cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Stress hyperglycemia in general surgery: Why should we care?

Abstract Aims To determine the frequency of increasing levels of stress hyperglycemia and its associated complications in surgery patients without a history of diabetes. Methods We reviewed hospital outcomes in 1971 general surgery patients with documented preoperative normoglycemia [blood glucose (BG) 140 mg/dL or > 180 mg/dL) within 48 h after surgery between 1/1/2010 and 10/31/2015. Results A total of 415 patients (21%) had ≥ 1 episode of BG between 140 and 180 mg/dL and 206 patients (10.5%) had BG > 180 mg/dL. The median length of hospital stay (LOS) was 9 days [interquartile range (IQR) 5,15] for BG between 140 and 180 mg/dL and 12 days (IQR 6,18) for BG > 180 mg/dL compared to normoglycemia at 6 days (IQR 4,11), both p 180 mg/dL had more complications [OR 3.46 (95% CI 2.24–5.36)] and higher mortality [OR 6.56 (95% CI 2.12–20.27)] compared to normoglycemia. Conclusion Increasing levels of stress hyperglycemia are associated with higher rates of perioperative complications and hospital mortality in surgical patients without diabetes.
European Exploration of the Pacific During the Age of Discovery

The exploration of the Pacific began with Portuguese interests in the Indian Ocean and adjacent seas. This chapter begins with the establishment of trading posts in Ceylon, India and the Maldive Islands, and eventually in the Spice Islands of Indonesia, all of which had already been heavily influenced by traders from the Middle East. In the late fifteenth century the eastward traffic from Europe used the Indian Ocean route, pioneered by Vasco de Gama, a pathway that never actually crossed the ocean. In an effort to find an alternative route to the Spice Islands, Ferdinand Magellan took the first epic voyage across the Pacific in 1520. He discovered and described the low islands he encountered there, but there would be no renewal of food or water until reaching the Mariana Islands. Here he would encounter the Chamorro people on the island of Guam after being at sea for 98 days. The interaction would become a sociological template for future dealings between native Pacific people and the Europeans, as evidenced by the more extensive Pacific explorations made by Alvaro de Mandana de Neira and Pedro Fernandez de Quiros beginning in 1567. The discoveries and difficulties associated with those three voyages are described in detail.
Glucocorticoid receptor activation is associated with increased resistance to heat-induced hyperthermia and injury.

AIM: Anti-inflammatory mediators likely play a key role in maintaining thermal homeostasis and providing protection against heat stress. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between activation of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and resistance to heat-induced hyperthermia and injury. METHODS: Effects of heat exposure on core body temperature, muscle GR phosphorylation status and subcellular expression were examined in control mice and thermal acclimation (TA)-exposed mice. In addition, effects of TA and corticosterone on C2C12 mouse myoblast viability and subcellular GR were assessed during heat exposure. RESULTS: Phosphorylated, nuclear, and mitochondrial GR levels were significantly higher in the gastrocnemius muscles of mice with mild hyperthermia (tolerant), compared to mice with severe hyperthermia (intolerant) during a heat exposure test. Similar changes were found in mice after TA, compared to non-TA exposed controls. Additional groups of TA and non-TA exposed mice underwent a heat exposure test. TA mice presented a significantly lower hyperthermic response during heat exposure than non-TA exposed control. C2C12 cells exposed to TA incubation had higher viability against heat shock, and showed higher GR levels in their mitochondria and nuclei detected by western blot analysis and fluorescence microscopy, compared to cells exposed to normal incubation. Furthermore, pre-incubation with 0.1 μM corticosterone increased C2C12 cell viability during heat exposure and, mitochondrial and nuclear GR expression. CONCLUSION: The results of these in vivo and in vitro studies suggest that GR activation is associated with increased resistance against heat-induced hyperthermia and injury. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. Language: en
BRIGHAM PROTOCOL-BASED HYPERTENSION OPTIMIZATION PROGRAM (BP-HOP)

Hypertension (HTN) affects 1/3 of adults; uncontrolled, it is a major risk factor for CV disease, stroke and death. Control rates for HTN nationwide are suboptimal at 52%. We describe an innovative blood pressure (BP) management program to improve control utilizing solely telemonitoring and non-
A possible mechanism of nondegradative tolerance of pisatin in Nectria haematococca MP VI

Abstract Nectria haematococca MP VI, a pathogen of pea, is tolerant of pisatin, the major phytoalexin that accumulates in pea during pathogenesis. One mode of pisatin tolerance is the detoxification of this phytoalexin. In previous research, we identified and partially characterized a second mode of tolerance that occurs independently of detoxification (“nondegradative” tolerance). In the current study, we attempted to determine a likely mechanism for nondegradative pisatin tolerance. Pisatin was taken up and retained by mycelium of isolate 126-80 during the time that growth was inhibited by the phytoalexin, but a decrease in the amount of pisatin retained was associated with development of nondegradative tolerance. The evidence was consistent with nondegradative tolerance being the result of a mechanism that excludes pisatin from its site of action, although other mechanisms could not be ruled out. The initial accumulation of pisatin did not appear to require metabolic energy, but energy and protein synthesis were needed for the expression of reduced pisatin retention. However, it was unclear whether metabolic energy was necessary for the maintenance of reduced levels of pisatin. In the absence of any significant changes in pisatin efflux, we deduced that reduced pisatin retention probably occurs when the rate of pisatin influx decreases, and that membrane modifications may be occurring simultaneously.
Invariant Operator Ranges

This report describes a portion of joint work with M. Radjabalipour, H. Radjavi and P. Rosenthal [8]. The set of Hilbert space operators that leave invariant a fixed dense operator range is given a matrical representation. Also it is shown that every operator on an infinite dimensional Hilbert space has an uncountable collection of infinite dimensional invariant operator ranges such that any two of them have only the vector 0 in common.
Advances in resistant hypertension.

Resistant hypertension (RHTN) has historically been defined as high blood pressure (BP) that remains uncontrolled despite use of 3 or more antihypertensive agents from different classes, including ideally, a diuretic. In 2008, the first American Heart Association Scientific Statement on RHTN included a new category of “controlled RHTN” as high BP controlled on 4 or more antihypertensive agents (1).
The Effects of Stress and Temperature on the Open-Hole Tension Fatigue Behavior of a Graphite/Bismaleimide Composite

An experimental investigation was performed to determine the behavior of an open-hole tension (OHT) graphite/bismaleimide composite specimen loaded in tension-tension fatigue under isothermal, fixed-frequency conditions. A range of stress levels and temperature levels was chosen to assess performance. These loads and elevated temperatures ranged from relatively benign conditions (low stress, room temperature) up through aggressive conditions (high stress, high temperature). Measurements were made of stiffness, edge crack density, residual strength, weight loss, and changes in glass transition temperature (T g ). Results from this work will help explain the roles of aging and fatigue damage in the performance of graphite/bismaleimide OHT specimens as well as providing insights into the individual and synergistic contributions of each of these processes. Contributions of aging and microcrack formation during elevated temperature fatigue of OHT specimens may result in a net stiffness increase in the gage section and a decrease in residual strength. The magnitude of changes in stiffness or strength is determined by the time at temperature and the chosen stress level.
Crossover of resources and well-being within employee-partner dyads: through increased schedule control

This study examined whether one partner's additional resources obtained from a workplace intervention influence the other partner's perception of having those resources at home (crossover of resources). We also examined whether one partner's decreased stress by increased work resources crosses over to the other partner's stress levels (crossover of well-being). Longitudinal data came from IT employees and their married/cohabiting partners in midlife (N=327). A randomized workplace intervention significantly increased employee-reported schedule control at the 6-month follow-up, which, in turn, increased partner-reported employees' work schedule flexibility to handle family responsibilities at the 12-month follow-up. The intervention also decreased partners' perceived stress at the 12-month follow-up through the processes by which increases in schedule control predicted decreases in employees' perceived stress, which further predicted decreased levels of partners' perceived stress. Notably, crossover of resources and well-being were found in couples who lived with children in the household, but not in couples without children. Our findings suggest that benefits of workplace support can permeate into the family domain, by increasing partner-perceived family resources and well-being.
Machine Learning Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding is a novel and important economic mechanism for funding projects and promoting innovation in the digital economy. This article explores most recent structured and unstructured data from a crowdfunding platform. It provides an in-depth exploration of the data using text analytics techniques, such as sentiment analysis and topic modeling. It uses novel natural language processing to represent project descriptions, and evaluates machine learning models, including neural network models, to predict project fundraising success. It discusses the findings of the performance evaluation, and summarizes lessons for crowdfunding platforms and their users.
Motivating Future Engineers: Building Situation Sensing Mars Rover with Elementary School Students

This innovative practice category full paper contains the outline of an upper elementary grade afterschool STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) extra-curricular activity (STEM Club) in which the students learn how to design and build a situation sensing robot like the Mars Rover. The participants (n = 40) in this study will be fourth-grade students from a low socio-economic elementary school. These students will participate in seven, one-hour long, weekly-STEM Club sessions led by STEM professionals from a Tier one research university. The experimental group will participate in hands-on STEM activities situated in a real-world context with microcontrollers, sensors, motors, and other electric and electronic robotic components. Additionally, this group will focus on the basics of coding, algorithmic thinking, situation sensing, and human-robot interaction. The experimental group will design, build, and test a situation-sensing robot while the control group will develop an online game. All students will complete pre-and post-test surveys to measure their change in perceptions and attitudes toward STEM academics and career paths change in their engineering identity.
Stable Climates for Temperate Rocky Circumbinary Planets

Circumbinary planets may comprise a significant fraction of the temperate rocky planets in our galaxy. A wide range of previous work has explored the climate of circumbinary planets with one-dimens...
p-tau/Aβ42 Ratio Associates with Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer’s disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Cognitively Unimpaired Older Adults

INTRODUCTIONThe most well-studied biomarkers in AD are CSF amyloid beta-42 (A{beta}42), tau, p-tau, and the ratio p-tau/A{beta}42. The ratiometric measure of p-tau/A{beta}42 shows the best diagnostic accuracy, and correlates reliably with metrics of cognition in unimpaired participants. However, no study has examined the impact of the CSF p-tau/A{beta}42 ratio in predicting cognitive decline in both healthy and AD individuals in one sample. The goal of this study was to examine whether CSF-based p-tau/A{beta}42 predicts changes in global cognitive functioning, episodic memory, and executive functioning over a two-year period in cognitively impaired older adults (CU), and in individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Alzheimers disease (AD). METHODSThis study involves secondary analysis of data from 1215 older adults available in the Alzheimers Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). Neuropsychological variables, collected at baseline, 6-month, 12-month, and 24-month follow-ups, included the Preclinical Alzheimers Cognitive Composite (PACC) to assess global cognitive functioning, ADNI-MEM to assess episodic memory functioning, and ADNI-EF to assess executive functioning. Linear mixed models were constructed to examine the effect of CSF p-tau/A{beta}42, diagnostic group, and change over time (baseline, 6-month, 12-month, and 24-month) on cognitive scores. RESULTSCSF p-tau/A{beta}42 ratios predicted worsening cognitive impairment, both on global cognition and episodic memory in individuals with MCI and AD, but not in CU older adults and predicted decline in executive functioning for all three diagnostic groups. DISCUSSIONOur study, including CU, MCI, and AD individuals, provides evidence for differential cognitive consequences of accumulated AD pathology based on diagnostic groups.
Understanding “Zoom fatigue”: Theorizing spatial dynamics as third skins in computer-mediated communication

Abstract “Zoom fatigue”—theorized here as part of a larger experience with computer-mediated communication (CMC) exhaustion—has emerged as a common negative experience through prolonged use of CMC platforms. Despite CMC exhaustion’s ubiquity, the relatively novel phenomenon has caused much speculation for its root causes with little information pinpointing why it occurs. Utilizing research, observations, and personal accounts, this article explores synchronous online consultations (SOCs) within writing centers as matching sites to ponder the basis for CMC exhaustion. In doing so, third skins are proposed to account for how nuanced differences in space between SOCs and face-to-face exchanges mean participants are not engaged as human actors but “flattened” into a totality of third skin comprising person, background, and technology. The resulting transformation and our bodies exerting substantial cognitive efforts to interact with this transformation are theorized to produce CMC exhaustion. The implications for this are twofold: 1) for readers interested in the underlying causes of CMC exhaustion, this work presents a framework to test the ideas proposed and develop mitigating strategies, and 2) for readers who study SOCs, third skins might explain previously observed limitations in the effectiveness of visuality in CMC.
Heteroskedasticity and Serial Correlation in the Error Component Model

The standard error component model given by Eqs. ( 2.1) and ( 2.2) assumes that the regression disturbances are homoskedastic with the same variance across time and individuals. This may be a restrictive assumption for panels, where the cross-sectional units may be of varying size and as a result may exhibit different variations. For example, when dealing with gasoline demand across OECD countries, steam electric generation across various size utilities, or estimating cost functions for various US airline firms, one should expect to find heteroskedasticity in the disturbance term. Assuming homoskedastic disturbances when heteroskedasticity is present will still result in consistent estimates of the regression coefficients, but these estimates will not be efficient. Also, the standard errors of these estimates will be biased and one should compute robust standard errors correcting for the possible presence of heteroskedasticity.
A distributed-parameter control system using electromagnetic neural stimulation for human–machine perception interface

This article presents a new design of a distributed-parameter control system for human–machine perception interface, which is capable of precisely stimulating the neural systems with electromagneti...
Modified Diffusion Tensor Image Processing Pipeline for Archived Studies of Patients With Leukoencephalopathy.

BACKGROUND In archived diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies, a reversed-phase encoding (PE) scan required to correct the distortion in single-shot echo-planar imaging (EPI) may not have been acquired. Furthermore, DTI tractography is adversely affected by incorrect white matter segmentation due to leukoencephalopathy (LE). All these issues need to be addressed. PURPOSE To propose and evaluate a modified DTI processing pipeline with DIstortion COrrection using pseudo T2 -weighted images (DICOT) to overcome limitations in existing acquisition protocols. STUDY TYPE Retrospective feasibility. SUBJECTS DICOT was assessed in simulated data and 84 acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients with reversed PE acquired. The pipeline was then tested in 522 scans from 261 ALL patients without a reversed PE acquired. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE A 3 T; diffusion-weighted EPI; 3D magnetization prepared rapid acquisition gradient echo (MPRAGE). STATISTICAL TESTS Repeated measures analysis of variance and Tukey post hoc tests were performed to compare fractional anisotropy (FA) values obtained by different methods. ASSESSMENT FA and corresponding absolute error maps were obtained using TOPUP, DICOT, INVERSION (Inverse contrast Normalization for VERy Simple registratION) and NO CORR (no correction). Each method was assessed by comparing to TOPUP. The pipeline in the ALL patients was evaluated based on the failure rate of the distortion correction using the global correlation values. RESULTS Using DICOT reduced the mean absolute errors by an average of 32% in FA in simulation datasets. In 84 patients, the error reductions were approximately 15% in FA with DICOT, while it was 5% with INVERSION. No significant differences between the TOPUP and DICOT were observed in FA with P = 0.090/0.894(AP/PA). Only 15 of 516 examinations requiring any additional manual intervention. CONCLUSION This modified pipeline produced better results than the INVERSION. Furthermore, robust performance was demonstrated in archived patient scans acquired without an inverse PE necessary for TOPUP correction. EVIDENCE LEVEL 3 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.
Toxigenic fungi in food.

Forty-five fungal isolates from moldy supermarket foods were tested for toxicity to brine shrimp, and twenty-two of these isolates were subsequently tested for toxicity to chicken embryos. Highly toxigenic fungi were Cladosporium sphaerospermum from a bakery product, Fusarium oxysporum from carrots, F. solani from cabbage, Aspergillus niger and Penicillium corylophilum from bread, P. cyclopium and P. herquei from corn meal, P. lanosum from onions, P. steckii from chocolate syrup, Penicillium sp. from jelly, and Rhizopus nigricans isolates from sweet potato, applesauce, and strawberries. Approximately one-third of the fungal cultures were moderately to highly toxigenic to brine shrimp and chicken embryos, while several additional cultures were slightly toxigenic.
Women in the Synoptic Gospels: Seen but not Heard?:

This article presents a quantitative analysis of the literary portrayal of male and female minor characters interacting with Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels. It asks, “Are the women characters presen...
Bouveault–Blanc reduction

Also known as the Bouveault reaction. Reduction of esters to the corresponding alcohols using sodium in an alcoholic solvent.
Microtiter Method for the Evaluation of Viable Cells in Bacterial Cultures

A microtiter technique was investigated as a means of evaluating viable cells in bacterial cultures. Parallel experiments were performed employing the conventional agar plate method along with the microtiter procedure. Statistical analyses showed that the correlation between the two methods was highly significant. With this new method, many samples were analyzed simultaneously, and readable results were obtained in 12 to 15 hr. Other advantages of this method were substantial savings of time, space, and materials. Also, the applicability of this method to estimates of mixed bacterial populations was demonstrated by studying the associative growth of two bacterial cultures.
Incidental power morcellation of malignancy: A retrospective cohort study

Abstract Objective Uterine fibroids often require hysterectomy via a laparotomy or utilizing minimally invasive surgical (MIS) approach. Morcellation is a fragmentation of the uterus into smaller pieces. The objective of this study is to determine the incidence of malignancies found in morcellated specimens at our institution. Methods Women who had a minimally invasive hysterectomy, for presumptive benign uterine conditions were identified, included and reviewed. Patients were divided into two groups being either benign disease or malignancies. The continuous variables uterine weight and patient age were tested for normalcy with the Shapiro–Wilk test. The exposure of subspecialist vs general gynecology was interrogated via a Chi-Squared analysis. Results 10 cases of malignancies were identified including endometrioid endometrial carcinomas (3), uterine serous carcinoma (1), endometrial stromal sarcomas (ESS) (3), and leiomyosarcomas (LMS) (3). An overall risk of occult cancer on a morcellated specimen was .73%; leiomyosarcoma was 0.22%, endometrial stromal sarcoma 0.22%, and endometrial cancer 0.29%. The median uterine weight for the 10 morcellated malignancies was 293.5g whereas the median weight for the benign uteri was only 117.5g giving a theta of −106 (95% CI −261,20). There was no difference in patient age or surgeon type between the groups (See Table 1). Conclusions Morcellation was associated with substantially higher risk of abdominopelvic recurrence and lower disease-free survival. Morcellated uterine malignancies were significantly heavier than benign uteri. Further research on uterine morcellation should focus on decision and cost–benefit analyses to determine the ideal candidate in whom uterine morcellation during minimally invasive hysterectomy would facilitate more good than harm.
Numerical convergence and physical fidelity analysis for Maxwell’s equations in metamaterials

Abstract In this paper, we develop a leap-frog mixed finite element method for solving Maxwell’s equations resulting from metamaterials. Our scheme is similar to the popular Yee’s FDTD scheme used in electrical engineering community, and is preferable for three dimensional large scale modeling since no storage of the large coefficient matrix is needed. Our scheme is proved to obey the Gauss’s law automatically if the initial fields satisfy that. Furthermore, the conditional stability and optimal error estimate for the proposed scheme are proved. To our best knowledge, we are unaware of any other publications devoted to the convergence analysis of this leap-frog explicit scheme for Maxwell’s equations even in a simple medium, while our results for metamaterials automatically reduce to the standard Maxwell’s equations in vacuum by dropping some terms resulting from the constitutive equations. Numerical results confirming our analysis are presented.
Sensitivity of Lake-Effect Snowfall to Lake Ice Cover and Temperature in the Great Lakes Region

AbstractHigh-resolution Weather Research and Forecasting Model (WRF) simulations are used to explore the sensitivity of Great Lakes lake-effect snowfall (LES) to changes in lake ice cover and surface temperature. A control simulation with observed ice cover is compared with three sensitivity tests: complete ice cover, no lake ice, and warmer lake surface temperatures. The spatial pattern of unfrozen lake surfaces determines the placement of LES, and complete ice cover eliminates it. Removal of ice cover and an increase in lake temperatures result in an expansion of the LES area both along and downwind of the lake shore, as well as an increase in snowfall amount. While lake temperatures and phase determine the amount and spatial coverage of LES, the finescale distribution of LES is strongly affected by the interaction between lake surface fluxes, the large-scale flow, and the local lake shore geography and inland topography. As a consequence, the sensitivity of LES to topography and shore geometry differs ...
Does the solid-state structure of endothelin-1 provide insights concerning the solution-state conformational equilibrium?

Additional NMR data (local NOE ratios and chemical shifts) for endothelin-1 supporting the existence of a relatively regular helix initiated abruptly at Lys9 (with Asp8 as an N-cap) and extending in all cases to Cys15 (and in a frayed form to Asp18 in some analogs) is presented. The recent solid-state structure [Janes et al. (1994), Nature Struct. Biol. 1, 311–319], in contrast, places the helix in the extreme C-terminal section of the structure and the Lys9—Tyr13 segment is not helical. The X-ray structure does not predict the NOEs or chemical shifts observed for endothelins in aqueous media containing polar organic co-solvents. An analysis of the chemical shift data for reporter groups indicates that the helical conformational preference of endothelins is not significantly altered by the addition of acetonitrile, acetic acid, or ethylene glycol. The validity of the analytic strategy is supported by results for both more rigid and less helical analogs. We conclude that the structure observed in crystals obtained from purely aqueous media is influenced by intermolecular interactions in the solid state and is not a significant contributor to the conformational equilibrium observed for monomeric ET-1.
Congenital Aneurysm of the Aortomitral Intervalvular Fibrosa

A 5-year-old boy was found to have a congenital left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) aneurysm of the intervalvular fibrosa, LVOT obstruction after repair of a perimembranous ventricular septal defect, and aortic coarctation. The patient underwent successful plication of the aneurysm, resection of the fibrous subaortic stenosis, and septal myectomy.
The black middle class: Progress, prospects, and puzzles

This article documents the size and growth of the black middle class at the beginning of the 21st century, analyzing data from the US Census and the Current Population Survey on income, occupations, and education. We examine barriers to further growth of the black middle class, assessing theories of marriageability and imbalances in the numbers of college-educated black men and women. We also document the consequences of low marriage and cohabitation rates for the growth of the black middle class, and show that there are relatively high rates of intergenerational downward mobility among affluent black families.
Chromatin structure determines accessibility of a hairpin polyamide–chlorambucil conjugate at histone H4 genes in pancreatic cancer cells

We have shown that a specific pyrrole-imidazole polyamide-DNA alkylator (chlorambucil) conjugate, 1R-Chl, alters the growth characteristics of various cancer cell lines in culture, and causes these cells to arrest in the G2/M stage of the cell cycle, without apparent cytotoxicity. This molecule has also shown efficacy in several mouse xenograft models, preventing tumor growth. Previous microarray studies have suggested that members of the histone H4 gene family, H4c and H4j/k, are the primary targets of this molecule, leading to reduced histone mRNA synthesis and growth arrest in cancer cells. In the present study, we examine the effects of 1R-Chl on transcription of other members of the H4 gene family, with the result that mRNA transcription of most genomic copies of H4 are down-regulated by 1R-Chl in a human pancreatic cancer cell line (MIA PaCa-2), but not in a cell line of non-cancerous origin (HEK293 cells). The basis for this differential effect is likely an open chromatin conformation within the H4 genes in cancer cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments show increased histone acetylation on the histone H4 genes in cancer cells, compared to HEK293 cells, explaining the differential activity of this molecule in cancer versus non-cancer cells.
Convergent evidence for abnormal striatal synaptic plasticity in dystonia

Dystonia is a functionally disabling movement disorder characterized by abnormal movements and postures. Although substantial recent progress has been made in identifying genetic factors, the pathophysiology of the disease remains a mystery. A provocative suggestion gaining broader acceptance is that some aspect of neural plasticity may be abnormal. There is also evidence that, at least in some forms of dystonia, sensorimotor “use” may be a contributing factor. Most empirical evidence of abnormal plasticity in dystonia comes from measures of sensorimotor cortical organization and physiology. However, the basal ganglia also play a critical role in sensorimotor function. Furthermore, the basal ganglia are prominently implicated in traditional models of dystonia, are the primary targets of stereotactic neurosurgical interventions, and provide a neural substrate for sensorimotor learning influenced by neuromodulators. Our working hypothesis is that abnormal plasticity in the basal ganglia is a critical link between the etiology and pathophysiology of dystonia. In this review we set up the background for this hypothesis by integrating a large body of disparate indirect evidence that dystonia may involve abnormalities in synaptic plasticity in the striatum. After reviewing evidence implicating the striatum in dystonia, we focus on the influence of two neuromodulatory systems: dopamine and acetylcholine. For both of these neuromodulators, we first describe the evidence for abnormalities in dystonia and then the means by which it may influence striatal synaptic plasticity. Collectively, the evidence suggests that many different forms of dystonia may involve abnormal plasticity in the striatum. An improved understanding of these altered plastic processes would help inform our understanding of the pathophysiology of dystonia, and, given the role of the striatum in sensorimotor learning, provide a principled basis for designing therapies aimed at the dynamic processes linking etiology to pathophysiology of the disease.
Thermodynamics and structure of solidification in the fusion zone of CO2 laser welds of 15-5 PH stainless steel

Abstract The microstructure in the fusion zone of 15-5 PH autogeneous laser beam welds revealed that the solidification mode is primary ferrite. Both primary ferrite and eutectic ferrite existed in the fusion zone. Primary ferrite was found to be in the vermicular morphology and located at the axes of the cells. Eutectic ferrite was roundish in nature and was located at the cell boundaries. Eutectic ferrite was identified with its location in the structure and it is associated with NbC and a niobium-containing Z-phase precipitate. The formation of a eutectic and the thermal phase stability of 15-5 PH was predicted from the Fe-Ni-Cr phase diagram for the nominal composition of the alloy from equal chemical potentials and differential mass balance equations. These equations were used to predict the solidification path and microsegregation patterns for iron, nickel and chromium for the case of complete mixing in the liquid. It was shown that the solidification mode is ferrite and that the liquid reaches the eutectic valley when the fraction of solid is 0.7. The precipitation hardening element and the phase were pure copper, and were coherent with the matrix both in the fusion zone and in the base metal. Generally, the fusion zone was found to be harder than the base metal.
Bond strength, compositional, and structural properties of hydroxyapatite coating on Ti, ZrO2-coated Ti, and TPS-coated Ti substrate.

The effect of titanium plasma-sprayed (TPS) and zirconia (ZrO2)-coated titanium (Ti) substrates on the adhe- sive, compositional, and structural properties of plasma- sprayed hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings were evaluated. X- ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectros- copy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, surface roughness, and adhesive strength were used to characterize the coatings. Apatite-type and -tricalcium phosphate phases were observed for all HA coatings. A structural change due to the absence of a 960 cm −1 peak during FTIR analysis was observed for all HA coatings. The coating surfaces appeared rough and melted, with surface roughness correlating to the size of the starting powder. No significant difference in the Ca/P ratio of HA on Ti and TPS-coated Ti substrates was observed. However, the Ca/P ratio of HA on ZrO2-coated Ti substrate was sig- nificantly increased. Interfaces between all coatings and sub- strates were observed to be dense and tightly bound, except for HA coatings on TPS-coated Ti substrate interface. How- ever, an intermediate TPS or ZrO2 layer between the HA and Ti substrate resulted in a lower adhesive strength as com- pared to HA on Ti substrate. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 64A: 509-516, 2003
Attachment to Territory: Status or Achievement?

It is by now widely agreed that a theory of territorial rights must be able to explain attachment or particularity: what can link a particular group to a particular place with the kind of normative force necessary to forbid encroachment or colonization? Attachment is one of the pillars on which any successful theory of territory will have to stand. But the notion of attachment is not yet well understood, and such agreement as does exist relies on unexamined assumptions. One such assumption is that attachment is an achievement of some sort, as opposed to some kind of brute ascriptive status that a claimant has irrespective of anything it might do. But achievements do not come for free. ‘Achievement’ is a success term, and any theory predicated on success, no matter how minimal, requires a theory of failure. Yet theorists of territory have not grappled with the problem of failure.
Strong correlation effects in the electron binding energies of phthalocyanine

Vertical ionization energies of free-base phthalocyanine are determined with the partial third-order and the third-order algebraic diagrammatic construction approximations of electron propagator theory. A triple-ζ plus polarization basis set is used in calculations performed with semidirect algorithms. Strong correlation effects occur for all final states with π holes. Whereas the Koopmans description of the lowest cationic state retains some qualitative validity, this approximation collapses in the remaining π final states. The results are in good agreement with photoelectron spectra. Two vertical electron affinities correspond to bound 2B1g and 2B2g anionic states of phthalocyanine. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2009
Renal medullary carcinoma: Clinical, pathologic, immunohistochemical, and genetic analysis with pathogenetic implications

Abstract Objectives To investigate the pathologic, clinical, and genetic features of renal medullary carcinomas (RMCs) in search of clues to their pathogenesis. Methods We analyzed 40 RMCs for clinical features, for immunohistochemical expression using a panel of markers, and for genetic changes using comparative genomic hybridization. Results Patients presented at 5 to 32 years of age, and 82% were African American. All patients tested had sickle cell trait or disease. Seven patients presented with suspected renal abscess or urinary track infection without a clinically recognizable mass. Of the 15 tumors able to be analyzed, all were positive for epithelial markers CAM 5.2 and epithelial membrane antigen. All were negative for high-molecular-weight cytokeratin 34βE12. Cytokeratins 7 and 20 and carcinoembryonic antigen were heterogeneous and variable. Ulex was focally positive in a minority of cases. Eight of 12 tumors showed significant positivity for TP53 protein (greater than 25% nuclear positivity). All tumor tested (n = 8) were strongly positive for vascular endothelial growth factor and hypoxia inducible factor. Of nine tumors analyzed for genetic gains and losses using comparative genomic hybridization, eight showed no changes and one showed loss of chromosome 22. Survival ranged from 2 weeks to 15 months (mean 4 months). Conclusions These findings suggest that RMC is clinically and pathologically distinct from collecting duct carcinoma. The hypothesis that chronic medullary hypoxia secondary to hemoglobinopathy may be involved in the pathogenesis of RMC is suggested by strong vascular endothelial growth factor and hypoxia inducible factor expression and positivity for TP53.
Fibronectin immobilized by a novel surface treatment regulates fibroblast attachment and spreading.

In order to understand the influence of cell-adhesive molecules on anchorage-dependent cell behavior on biomaterial surfaces, a model system is required where these molecules can be applied to surfaces with controlled surface ligand density and resistance to the adsorption of additional proteins present in the medium. This study asked whether fibronectin could be immobilized in a controlled manner to a hydrophobic surface with a chemically modified triblock surfactant. ELISA studies indicated that variation of the soluble fibronitctin concentration used for immobilization could be used to control the amount of fibronectin immobilized to the surface. Furthermore, fibroblasts seeded on these surfaces in 10% serum-containing medium atttched and spread as a function of the amount of immobilized fibronectin. Surfaces treated with unmodified surfactant did not support cell attachment, suggesting that cell attachment and spreading were primarily regulated by the immobilized fibronectin with minimal interference from adsorption of serum proteins. Together, these results suggest that covalent immobilization to Pluronic F108 provides a method for studying cellular responses to cell adhesive proteins with little interference from competing adsorbates, even in the presence of complex biological fluids such as serum. This technique may be applicable to a variety of existing hydrophobic biomedical polymers as a basic scence tool as well as for influencing cell behavior at implant interfaces.
Film-induced sadness as a trigger for disinhibited eating.

Objective We tested whether film-induced sadness enhances food intake in restrained eaters. Method Female participants scoring either high or low on a measure of dietary restraint viewed two film segments in counterbalanced order on successive days: an emotionally neutral travelogue and a sad film depicting the death of the young female protagonist. Results Contrast analyses revealed that film-induced sadness significantly reduced food intake in low-restraint individuals, but only nonsignificantly increased it in high-restraint individuals. Discussion When sadness is induced without an apparent ego threat, high-restraint participants may not exhibit as much disinhibited eating as when they are exposed to mood inductions that threaten their self-esteem. © 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 28: 215–220, 2000.
Extended rigerous dependency diagrams for designing fully normalized relational databases

No database management system can be implemented without the design of its database data structure. Data structures for databases intended for use by relational database management systems should be fully normalized to avoid deletion, update and insertion anomalies in such systems. Because normal form theories and guidelines are not easy to use or apply (using nonloss decomposition) and since only the first normal form is needed to get the software for relational database management systems to work, many users simply organize all data fields into a few tables and proceed with their processing without decomposing the relations into fully normalized forms. In August, 1985 a methodology was introduced by Henry C. Smith to offer a better method for database design. This new simplified methodology promised to overcome the difficulties associated with nonloss decomposition. In this methodology, from a dependency list a dependency diagram composed of interlinked bubbles and double bubbles is constructed. Fully normalized tables are driven from the dependency diagram. Although the methods has a number of positive points yet it has some drawbacks such as representation of many to many on the dependeny diagram and transformation of one to many relationships to relations and incomplete representation of the relationship between entities. In this presentation extension of the model is explored to overcome these drawbacks.
Licensing of Yeast Centrosome Duplication Requires Phosphoregulation of Sfi1

Duplication of centrosomes once per cell cycle is essential for bipolar spindle formation and genome maintenance and is controlled in part by cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks). Our study identifies Sfi1, a conserved component of centrosomes, as the first Cdk substrate required to restrict centrosome duplication to once per cell cycle. We found that reducing Cdk1 phosphorylation by changing Sfi1 phosphorylation sites to nonphosphorylatable residues leads to defects in separation of duplicated spindle pole bodies (SPBs, yeast centrosomes) and to inappropriate SPB reduplication during mitosis. These cells also display defects in bipolar spindle assembly, chromosome segregation, and growth. Our findings lead to a model whereby phosphoregulation of Sfi1 by Cdk1 has the dual function of promoting SPB separation for spindle formation and preventing premature SPB duplication. In addition, we provide evidence that the protein phosphatase Cdc14 has the converse role of activating licensing, likely via dephosphorylation of Sfi1.
Mining rules to explain activities in videos

We present a novel approach to mining dependency rules that explain the scenes present during a video sequence. The approach first characterizes activities based on their most important events. Next, an HMM-based approach finds the mixture components that best describe the clustering dependencies between events and activities in video data. The dependencies among activities are taken as association patterns with temporal precedence and analyzed using their co-occurrence relationships in time windows. This technique is meant to understand the multiple actions taken in a video or to predict future occurrences of certain activities.
Dual-Pitch Processing Mechanisms in Primate Auditory Cortex

Pitch, our perception of how high or low a sound is on a musical scale, is a fundamental perceptual attribute of sounds and is important for both music and speech. After more than a century of research, the exact mechanisms used by the auditory system to extract pitch are still being debated. Theoretically, pitch can be computed using either spectral or temporal acoustic features of a sound. We have investigated how cues derived from the temporal envelope and spectrum of an acoustic signal are used for pitch extraction in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus), a vocal primate species, by measuring pitch discrimination behaviorally and examining pitch-selective neuronal responses in auditory cortex. We find that pitch is extracted by marmosets using temporal envelope cues for lower pitch sounds composed of higher-order harmonics, whereas spectral cues are used for higher pitch sounds with lower-order harmonics. Our data support dual-pitch processing mechanisms, originally proposed by psychophysicists based on human studies, whereby pitch is extracted using a combination of temporal envelope and spectral cues.
Wavenumber Selection in Bénard Convection

The results of three related studies dealing with wavenumber selection in Rayleigh--Benard convection are reported. The first, an extension of the power integral method, is used to argue for the existence of multi-wavenumbers at all supercritical wavenumbers. Most existing closure schemes are shown to be inadequate. A thermodynamic stability criterion is shown to give reasonable results but requires empirical measurement of one parameter for closure. The third study uses an asymptotic approach based in part on geometric considerations and requires no empiricism to obtain good predictions of the wavenumber. These predictions, however, can only be used for certain planforms of convection.
FoxM1 inhibitors as potential anticancer drugs.

Background: The oncogenic transcription factor forkhead box M1 (FoxM1) is upregulated in a wide range of different carcinomas, while its expression is turned off in terminally differentiated cells. In addition, FoxM1 is involved in tumor invasion, angiogenesis and metastasis. For these reasons, FoxM1 is an appealing target for anticancer therapeutics. Objective/methods: In the quest to develop novel anticancer drugs we decided to target oncogenic transcription factor FoxM1 in tumor cells. Using a cell-based screening system we isolated the thiazole antibiotic siomycin A as inhibitor of FoxM1 transcriptional activity. In addition, we found that because of FoxM1 positive-autoregulation loop siomycin A and another thiazole antibiotic thiostrepton inhibit not only FoxM1 transcriptional activity but also its expression. However, the thiazole antibiotics did not affect the transcriptional activity of other transcription factors studied, suggesting that they may specifically target FoxM1. Results/conclusion: Tre...
Diabetes: Preventing type 2 diabetes mellitus: is metformin the answer?

Most individuals with prediabetes—defined by the presence of impaired glucose levels—are overweight or obese and could benefit from lifestyle changes to lose weight and reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). As lifestyle interventions are hard to implement and not effective over the long term in most individuals, could additional intervention with pharmacotherapy be warranted for the prevention of T2DM?
Ring E degradation in the veratramine series

N-Chlorovetramine (I, R = Cl), obtainable by the action of N-chlorosuccinimide on veratramine (I, R = H), undergoes a base-promoted fragmentation reaction (see formula C) to give the amino aldehyde D. Acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of the latter affords the aldehyde II, which has been degraded to the methyl ketone III. A similar ring E degradation sequence has been carried out in the 5,6-dihydroveratramine series to produce the aldehyde IV and the ketone V(R1 = H , R2 = −COCH3). Further degradation has been achieved by Beckmann rearrangement of the acetoxy oxime V(R1 = Ac, R2 = ‖NOH−COCH3) to give the amide V(R1 = Ac, R2 = NHAc). Alkaline hydrolysis of this last substance affords the amine V(R1 = H, R2 = NH2) which has been converted, by reduction of the diazonium salt, into the alcohol V (R1 = R2 = H).
Structure of polysiloxanes: Influence of solvent on size and polymer-solvent interaction of linear polydimethylsiloxanes

Molecular weight, sizes, and second virial corfficients of a linear polydimethylsiloxane polymer (MW = 4.57 × 105) in mixtures of toluene-diethylphthalate have been determined by light scattering. Intrinsic viscosities have also been measured in the same mixed solvents. As expected, as the diethylphthalate concentration was increased the molecules contracted and the second virial coefficients became more negative. The data were used to attempt to decide between two current theories relating these quantities. No choice could be made. It was found that the calculated values of Flory's universal constant, φ, were much smaller than those usually obtained. It is proposed that this is due to an abnormally broad molecular weight distribution in the polysiloxane.