS isoform. Additional studies showed that cells complemented with cytosolic FPGS only accumulated and retained folates in the cytosol but not mitochondria, leading us to conclude that folate polyglutamates are not substrates for the MFT. In addition, expression of only the mitochondrial form of FPGS resulted in cells that progressively trapped folates in the mitochondria, leading us to the concept that folate polyglutamates do not escape the mitochondria. However, cytosolic folates were observed in cells expressing only mitochondrial FPGS. We are currently using these cell lines to study the transfer of folates across the mitochondrial membrane and polyglutamation in each compartment. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 79.
Lipid peroxidation as a possible cause of TCDD toxicity

The target tissues of TCDD, the dysfunctions that result in death in experimental animals, and the ultimate biochemical lesion(s) caused by TCDD are not known despite numerous studies. We have shown by the thiobarbituric acid and conjugated diene methods that TCDD induces hepatic lipid peroxidation in rats. The lipid peroxidation produced by TCDD is both dose and time dependent. A 5-6 fold increase in lipid peroxidation occurs within 6 days following the administration of 40 micrograms TCDD/kg body weight/day for 3 days. Thus, the toxicity of TCDD may be caused in part by free radical-mediated lipid peroxidation that leads to general cell membrane damage which can ultimately produce death in experimental animals at acutely toxic doses.
A study of corrosion behavior of Ni-22Cr-13Mo-3W alloy under hygroscopic salt deposits on hot surface

Alloy 22, a nickel base Ni-22Cr-13Mo-3W alloy has an excellent corrosion resistance in oxidizing and reducing environments. Most of the corrosion studies on Alloy 22 have been conducted using conventional chemical or electrochemical methods. In the present investigation, the specimen was directly heated instead of heating the electrolyte, thereby simulating the nuclear waste package container temperature profile. Corrosion behavior of Alloy 22 and evaporation conditions of water diffusing on the container were evaluated using the newly devised heated electrode corrosion test (HECT) method in simulated acidified water (SAW) and simulated concentrated water (SCW) environments. In this method, the concentration of the environment varied with test duration. The corrosion rate of Alloy 22 was not affected by the continuous increase in ionic strength of the SAW (pH 3) environment. Passivation kinetics was faster with increase in concentration of the electrolytes. The major difference between the conventional test and HECT was the aging characteristics of the passive film of Alloy 22. The heated electrode corrosion test can be used for evaluating materials for construction of heat transfer equipments such as evaporators.
Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Pathologic Patterns and Biopsy Evaluation in Clinical Research

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) results in histologically complex specific and nonspecific injury patterns. In clinical research of NAFLD, the liver biopsy evaluation provides a wealth of information on the architectural arrangement and severity of a variety of histologic changes, including steatosis, inflammation, cellular injury, and fibrosis. This information is summarized as an overall diagnostic category, such steatosis or steatohepatitis and the severity of the injury can be graded and staged. Histopathologic disease classification in NAFLD is related to but separate from evaluation of individual histologic lesions. The patient population under study may affect the prevalence of histologic findings and in particular, pediatric patients with NAFLD may show a higher prevalence of zone 1 steatosis and periportal fibrosis as compared with adult populations. For the purposes of clinical research, it is important to provide the pathologist with biopsies that are adequate to classify the disease process as well as to grade and stage the changes. A current understanding of NAFLD pathologic classification, as well as nuances of grading and staging, is presented in this review.
Hypophagic rats with dorsomedial hypothalamic lesions produce lighter and smaller pups with a lower survival rate at weaning than offspring of sham-operated controls

Abstract Weanling and mature rats with dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus lesions (DMNL rats) show reduced ponderal and linear growth and hypophagia and hypodipsia in the presence of normal body composition and anabolic hormone levels. The present study was conducted to assess their reproductive/parenting capacity and some offspring parameters. Four groups were used: DMNL mothers and fathers, DMNL mothers and control (SCON) fathers, SCON mothers and DMNL fathers, and SCON mothers and SCON fathers. The constituent rats of each group were bred to yield between 14 and 22 litters. The smallest litter size, litter weight, mean pup weight, percent of live-born and percent of weaned pups and greatest percentage of still-born pups were recorded when both parents were DMNL rats. The latter parents also cannibalized the majority of litters. The above parameters improved when only one parent was a DMNL rat, but this was still significantly below the offspring of SCON × SCON parents. The DMN is not part of the classical hypophysiotropic area (HTA), but earlier findings indicate hyperprolactinemia in DMNL rats. Therefore, the lesion-induced hypophagia during gestation and the postpartum neuroendocrine profile of the DMNL mothers may be the cause of the observed litter deficiencies and poor survival.
Estimates of Water Ingestion in Formula by Infants and Children Based on USDA's 1994–1996 and 1998 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals

ABSTRACT Assessment of risk to infants and children resulting from the ingestion of contaminants in water is an important component of the analysis of possible environmental hazards. Children and infants represent a sensitive life stage because exposure to contaminants in early life can have developmental and long-lasting adverse effects. Children and infants tend to ingest relatively large amounts of water on a bodyweight-adjusted basis, especially those that are fed in early life with formula that is re-constituted or diluted with water. This article presents statistical estimates of the amounts of community water ingested by formula-fed infants based on nationwide sample survey data that support identification of respondents who consume formula and the amounts of water they ingest. Included are specific estimates of the amounts of community water ingested in formula. Estimates of total community water ingestion by children and infants who consume formula can be especially useful in exposure assessment ...
Migration, mobility and craftspeople in the Aegean Bronze Age: a case study from Ayia Irini on the island of Kea

AbstractThis paper investigates the question of human mobility from a practice-centered perspective, and argues for the value of such approaches in elucidating how new ideas and objects enter a community and become ‘local’ over time. In particular, I focus on the Middle Bronze Age in the Aegean Sea, and the foundation of a new settlement on the island of Kea, at Ayia Irini, apparently aimed to take advantage of an intensification of interregional trade and rising interest in the substantial metal resources at Lavrion, just opposite Ayia Irini on the coast of Attica. On the basis of the kinds of objects produced by local craftspeople, and the techniques used to do so, it is argued that the settlement of Ayia Irini incorporated people from diverse regions; the movement and integration of non-local people into the community over time resulted in an assemblage of artifacts and a way of life in the Aegean that was distinctively multicultural.
New source of colour coded signal wire sleeving for cryogenic applications

Wire sleeving made from Pb core nylon fishing line is presented. Signal wires can easily be sheathed in the nylon outer of weighted trolling line by drawing them through the outer attached to the core. Such line comes with a selection of colours on a single spool.
Incidence and predictors of loss of pacing in the atrium in patients with sick sinus syndrome.

Atrial and dual-chamber pacemakers may be associated with reduced morbidity in patients with the sick sinus syndrome (SSS). In some patients, however, subsequent development of chronic atrial fibrillation or atrial lead failure make long-term pacing in the atrium not feasible. We analyzed the incidence and predictors of loss of atrial pacing in 395 consecutive patients with SSS (376 with dual-chamber pacemakers and 19 with single-chamber atrial pacemakers). None of them was in established atrial fibrillation at time of implant. Patients were followed-up for 55 ± 35 months. Actuarial survival of effective atrial pacing was 92.5% at 1 year, 85% at 5 years, and 76.5% at 10 years. Overall, 60 patients lost atrial pacing. The most frequent cause was the development of chronic atrial fibrillation (53 patients). By multivariate analysis (Cox proportional-hazards model), independent predictors of Joss of pacing in the atrium were preimplant episodes of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) lasting more than 1 hour (P 50 mm was also an independent predictor of loss of atrial pacing (P = 0.028; HR = 2.28). Conclusions: 1) most patients with SSS can maintain long-term atrial pacing; 2) loss of pacing in the atrium is related to the previous history of PAF, left atrial enlargement, and low amplitude of the endocardial P wave at implant; and 3) patients with these risks variables are less than ideal candidates for atrial pacing modes. In them, the implant of DDDR units might be indicated, to provide wide flexibility in case reprogramming to a ventricular pacing mode is required.
Aging and Eldercare in More Developed Countries The United States, South Korea, and Puerto Rico

Successful aging can be enabled through a knowledge of what elders need to remain interdependent with their families, communities, and societies. But the rapid growth of the elderly populations in both the more and lesser developed countries is raising demands for eldercare and requiring brand new ways of assuring its success at these multiple levels of social organization. Two unifying themes in this special issue are (a) the relationships of health, illness, functionality, and disability to eldercare in old age; and (b) the evolving roles of family, community, and nation state in eldercare. All the articles in this special issue seek to foster new theory and new practice in eldercare. The authors believe that locally successful answers will promote global solutions when culturally appropriate adaptations are made. All cultures have much to teach.
Salt Marsh as a Coastal Filter for the Oceans: Changes in Function with Experimental Increases in Nitrogen Loading and Sea-Level Rise

Coastal salt marshes are among Earth's most productive ecosystems and provide a number of ecosystem services, including interception of watershed-derived nitrogen (N) before it reaches nearshore oceans. Nitrogen pollution and climate change are two dominant drivers of global-change impacts on ecosystems, yet their interacting effects at the land-sea interface are poorly understood. We addressed how sea-level rise and anthropogenic N additions affect the salt marsh ecosystem process of nitrogen uptake using a field-based, manipulative experiment. We crossed simulated sea-level change and ammonium-nitrate (NH4NO3)-addition treatments in a fully factorial design to examine their potentially interacting effects on emergent marsh plants in a central California estuary. We measured above- and belowground biomass and tissue nutrient concentrations seasonally and found that N-addition had a significant, positive effect on a) aboveground biomass, b) plant tissue N concentrations, c) N stock sequestered in plants, and d) shoot:root ratios in summer. Relative sea-level rise did not significantly affect biomass, with the exception of the most extreme sea-level-rise simulation, in which all plants died by the summer of the second year. Although there was a strong response to N-addition treatments, salt marsh responses varied by season. Our results suggest that in our site at Coyote Marsh, Elkhorn Slough, coastal salt marsh plants serve as a robust N trap and coastal filter; this function is not saturated by high background annual N inputs from upstream agriculture. However, if the marsh is drowned by rising seas, as in our most extreme sea-level rise treatment, marsh plants will no longer provide the ecosystem service of buffering the coastal ocean from eutrophication.
The Influence of Molecular Vibration on Brayton-Cycle Performance

By means of the harmonic-oscillator approximation, the influence of molecular vibration on Brayton-cycle performance is demonstrated.
Eliade's Theory of Millenarianism

To the extent that Mircea Eliade is concerned with millenarianism he is concerned with it as only an instance of religious phenomena generally and is concerned with its meaning rather than its cause. Yet presupposed in the meaning he finds is a theory of its cause, and that theory is worth examining both because it elucidates Eliade's approach to religion as a whole and because as an explanation of millenarianism it is atypical and even unique.
1N expansion for the superconducting order parameter near an Anderson impurity

Abstract We have previously developed a general theory for an Anderson impurity in a superconducting host; this theory expresses the perturbed order parameter, δΔ( q ), in terms of the impurity t -matrix. In this paper we specialize to the case T c ⪡ T K , where T K is the Kondo temperature. We calculate the t -matrix using the 1 N expansion of the U → ∞ Anderson model; explicit curves for δΔ( r ) are shown.
Diurnal variation of stratospheric chlorine monoxide - A critical test of chlorine chemistry in the ozone layer

Ground-based observations of a mm-wave spectral line at 278 GHz have yielded stratospheric chlorine monoxide column density diurnal variation records which indicate that the mixing ratio and column density of this compound above 30 km are about 20 percent lower than model predictions based on 2.1 parts/billion of total stratospheric chlorine. The observed day-to-night variation is, however, in good agreement with recent model predictions, both confirming the existence of a nighttime reservoir for chlorine and verifying the predicted general rate of its storage and retrieval.
Mechanical Strength of Carbon Nanotube/Nickel Nanocomposite

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have attracted broad attentions for developing innovative nanocomposites due to their exceptional properties. However, the success of developing nanocomposites is largely dependent on material processing. Authors' group has developed an innovative electrochemical co-deposition form synthesis of CNT reinforced metallic (Ni). Results indicate that the yield and ultimate strength of the as-deposited pure nickel are found to be about 350MPa and 625MPa, respectively, which are comparable to the reported data. However, it demonstrates that the yield strength and ultimate strength of Ni/MWCNT composite are about 1,290MPa and 1,700MPa, respectively. In other word, the ultimate strength of Ni/MWCNT nanocomposite is about 270% higher than that of pure nickel. Authors believe the largely increased mechanical strength of Ni/CNT nanocomposite is attributed to the novel fabrication that high temperature associated degradation problems in metallic composite processing such as diffusion, chemical reaction and mismatch of coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) are eliminated.
SU-GG-T-477: Dose Simulation in Random Media for Radiotherapy Planning with Proton Beams

Purpose: To develop a technique for proton beam dose simulation in a random medium where geometry or density may change stochastically. An example of such a random medium can be found in a rectum during fractionated proton therapy for prostate cancer because of air bubbles of random size and location. Method and Materials: The proton range in a random medium can be considered as a random parameter. The distribution of random proton ranges is given by the probability density function (PDF). The total dose distribution during fractionated radiotherapy may be described by a sample range PDF if we assume that the each fractional radiotherapy treatment is a single statistical trial. To verify this hypothesis we have computed the range PDFs in the random medium which simulates the proton beam transport through the rectum. The rectum was simulated as a cylindrical region with an air bubble randomly placed in the upper semicircle. A random number generator was utilized to simulate the random bubble location and radius. The range of a 200 MeV monoenegetic proton beam was computed using continuous slowing down approximation. Results: We have computed the proton range PDF in the model rectum problem using different number of histories. The range PDF consists of two henor parts describing the total probability notto hit the bubble. and total probability not to hit the bubble. The convergence of the range PDF in the “hit bubble” region was seen at 1000 histories; however, even with 40 histories the PDF shape can be predicted. The depth‐dose distributions in the “hit bubble” region agree within 10% for converged PDF and sample PDFs with 40 histories. Conclusions: The proton range PDF in a random medium as rectum with air bubbles can be potentially used for evaluation of total dose distributions in fractionated proton therapy.
Calculation of the geometric-mean transmittance in a multi-dimensional absorbing and anisotropically-scattering medium

Abstract Radiative heat transfer in an anisotropically-scattering medium is considered. Limiting expressions for the scattering contribution to the geometric-mean transmittance are developed. Using the kernel substitution technique, these expressions are evaluated analytically to provide closed form expressions for three selected two-dimensional geometries. These expressions allow conclusions to be drawn about the effect of anisotropic scattering in multi-dimensional systems.
The mechanism of proton exclusion in aquaporin channels

The mechanism of proton exclusion in aquaporin channels is elucidated through free energy calculations of the pathway of proton trans- port. The second generation multistate empirical valence bond (MS-EVB2) model was applied to simu- late the interaction of an excess proton with the channel environment. Jarzynski's equality was em- ployed for rapid convergence of the free energy profile. A barrier sufficiently high to block proton transport is located near the channel center at the NPA motif—a site involved in bi-orientational order- ing of the embedded water-wire in absence of the excess proton. A second and lower barrier is ob- served at the selectivity filter near the periplasmic outlet where the channel is narrowest. This second- ary barrier may be essential in filtering other large solutes and cations. Proteins 2004;55:223-228.
Zeno's paradoxes and the cosmological argument *

My aim in this paper is to show that the cosmological argument for the existence of God commits a rather trivial linguistic (or conceptual) fallacy, by showing that (1) some of Zeno's paradoxes commit a trivial linguistic (or conceptual) fallacy, and that (2) the cosmological argument is sufficiently similar to these paradoxes that it commits the same fallacy. This conclusion, of course, is far from being itself a trivial matter. Further, F.C. Copleston is adamant that "mention of the mathematical infinite series is irrelevant" to discussing any of Aquinas' arguments for God's existence.1 I wish to establish secondly the fundamental incorrectness of Copleston's surprising view. Whether there are other arguments by analogy which may be made to the common benefit or detriment of God and Zeno is a subject which I shall not pursue. Nor shall I inquire whether God as Alpha (or Omega) more closely corresponds to a Leibnizian or Benardetean infinitesimal or to a Weierstrassian or Russellian limit, though I am sure His existence would be more ontological than mathematical. I shall not even discuss an issue which might appear to be obviously germane, namely, the issue of the precise relation of mathematical objects and causes to perception. That is, I shall not ask in what sense, if any, seeing the edge of a piece of paper tacked to a wall ten feet away is seeing a mathematical line, or in what sense, if any, seeing a brick smash a window is seeing a cause. I shall be speaking of crossing finish lines and of seeing dominoes push each other over, but that should be taken as being on the level of common sense. Without the pyrotechnics
Analysis of biological and immunological activities in the two pools of LH released during constant infusion of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) in men.

In response to constant infusion of a submaximal dose of LHRH (0.2 ug/min for 4 hours), luteinizing hormone (LH) was released in a biphasic pattern in 6 normal men. When the in vitro biologic activity of plasma LH was compared to the immunologic activity throughout the response to LHRH, the B/I ratio remained unchanged (3.6 ± 0.5, mean ± SE). Thus, in men the biologic activity of stored LH (acutely releasable) is not different from the presumably newly synthesized hormone that is released as the second pool during prolonged LHRH infusion.
Integrated regulation of the photosynthetic gene family from Arabidopsis thaliana in transformed tobacco cells

Expression of the three chlorophyll a/b binding protein (cab) genes of Arabidopsis thaliana was studied in transformed tobacco tissues. For each cab gene, approximately 1000 bp of the promoter region plus a portion of the structural gene was inserted into a promoter-expression vector such that a translational fusion between the cab gene and the promoter-less chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (cat) gene was formed. The constructed molecules were introduced into either cultured tobacco cells or tobacco leaves and the promoter activity was monitored as chloramphenicol acetyltransferase activity. The light-grown tissues exhibited 1.5- to 60-fold greater promoter activity than did dark-grown tissues. Expression of the cab promoters was tissue specific: activities were much stronger in green leaves than other tissues. The cab promoters were almost equally active in transformed calli or shoots derived from leaves. However, in cultured tobacco cells, one promoter was two to three times stronger than the other two. The chimeric gene fusion, cab-cat, segregated in the F1 generation as a dominant Mendelian trait.
PhLi-initiated cycloisomerization of unsaturated organoiodides: mechanism of the isomerization of olefinic primary alkyl iodides

Abstract Evidence is presented indicating that the PhLi-initiated cycloisomerization of olefinic primary alkyl iodides involves a radical-mediated atom transfer process that had previously been implicated in the isomerization of secondary and tertiary substrates.
Persistent current for a Luttinger liquid.

We compute the current for a Luttinger ring treated by a magnetic flux at T=0 and T\ensuremath{\ne}0. We find that the current depends on the stiffness. The current is reduced with increase of the interaction strength and size of the ring. A scaling law, which relates the current in the presence of interaction to the noninteracting case, is obtained.
Segmentation methods in image cytometry

The difficult task of segmentation of cytologic images requires careful examination of the data and the goal that wants to be achieved. In this taper three segmentation schemes are introduced, each geared for a specific type of data or type of analysis. Also a way for separating touching objects is shown.
Detection of halogenated organic compounds using immobilized thermophilic dehalogenase.

Environmental pollutants containing halogenated organic compounds can cause a plethora of health problems. Detection, quantification, and eventual remediation of halogenated pollutants in the environment are important to human well-being. Toward this end, we previously identified a haloacid dehalogenase, L-HADST, from the thermophile Sulfolobus tokodaii. This thermophilic enzyme is extremely stable and catalyzes, stereospecifically, the dehalogenation of l-2-haloacids. In the current study, we covalently linked L-HADST to an N-hydroxysuccinimidyl Sepharose resin to construct a highly specific sensor with long shelf life for the detection of l-2-haloacids. The enzyme-modified resin was packed into disposable columns. Samples containing l-2-haloacids were first incubated in the column, and were then collected to quantify the chloride produced through the breakdown of the substrate. The optimum pH of the immobilized enzyme is around 9.5, similar to that of the soluble protein. Its catalytic activity increased with temperature up to the highest temperature measured (50 °C). The resin could be fully regenerated after multiple reaction cycles and retained 70% of the initial activity after being stored at 4 °C for 6 months. The L-HADST-modified resin could be used to breakdown and quantify l-2-haloacids spiked in the simulated environmental samples, indicating dehalogenases from extremophiles can potentially be employed in the detection and decontamination of l-2-haloacids.
Branding consumer goods: insights from theory and practice

Branding may be one of the most important decisions made by marketing managers. Since it is done somewhat sporadically, there are no strict guidelines provided by the companies to assist the managers in this task. Academic research also has not helped. While there is a tremendous amount of descriptive and normative research on the topic, it is somewhat fragmented in nature. Synthesizes findings from descriptive and normative studies on branding in the literature, and also from related fields. Integrates these with their own practical insight to recommend a step‐by‐step approach to building brand names.
Aphasic performance on a battery of constructional, Visuo-spatial, and quantitative tasks: Factorial structure and CT scan localization

This study examined the performance of aphasics on those functions associated with the parietal lobe of the left hemisphere. Data from the Parietal Lobe Battery (PLB) (Goodglass & Kaplan, 1972) were analyzed in 163 right-handed male aphasics with unilateral left-hemisphere lesions. Factor analysis on the 18 subtests of the PLB yielded a substantial general factor before rotation and four meaningful factors following rotation, involving construction, visual schemata, verbal components of the Gerstmann Syndrome, and visual finger recognition. Diverse aphasia subtypes were relatively homogeneous in their performance on the PLB. Upon examination of the influence of linguistic, demographic, and neurological factors, writing and auditory comprehension were found to make significant contributions to overall PLB performance. When considering lesion localization, as verified by CT scans in 36% of our sample, a lesion involving both parietal and frontal structures was the strongest predictor of impairment on the PLB.
COLLECT AND RELEASE DATA ON COERCIVE POLICE ACTIONS

During that same year, how many times did policeofficers use their batons or chemical spray during encounters with peoplein any given community? How many high-speed police pursuits ended incollisions? How many vehicle stops last year in any given community ledto vehicle searches, and what was the racial composition of those searchedas compared with those stopped? All of these questions have the sameanswer:
In‐Situ Measurement of Emissivities of Ceramic—Polymer Composite Materials

Emissivities of high-dielectric ceramic composites used in microelectronic packaging were measured by a modified hot-filament ASTM method and infrared thermometry ; total hemispherical emissivities were measured using the hot-filament method, and effective band emissivities were measured using infrared thermometry. Two ceramics-5 μm alumina and 2-3 μm aluminum nitride-were chosen as the base of the substrate. They were blended with poly(vinyl butyral) (PVB) with proper amounts of solvents and cast on a 304-stainless-steel strip used as the heating filament. Emissivity measurements in the temperature range of 380-1000 K were performed using three different sets of experiments. In the first set of experiments, the emissivities of unfired polymer composites were measured in the temperature range of 380-450 K, a temperature at which thermal degradation starts to occur. In the second set, the specimens were heated overnight in a furnace at 673 K for binder burnout, and measurements were conducted on fired composites in the temperature range of 380-1000 K. In the last set, the emissivity of the specimens were measured in situ in the temperature range of 380-1000 K by condensing the degradation products using a liquid-nitrogen cryogenic jacket on-line before the pump line to avoid contamination of the turbomolecular pump. The system pressure was controlled below 5 x 10 -5 torr (∼6.7 x 10 -3 Pa) in all experiments to constrain nonradiative types of heat transfer inside the bell jar.
Functional Identification and Nonlinear Control via a Perceptron Network

Tracking control of a general class of nonlinear systems using a Perceptron Neural Network (PNN) is presented. The basic structure of the PNN along with the conditions for its exponential convergence under a suitable training law are first derived. A novel discrete-time control strategy is introduced that employs the PNN for direct on-line estimation of the feedforward control input. A Lie-algebraic formalism is used to compute the gradient information demanded by the network's training law. Unlike most of the existing direct adaptive or learning schemes, the nonlinear plant is not assumed to be feedback linearisable. An application of the developed controller to the navigation a ground vehicle, which is a nonlinear nonholonomic system, is also presented.
Protection against Syphilis Correlates with Specificity of Antibodies to the Variable Regions of Treponema pallidum Repeat Protein K

Syphilis has been recognized as a disease since the late 1400s, yet there is no practical vaccine available. One impediment to the development of a vaccine is the lack of understanding of multiple reinfections in humans despite the development of robust immune responses during the first episode. It has been shown that the Treponema pallidum repeat protein K (TprK) differs in seven discrete variable (V) regions in isolates and that the antibody response during infection is directed to these V regions. Immunization with TprK confers significant protection against infection with the homologous strain. We hypothesize that the antigenic diversity of TprK is involved in immune evasion, which contributes to the lack of heterologous protection. Here, using the rabbit model, we show a correlation between limited heterologous protection and tprK diversity in the challenge inoculum. We demonstrate that antibody responses to the V regions of one TprK molecule show limited cross-reactivity with heterologous TprK V regions.
A system for the automated office environment

A review of the history of an office system application is presented, highlighting the learning process that took place during its evolutionary development. This ofice system has served as the basis for a PRPQ (customized program) recently announced by IBM and known as the Professional Office System (PROFS). The general application architecture is discussed, with a specific focus on the use of virtual machines. Functional details of the various components are described, and the key distinction between office systems and office automation is addressed. The paper also discusses usage of the system and points up some of the benefits being realized by current users of a prototype system in IBM. The application function review details the electronic document distribution capabilities of the system.
A game theoretic approach to measuring degree of centrality in social networks

Abstract We present a new measure of degree of centrality in a social network which is based on a natural extension of the Banzhaf (1965) index of power in an N -person game.
Classification of multiangle and multispectral ASAS data using a hybrid neural network model

Multiangle and multispectral radiance measurements obtained from ASAS can be used to correctly and efficiently classify land-cover data. The authors investigate the effectiveness of artificial neural network approach in using such multidomain radiance data. The neural network approach presented is a hybrid model that combines Kohonen's self-organizing network and a backpropagation model. The hybrid model is able to overcome an important limitation of the conventional feedforward model namely to speed up the convergence rate of supervised training. The model is tested using an ASAS image of Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota. Classification accuracy obtained using the hybrid model is compared to conventional feedforward model as well as statistical classification (maximum likelihood) procedures. The significance of data pre-processing, choice of number of input units, and network architecture in neural network approach in the context of ASAS data is also discussed. Neural networks may be efficient pattern classifiers for ASAS as well as data that is anticipated from sensors proposed for the Earth Observation System. >