cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
CLIA-certified next-generation sequencing analysis in the cloud

The development of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology opens new avenues for clinical researchers to make discoveries, especially in the area of clinical diagnostics. However, combining NGS and clinical data presents two challenges: first, the accessibility to clinicians of sufficient computing power needed for the analysis of high volume of NGS data; and second, the stringent requirements of accuracy and patient information data governance in a clinical setting. Cloud computing is a natural fit for addressing the computing power requirements, while Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certification provides a baseline standard for meeting the demands on researchers in working with clinical data. Combining a cloud-computing environment with CLIA certification presents its own challenges due to the level of control users have over the cloud environment and CLIA's stability requirements. We have bridged this gap by creating a locked virtual machine with a pre-defined and validated set of workflows. This virtual machine is created using our Galaxy VM launcher tool to instantiate a Galaxy [http://www.usegalaxy.org] environment at Amazon with specific versions of the tools used in the workflow. The VM launcher tool can reliably recreate the same virtual machine on several cloud environments. Once a baseline virtual machine is created, the tool can launch any number of clones to analyze samples in parallel. We describe herein a pilot project as an example of a working clinical analysis pipeline. In order to validate the clinical diagnosis of diseases with a genetic cause using NGS data, patient samples were collected by Dr Bharat Thyagarajan and staff at the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory, University of Minnesota medical center-Fairview. The patient samples were analyzed using customized hybrid-capture bait libraries to boost read coverage in low-coverage regions, followed by targeted enrichment sequencing at the BioMedical Genomics Center. The NGS data is imported to a tested Galaxy single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) detection workflow in a locked Galaxy virtual machine on Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2). This project illustrates our ability to carry out CLIA-certified NGS analysis in the cloud, and will provide valuable guidance in any future implementation of NGS analysis involving clinical diagnosis.
Ethical Changes: Duty to Man versus Duty to Mankind

For 2,000 years, western medicine has sought the ideal of the medical relationship as a cooperative interchange between two parties only, the patient and the physician. Under this patient-centered covenant, reciprocal duties and benefits obtain. In the past two centuries, military, industrial, governmental, and academic medicine interposed their interests with impact on the patient ranging from benevolent to the horrific, from the improved public health to physician participation in involuntary human experimentation and torture. These changes have been eclipsed by the interposition of the interest of third-party payers into the physician-patient relationship, the subject of this work. It appears that individual physician-patient teams can no longer be permitted unfettered access to unfortunately limited resources, lest exhaustion of means to care for other patients and to meet other needs of society be the inevitable result. The profound ethical changes underway have been obscured by the economic complexi...
Fast-neutron interaction with niobium

Results of a comprehensive study of the interaction of fast neutrons with niobium are presented, including measurement and interpretation of neutron total, differential-scattering and radiative-capture cross sections. The experimental results are interpreted in the context of the optical-statistical model, with attention to the Fermi-surface anomaly. Experimental results, physical interpretations and rigorous statistical methods are used to provide a comprehensive evaluated nuclear data file suitable for use in a wide range of applied neutronic calculations.
Dynamics of a single species in a spatially varying environment: The stabilizing role of high dispersal rates

Models for a single species that inhabits an environment that is spatially varying are presented. Simple necessary and sufficient conditions for stability, which are independent of the exact details of the dispersal process, are developed in the case of large diffusion rates. The results highlight the important stabilizing nature of diffusion in a spatially varying environment.
Individual differences in the neurophysiology of reward and the obesity epidemic

The obesity epidemic has unfolded in a matter of decades, not millennia, and therefore cannot be attributed to a drift in the genome. Rather, the temporal characteristics of the epidemic more closely track environmental and lifestyle changes, such as reduced physical activity, increased availability of palatable and energy-dense foods and drinks, and increased acceptance of eating outside of meal time (among others). One important observation is that not everyone is becoming obese. This suggests that individual factors interact with recent environmental changes to predispose some to overeat. One hypothesis that has been gaining traction in the neuroscience community is that individual differences in the neural encoding of foods may predispose some to overeat in the presence of a surplus of energy-dense, palatable foods and drinks. The aim of this review is to highlight several possible ways by which individual differences in the neurophysiology of food reward may lead to overeating.
Fluorescent solvent impurities as chromatogram artifacts

Abstract Common laboratory solvents such as methanol and ethyl acetate—even reagent and “spectral” grades—contain non-volatile fluorescent impurities which are concentrated during normal extraction procedures. These substances exhibit chromatographic spectral, and chemical properties which may cause them to be confused with certain natural products such as coumarins and cinnamic acids. They may be removed by distillation and/or adsorption.
Robust Parameter Design for Quality and Reliability Issues Based on Accelerated Degradation Measurements

Manufacturing quality and lifetime testing conditions may affect product reliability measurements. The literature for the design of experiments (DOE) and robust product optimization considering both quality and reliability issues is scarce. This article develops a model to include both manufacturing variables and accelerated degradation test (ADT) conditions. A simple algorithm provides calculations of the maximum likelihood estimates (MLEs) of these model parameters and percentile lifetimes. Variances of these estimates are derived based on large sample theory. Our DOE plans focus on deciding replication sizes and proportions of the test-units allocated at three stress levels for various manufacturing and ADT conditions. This work also explores robust parameter design (RPD) optimizations for selected controllable manufacturing variables to achieve the longest product lifetime and smallest variation in lifetime distributions.
Ureteric obstruction by ligature treated by endoscopic diathermy

The incidence of ureteric obstruction after hysterectomy is 2 to 3% (Symmonds, 1966). Open surgery has so far been the method of treatment of such obstruction. A cold coaxial knife has recently been used to treat ureteric strictures, with better short-term results than those achieved following other endoscopic procedures associated with dilatation (Selikowitz, 1990). We present what we believe to be the first reported case where total occlusion of the ureter by ligature was successfully treated by endoscopic diathermy.
A custom titanium abutment for the anterior single-tooth implant

The anterior single-tooth implant presents many restorative challenges. Several abutments have been developed in pursuit of anesthetic and functional solution. This article describes a technique for a custom abutment. This abutment is copy-milled from titanium in an anatomic form with a countertorque device and provides the flexibility to create an esthetic restoration for the anterior single-tooth implant.
Nucleotide-binding flexibility in ultrahigh-resolution structures of the SRP GTPase Ffh.

Two structures of the nucleotide-bound NG domain of Ffh, the GTPase subunit of the bacterial signal recognition particle (SRP), have been determined at ultrahigh resolution in similar crystal forms. One is GDP-bound and one is GMPPCP-bound. The asymmetric unit of each structure contains two protein monomers, each of which exhibits differences in nucleotide-binding conformation and occupancy. The GDP-bound Ffh NG exhibits two binding conformations in one monomer but not the other and the GMPPCP-bound protein exhibits full occupancy of the nucleotide in one monomer but only partial occupancy in the other. Thus, under the same solution conditions, each crystal reveals multiple binding states that suggest that even when nucleotide is bound its position in the Ffh NG active site is dynamic. Some differences in the positioning of the bound nucleotide may arise from differences in the crystal-packing environment and specific factors that have been identified include the relative positions of the N and G domains, small conformational changes in the P-loop, the positions of waters buried within the active site and shifts in the closing loop that packs against the guanine base. However, ‘loose’ binding may have biological significance in promoting facile nucleotide exchange and providing a mechanism for priming the SRP GTPase prior to its activation in its complex with the SRP receptor.
Two-dimensional Pixel Array Image Sensor for Protein Crystallography

A 2D pixel array image sensor module has been designed for time resolved Protein Crystallography. This smart pixels detector significantly enhances time resolved Laue Protein crystallography by two to three orders of magnitude compared to existing sensors like films or phosphor screens coupled to CCDs. The resolution in time and dynamic range of this type of detector will allow one to study the evolution of structural changes that occur within the protein as a function of time. This detector will also considerably accelerate data collection in static Laue or monochromatic crystallography and make better use of the intense beam delivered by synchrotron light sources. The event driven pixel array detectors, based on the column Architecture, can provide multiparameter information (energy discrimination, time), with sparse and frameless readout without significant dead time. The prototype module consists of a 16x16 pixel diode array bump-bonded to the integrated circuit. The detection area is 150x150 square microns.
Precision grid and hand motion for accurate needle insertion in brachytherapy.

Purpose: In prostate brachytherapy, a grid is used to guide a needle tip toward a preplanned location within the tissue. During insertion, the needle deflects en route resulting in target misplacement. In this paper, 18-gauge needle insertion experiments into phantom were performed to test effects of three parameters, which include the clearance between the grid hole and needle, the thickness of the grid, and the needle insertion speed. Measurement apparatus that consisted of two datum surfaces and digital depth gauge was developed to quantify needle deflections. Methods: The gauge repeatability and reproducibility (GRR additionally, at slow speed the tight, thick grid improved needle precision and accuracy. Conclusions: In summary, the tight grid is important, regardless of speed. The grid design, which shows the capability to reduce the needle deflection in brachytherapy procedures, can potentially be implemented in the brachytherapy procedure.
Effect of dichloroacetate on carbohydrate and lipid metabolism of isolated hepatocytes

Abstract Dichloroacetate has effects upon hepatic metabolism which are profoundly different from its effects on heart, skeletal muscle, and adipose tissue metabolism. With hepatocytes prepared from meal-fed rats, dichloroacetate was found to activate pyruvate dehydrogenase, to increase the utilization of lactate and pyruvate without effecting an increase in the net utilization of glucose, to increase the rate of fatty acid synthesis, and to decrease slightly [1-14C]oleate oxidation to 14CO2 without decreasing ketone body formation. With hepatocytes isolated from 48-h-starved rats, dichloroacetate was found to activate pyruvate dehydrogenase, to have no influence on net glucose utilization, to inhibit gluconeogenesis slightly with lactate as substrate, and to stimulate gluconeogenesis significantly with alanine as substrate. The stimulation of fatty acid synthesis by dichloroacetate suggests that the activity of pyruvate dehydrogenase can be rate determining for fatty acid synthesis in isolated liver cells. The minor effects of dichloroacetate on gluconeogenesis suggest that the regulation of pyruvate dehydrogenase is only of marginal importance in the control of gluconeogenesis.
Recovery code generation for general speculative optimizations

A general framework that integrates both control and data speculation using alias profiling and/or compiler heuristic rules has shown to improve CPU2000 performance on Itanium systems. However, speculative optimizations require check instructions and recovery code to ensure correct execution when speculation fails at runtime. How to generate check instructions and their associated recovery code efficiently and effectively is an issue yet to be well studied. It is also, very important that the recovery code generated in the earlier phases integrate gracefully in the later optimization phases. At the very least, it should not hinder later optimizations, thus, ensuring overall performance improvement. This paper proposes a framework that uses an if-block structure to facilitate check instructions and recovery code generation for general speculative optimizations. It allows speculative instructions and their recovery code generated in the early compiler optimization phases to be integrated effectively with the subsequent optimization phases. It also allows multilevel speculation for multilevel pointers and multilevel expression trees to be handled with no additional complexity. The proposed recovery code generation framework has been implemented and evaluated in the Open Research Compiler (ORC).
HELIUM CLUSTER ISOLATION SPECTROSCOPY OF ALKALI DIMERS IN THE TRIPLET MANIFOLD

Helium cluster isolation spectroscopy is a recently developed spectroscopic method that involves the formation of a beam of large helium clusters (104 atoms per cluster), the capture by the cluster...
Visual Dependency Structure Matrix for Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Tradeoff Studies

The design of complex products, such as automobiles and aircraft, necessitates modeling of the physics within numerous participating disciplines that are inherently linked through the transference of critical data. The resulting complexity makes it essentially impossible for designers or design teams, regardless of the number of participants or expertise of the participants, to intuitively understand the interdependencies of the disciplinary analyses and tasks. Recent methods and tools being developed in the field of multidisciplinary design optimization provide a means of representing these inherent couplings, as well as a way in which tradeoffs between accuracy and efficiency may be explored. It is with this in mind that the visual dependency structure matrix has been developed in this work. The visual dependency structure matrix is a web-based framework, coupled with underlying cost and error models, that enables designers to explore the possibility of eliminating or suspending couplings interactively, before or during a complex analysis run.The paper presents the visual dependency structure matrix framework and shows how the visual dependency structure matrix can be used as a mechanism for designers to cut computational costs during the design process without sacrificing the desired accuracy of the system level process.
Enhancement of conditioned taste aversions by lesions of the midbrain raphe nuclei that deplete serotonin

Electrolytic lesions of the dorsal and median raphe nuclei enhanced the avoidance of a saccharin solution that had been paired with a single injection of the toxic drug, lithium chloride. A chemically specific lesion of the same nuclei by intracerebral infusion of 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine produced the same behavioral effect. Neither lesion group differed from control animals in the consumption of an unpaired novel fluid or of an unpaired familiar fluid. Both lesions caused a significant depletion of telencephalic serotonin. The data suggest that the enhanced suppression of saccharin intake was due to damage to serotonergic neurons. Rats with electrolytic lesions in the median raphe nucleus alone showed a significant enhancement of saccharin avoidance in the taste aversion paradigm. The addition of a dorsal raphe lesion increased serotonin depletion but did not produce a significant increment in saccharin avoidance. Thus, decreased hippocampal or septal serotonin, produced by the median lesions, may be responsible for the facilitation of the learned taste aversion. Furthermore, this facilitation may be due to the development of associations between the injection procedure and nongustatory aspects of the test situation.
Massively Parallel Discrete Element Modeling of Legged Mobility on Granular Terrain

Quantitatively understanding wheeled mobility on granular terrain such as sand or gravel is critical for design and operations of ground vehicles for terrestrial or extra-terrestrial applications. While the Bekker-Wong theory of wheeled mobility and its derivatives have been used in many applications, the static nature of these formulations are limiting in understanding mobility in deformable terrain under dynamic mobility conditions. Single wheel hardware experiments in laboratory settings and detailed modeling of wheel-terrain interactions are two avenues currently being actively pursued to develop quantitative understanding of wheeled mobility. In this paper, we present findings of massively parallel discrete element modeling of wheeled mobility on granular media such as sand. We present a brief overview of the underlying methodology and then focus on the results of the simulation. In these simulations, we model the inter-granular interactions and interactions between the wheel and the granules with an objective of using high fidelity first-principles approach to capture emergent behavior in these complex and highly dynamic phenomena. These simulations typically model millions of granules and use highly scalable software and parallel computing resources to overcome the severe complexity of the problem. We present results of parametric studies with varying levels of both wheel penetration and mobility conditions. These have been modeled to present a quantitative perspective of the diverse behaviors encountered in wheeled mobility on granular terrain. We have retained the full complexity of the problem by simulating granules of the size encountered in real terrain to overcome the fidelity limited issues of other comparable methods that use much larger granules.Copyright © 2013 by ASME
Apical root resorption in orthodontic patients with en-masse maxillary anterior retraction and intrusion with miniscrews

Introduction The purposes of this retrospective study were to investigate the apical root resorption of maxillary incisors in orthodontic patients with en-masse maxillary anterior retraction and intrusion with miniscrews and the factors disposing a patient to apical root resorption. Methods Fifty adult patients with maxillary protrusion were included; 30 were treated with miniscrews and extraction of the maxillary first premolars (group I), and 20 were treated with extraction of the maxillary first premolars (group II). For each patient, periapical films of the maxillary incisors and lateral cephalometric radiographs were taken before and after treatment to evaluate apical root resorption and cephalometric measurements. The intergroup differences were analyzed with the Student t test and the correlations between apical root resorption and cephalometric measurements were analyzed by the Pearson correlation. Results The apical root resorption values were 16.0% to 20.0% (2.5-2.8 mm) in group I and 13.4% to 14.4% (2.1-2.3 mm) of the original root length in group II. Group I had significantly more severe Class II jaw discrepancy (ANB, 7.1° ± 1.9°) than did group II (ANB, 3.2° ± 2.9°). The amount of maxillary en-masse anterior retraction (8.2 ± 2.4 mm), the duration of treatment (28.3 ± 7.3 months), and apical root resorption of maxillary lateral incisors were significantly greater in group I than in group II. Apical root resorption of the maxillary central incisors was significantly correlated to the duration of treatment but not to the amount of en-masse retraction, intrusion, or palatal tipping of maxillary incisors. Conclusions Miniscrew anchorage allows for more maxillary en-masse anterior retraction in patients with severe Class II cases. But the time needed for the greater amount of maxillary en-masse anterior retraction with miniscrew anchorage is longer and might dispose the patient to more apical root resorption.
IL-10 administration attenuates pulmonary neutrophil infiltration and alters pulmonary iNOS activation following hemorrhagic shock

Objective and design: Several studies report immuno-modulatory effects of endogenous IL-10 after trauma. This study investigates the effect of IL-10 administration on systemic and pulmonary inflammation in hemorrhagic shock.
Computing approximate random Delta v magnitude probability densities

This paper describes the development and use of an algorithm to compute approximate statistics of the magnitude of a single random trajectory correction maneuver (TCM) Delta v vector. The TCM Delta v vector is modeled as a three component Cartesian vector each of whose components is a random variable having a normal (Gaussian) distribution with zero mean and possibly unequal standard deviations. The algorithm uses these standard deviations as input to produce approximations to (1) the mean and standard deviation of the magnitude of Delta v, (2) points of the probability density function of the magnitude of Delta v, and (3) points of the cumulative and inverse cumulative distribution functions of Delta v. The approximates are based on Monte Carlo techniques developed in a previous paper by the author and extended here. The algorithm described is expected to be useful in both pre-flight planning and in-flight analysis of maneuver propellant requirements for space missions.
Response to Letter by Vale

Response: We thank Dr Vale for his comments on our study. He raises an interesting question as to whether deregulated stress response could be an underlying mechanism for the association between depressive symptoms and risk of …
Insulin and glucagon binding and degradation by kidney cell membranes.

The binding and degradation of insulin and glucagon to kidney cell membranes was examined. Time- and temperature-dependent specific binding of [125I]iodo-insulin to kidney cell membranes was demonstrated. The membranes also degraded insulin in a time-, temperature-, and protein concentration-dependent manner. The apparent Km of the degradation was 2.7 × 10-7 M. Glucagon degradation by the kidney membranes was extremely active. Per milligram of protein the kidney membrane was over 20 times as active as the liver membrane. Even at 4 C, significant glucagon degradation occurred. Because of this very active degradation, glucagon binding could not be accurately assessed. The kidney glucagon-degrading activity was inhibited by glutathione and EDTA but unaffected by N-ethylmaleimide, ACTH, or insulin, all potent inhibitors of liver glucagon degradation. The apparent Km for glucagon degradation by the kidney, however, was essentially identical with that for the liver, 2.4 × 10-6 M. (Endocrinology 102: 1766, 1978)
Platelet activating factor (paf) causes human platelet aggregation through the mechanism of membrane modulation

Abstract Recent investigations have shown that human and canine platelets possess a new pathway for securing irreversible platelet aggregation independent of ADP secretion and prostaglandin synthesis. Platelet activating factor (PAF) is a potent aggregating agent for rabbit platelets and is also reputed to stimulate the cells by a completely independent pathway. Since the newly recognized mechanism in human and dog cells, termed membrane modulation, might be mediated by PAF we evaluated the influence of this agent on human cells. Results of that study demonstrated that PAF did not activate platelets through an independent pathway and was not involved in the mechanism of membrane modulation. In the present investigation we have examined the possibility that PAF might act on human platelets through the mechanism of membrane modulation. Human platelets were made refractory to amounts of PAF routinely causing irreversible aggregation by prolonged incubation of C-PRP at 37°C, by exposure to PG1 2 or aspirin, or by aggregation-disaggregation of control or aspirin treated cells. Epinephrine at concentrations which did not cause aggregation turned on the mechanism of membrane modulation in refractory platelets and restored their sensitivity to PAF. Thus, PAF does not appear to activate human platelets through a unique,independent pathway. Rather, it usually causes irreversible aggregation of human cells through the mechanisms of ADP secretion and thromboxane synthesis,or, as shown in this study, can be dependent on membrane modulation.
The early opening between Broken Ridge and Kerguelen Plateau

Abstract Reconstructions to total closure of the Australia-Antarctic continents causes an unacceptable overlap of Broken Ridge and Kerguelen Plateau. This has been partially resolved in the past by supposing that the northern part of Kerguelen, that is principally involved in the overlap, is younger than the remainder. We have revised the early reconstructions using a newly proposed breakup chronology of Australia and Antarctica which suggests that opening began at least 90 m.y. B.P. at an initially slow rate. This eliminates the overlap problem without invoking major age differences within the Kerguelen Plateau. We also suggest that the northeastern flank of Kerguelen Plateau may be underlain by the “missing” westward continuation of the Diamantina Zone. It may have been isolated on the Antarctic plate by a ridge crest jump at about anomaly 24 time that also formed the Ob Trench.
Journal for Specialists in Group Work (JSGW) Publication Pattern Review: A Meta-Study of Author and Article Characteristics From 1981–2010

Patterns of articles published in The Journal for Specialists in Group Work (JSGW) from 1981–2010 were reviewed in this meta-study. Author (e.g., sex, employment setting, nation of domicile) and article (e.g., topic, design, sample, sample size, participant type, statistical procedures, and sophistication) characteristics were analyzed for trends over time.
The phonon spectra of β-CuI3)

The phonon dispersion curves of the wurtzite structured β phase of CuI are calculated, using the second neighbor ionic model of Banerjee and Varshni. This calculation based on a previous paper where the phonon spectra of the zinc blende structured γ phase of CuI is calculated. The long range. Coulomb interaction is calculated directly and the short range interaction matrices are calculated by a transformation of the previously calculated short range matrices of γ-CuI with some additional corrections because of the nonideal nature of the wurtzite lattice of β-CuI. Es wird die Berechnung der Phononendispersionskurven der Wurtzit-β-Phase von CuJ mit dem Tonenmodell zweiter Nachbarn von Banerjee und Varshni beschrieben. Sie beruht auf einer fruheren Arbeit, in der die Phononenspektren der Zinkblende-γ-Phase von CuJ berechnet wurden. Die langreichweitige Coulombwechselwirkung wird direkt berechnet und die Matrizen der kurz-reichweitigen Wechselwirkungen werden durch eine Transformation der fruher berechneten kurz-reichweitigen Matrizen von γ-CuJ berechnet mit einigen zusatzlichen Korrekturen wegen der nicht-idealen Natur des Wurtzitgitters von β-CuJ.
Earning a master's of science in nursing through distance education

The increased availability of telecommunications technology has made possible the offering of degree programs via distance education. Such programs make courses and degrees more readily accessible to a wider range of students than has traditionally been the case. The University of Tennessee, Memphis, College of Nursing has undertaken to offer a Master's of Science in Nursing degree entirely by distance education. The challenges, successes, and technology of the program are discussed.
The word length effect in children with language impairment

Abstract Two types of serial word recall tasks (full verbal recall and probed recall) were administered to 11 children with language impairment and 22 language-normal children matched for productive language or chronological age. The methods were designed to take into account age-related differences in the use of subvocal rehearsal, as measured by the word length effect. The word length effect was significant for all three groups in full recall, but not in probed recall, supporting the hypothesis that children with language impairment demonstrate limited capacity for processing verbal output. Discussion focuses on the importance of considering developmental factors in measuring short-term memory effects in children with language impairment. Learning outcomes As a result of this activity, the participant will be able to describe the phonological loop hypothesis and discuss the interactions between working memory and language performance in children with language disorders.
Efficacy of On-Demand Asimadoline, a Peripheral Κ-Opioid Agonist, in Females with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Background & Aims: In experimental animal models of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and human studies, peripheral κ opioid agonists have been shown to decrease sensation to colonic distention. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of the κ opioid agonist, asimadoline, and placebo on episodes of abdominal pain in patients with IBS. Methods: After a 2-week run-in period, 100 patients with IBS were randomized (3:2 ratio) to receive asimadoline, up to 1 mg 4 times daily, or placebo for 4 weeks in a double-blind study. Pain was scored by daily diary using a 100-mm visual analogue scale. During pain episodes, patients recorded the pain severity, took study medication, and recorded their pain score 2 hours later. The primary end point was the average reduction in pain severity 2 hours after treatment. Results: The average pain reduction 2 hours posttreatment was not significantly different between the groups. Post hoc analyses suggest asimadoline was effective in mixed IBS (P = .003, unadjusted), but may be worse in diarrhea-predominant IBS (P = .065 unadjusted). The anxiety score was reduced modestly by asimadoline (P = .053). No significant adverse effects were noted. Conclusions: An on-demand dosing schedule of asimadoline was not effective in reducing severity of abdominal pain in IBS. Further studies in visceral pain and IBS appear warranted.
Postoperative predictors of early discharge following laparoscopic segmental colectomy

There is increasing pressure to shorten length of stay (LOS) after major surgical procedures. Although laparoscopic colectomy has been shown to have shorter LOS than open colectomy, not all patients experience a short length of stay. Predictive factors for early discharge after laparoscopic colectomy have not been clearly defined. We hypothesized that patients who exhibit a brisk urine output and lack of a systemic inflammatory response on the first postoperative day would experience a shorter postoperative stay after laparoscopic colectomy. We performed a retrospective review of patients undergoing laparoscopic segmental colectomy by one of colorectal surgeons from 2012 to 2013. Patient demographics, operative characteristics, and postoperative factors were examined. A multiple linear regression model was used to examine the impact of various factors on length of stay, while controlling for confounding variables. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) was defined using Society of Critical Care Medicine consensus definitions. A total of 127 patients underwent a laparoscopic segmental colectomy. When controlling for confounding variables, ileus, postoperative complication, and SIRS response were associated with 2.67, 1.16, and 0.42 additional hospital days, respectively, while each additional liter of urine output on postoperative day 1 was associated with a 0.23-day decrease in LOS (p = 0.006). In the absence of postoperative ileus or overt complication, patients who do not exhibit a SIRS response, and have a brisk urine output on postoperative day (POD) 1, may be targeted for early hospital discharge after laparoscopic colectomy.
Quantifying spatial organization in point-localization superresolution images using pair correlation analysis

The distinctive distributions of proteins within subcellular compartments both at steady state and during signaling events have essential roles in cell function. Here we describe a method for delineating the complex arrangement of proteins within subcellular structures visualized using point-localization superresolution (PL-SR) imaging. The approach, called pair correlation photoactivated localization microscopy (PC-PALM), uses a pair-correlation algorithm to precisely identify single molecules in PL-SR imaging data sets, and it is used to decipher quantitative features of protein organization within subcellular compartments, including the existence of protein clusters and the size, density and number of proteins in these clusters. We provide a step-by-step protocol for PC-PALM, illustrating its analysis capability for four plasma membrane proteins tagged with photoactivatable GFP (PAGFP). The experimental steps for PC-PALM can be carried out in 3 d and the analysis can be done in ∼6-8 h. Researchers need to have substantial experience in single-molecule imaging and statistical analysis to conduct the experiments and carry out this analysis.
Reaction Monitoring On Metal And Ceramic Surfaces Using Laser Light Scattering

Spontaneous Raman scattering has been applied at the Combustion Research Facility of Sandia National Laboratories to study high-temperature reactions at the gas-solid interface. This technique provides information otherwise unobtainable concerning phases and structures present on surfaces at elevated temperatures. We discuss three representative applications, oxidation of alloys, formation of deposits, and ceramic attack by molten salts.
Microhardness of oriented amorphous-crystalline polymers

We study the influence of solid-phase extrusion based on the deformation by simple shear on the microhardness of crystallizing polymers. It is shown that extrusion enhances microhardness, which is explained by the increase in the degree of crystallinity and crystallite perfection as well as by the formation of the orientational order. We establish correlations between the microhardness, yield stress, and the modulus of elasticity of oriented polymers. Their character is discussed from the viewpoint of the classical theory of plasticity and explained by different contributions of elastic and plastic strains to the total deformation of the polymers.
Dismissal Policies in the United States and Europe: Employment at Will Versus Just Cause

This article presents employment termination as a question of social justice. Two main competing models for legal rules governing the dismissal of individual employees are detailed: The U.S. modified Employment at Will approach and the common European Just Cause approach. A method of moral analysis is proposed for assessing the conflicting arguments behind each model. A series of questions are identified that can serve as a research program for arriving at a normative judgment concerning the relative moral merits of the competing models.
Analysing source code: looking for useful verb-direct object pairs in all the right places

The large time and effort devoted to software maintenance can be reduced by providing software engineers with software tools that automate tedious, error-prone tasks. However, despite the prevalence of tools such as IDEs, which automatically provide program information and automated support to the developer, there is considerable room for improvement in the existing software tools. The authors' previous work has demonstrated that using natural language information embedded in a program can significantly improve the effectiveness of various software maintenance tools. In particular, precise verb information from source code analysis is useful in improving tools for comprehension, maintenance and evolution of object-oriented code, by aiding in the discovery of scattered, action-oriented concerns. However, the precision of the extraction analysis can greatly affect the utility of the natural language information. The approach to automatically extracting precise natural language clues from source code in the form of verb–direct object (DO) pairs is described. The extraction process, the set of extraction rules and an empirical evaluation of the effectiveness of the automatic verb–DO pair extractor for Java source code are described.
LATTICE DYNAMICS OF YTTRIUM AT 295 K.

Phonon-dispersion curves along the [$10\overline{1}0$], [$11\overline{2}0$], and [0001] symmetry directions of the hcp metal yttrium have been measured by inelastic neutron scattering using the triple-axis neutron spectrometer at the Ames Laboratory Research Reactor. The dispersion curves are not strikingly different from those of other hcp metals with a similar $\frac{c}{a}$ ratio. A careful search has been made for Kohn-type anomalies, and evidence for two such anomalies has been obtained. A modified axially symmetric force-constant model has been used to fit the phonon frequencies, and it has been found that although forces acting normally to the basal plane are not large beyond first neighbors, forces acting parallel to the basal plane are long-ranged, and interactions up to at least sixth neighbors have to be taken into account. The fitting has been done in a linear manner using Fourier analyses of the dispersion curves and other linear constraints such as the elastic constants. A frequency-distribution function has been calculated and used to calculate the specific heat and anisotropic Debye-Waller factor. Good agreement is obtained on comparison with the experimental data.
In vitro response of the natural cadaver knee to the loading profiles specified in a standard for knee implant wear testing

The purpose of this study was to examine how a natural knee responds to the inputs of a total knee replacement testing standard developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This load control standard prescribes forces to be used for wear testing of knee replacements independent of implant size or design. A parallel ISO standard provides wear testing inputs that are displacement based instead of force based. Eight fresh frozen cadaveric knees were potted and tested in a 6 degree of freedom knee simulator using the load-control standard. The resulting displacements during load-control testing were compared to the prescribed displacements of the ISO displacement standard. At half the tibial torque prescribed by the load standard there was three times more average internal tibial rotation (20.3 degrees) than is prescribed by the displacement standard (5.7 degrees). The AP motion resulting from load testing was much different than is specified by the displacement standard. All eight knees had anterior tibial translation with respect to the femur during swing phase while the displacement standard specifies posterior tibial displacement. The variation in these motions among knees and their difference from the ISO displacement standard may be one factor that explains why wear results of total knee replacements based on ISO load or displacement testing frequently do not agree with each other or with clinical retrievals.
Determination of agglomerate strength distributions Part 3. Application to titania processing

Abstract A quantitative agglomerate strength determination technique, consisting of exposing sample dispersion to a calibrated ultrasonic field and following the resultant changes via particle size analysis, was examined and developed in previous portions of this study. In the present part (Part 3) the use of this technique as a diagnostic tool in a powder processing scheme is demonstrated. Titanium dioxide was prepared by two different routes, thermal hydrolysis and base-induced precipitation, to obtain powders with distinctly different strength distributions. By the introduction of slight modifications in the processing schemes, a total of five different titania powders were produced. The agglomerate strength distributions of these powders (both precursor and the calcined oxide) were measured and related to chemical and other structural properties to show that slight changes in material properties could be detected and subsequently related to a particular processing step. Ultrasound-derived agglomerate strength distribution curves were also compared to uniaxial compaction tests.
8,16-Dihydroxyhexadecanoic acid, a major component from cucumber cutin

Abstract The major component of cucumber (Cucumis sativus) cutin has been identified as 8,16-dihydroxyhexadecanoic acid by mass and NMR spectroscopy. This is the first report of this monomer as a major cutin component.
Modelling crop canopy and residue rainfall interception effects on soil hydrological components for semi‐arid agriculture

Crop canopies and residues have been shown to intercept a significant amount of rainfall. However, rainfall or irrigation interception by crops and residues has often been overlooked in hydrologic modelling. Crop canopy interception is controlled by canopy density and rainfall intensity and duration. Crop residue interception is a function of crop residue type, residue density and cover, and rainfall intensity and duration. We account for these controlling factors and present a model for both interception components based on Merriam's approach. The modified Merriam model and the current modelling approaches were examined and compared with two field studies and one laboratory study. The Merriam model is shown to agree well with measurements and was implemented within the Agricultural Research Service's Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM). Using this enhanced version of RZWQM, three simulation studies were performed to examine the quantitative effects of rainfall interception by corn and wheat canopies and residues on soil hydrological components. Study I consisted of 10 separate hypothetical growing seasons (1991-2000) for canopy effects and 10 separate non-growing seasons (1991-2000) for residue effects for eastern Colorado conditions. For actual management practices in a no-till wheat-corn-fallow cropping sequence at Akron, Colorado (study II), a continuous 10-year RZWQM simulation was performed to examine the cumulative changes on water balance components and crop growth caused by canopy and residue rainfall interception. Finally, to examine a higher precipitation environment, a hypothetical, no-till wheat-corn-fallow rotation scenario at Corvallis, Oregon, was simulated (study III). For all studies, interception was shown to decrease infiltration, runoff, evapotranspiration from soil, deep seepage of water and chemical transport, macropore flow, leaf area index, and crop/grain yield. Because interception decreased both infiltration and soil evapotranspiration, no significant change in soil water storage was simulated. Nonetheless, these findings and the new interception models are significant new contributions for hydrologists. Published in 2006 by John Wilev & Sons. Ltd.
Data Validation of Hand Hygiene Compliance

ISSUE: In compliance with JCAHO Safety Goal # 7 following the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) standards on hand hygiene (HH), the Department of Veterans Affairs New Jersey Healthcare System (VANJHCS) Infection Control program in 2004 initiated the monitoring of HH practices by training intra-raters (unit-based observers). The compliance of East Orange campus was below 90% despite aggressive campaign, medical center-wide display of hand washing posters and “hand-glow” demonstrations. The Infection Control Practitioners also met with non-compliant departments where data was graphically presented and proper product use and HH techniques were re-emphasized. In an effort to validate HH data, a high school volunteer was utilized as the inter-rater in the summer of 2005 to conduct observational reliability monitoring of HH practices in four (4) patient care, namely Emergency Room, Medical and Surgical Intensive Care Units and Same Day Surgery. PROJECT: The monitoring initiative started with orientation of intra-raters to the process, which required observations of ten (10) healthcare providers per month performing HH practices before and after patient contact. The volunteer, a non-employee who maintain confidentilaity and reduce bias was trained as inter-rater and given the exact orientation as the intra-raters. The inter-rater monitored the healthcare providers in the designated areas for two (2) months. RESULTS: The inter-rater had 239 observations and the uint-based observers monitored 80 healthcare providers for that period. The inter-rater's rate of compliance to HH practices was lower than the intra-raters. LESSONS LEARNED: The inter-rater an external observer captured the actual HH practices of the healthcare providers. The data of the unit-based observers should be validated for reliability and be use for process improvement.
Toward defining grade C pancreatic fistula following pancreaticoduodenectomy: incidence, risk factors, management and outcome

Background In 2005 the International Study Group for Pancreatic Fistula (ISGPF) created a definition and grading system for pancreatic fistulae (PF) in which grade C denotes the most severe and potentially life-threatening type. Factors and outcomes associated with grade C fistulae have been ill defined.
Absorbing boundary conditions for the fractional wave equation

We present an absorbing boundary condition technique for computational models of the two-dimensional time-fractional wave equation. This technique, adapted from the Sommerfeld radiation condition used for classical second-order wave equations, can significantly reduce the computational overhead required when modeling phenomena in a small portion of a large or infinite domain. The stability and effectiveness of the technique are demonstrated analytically and by numerical examples.