cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Radiation dose delivered to the proximal penis as a predictor of the risk of erectile dysfunction after three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy for localized prostate cancer.

Purpose/objective In this study, we evaluated in a serial manner whether radiation dose to the bulb of the penis is predictive of erectile dysfunction, ejaculatory difficulty (EJ), and overall satisfaction with sex life (quality of life) by using serial validated self-administered questionnaires. Methods and materials Twenty-nine potent men with AJCC Stage II prostate cancer treated with three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy alone to a median dose 72.0 Gy (range: 66.6–79.2 Gy) were evaluated by determining the doses received by the penile bulb. The penile bulb was delineated volumetrically, and the dose–volume histogram was obtained on each patient. Results The median follow-up time was 35 months (range, 16–43 months). We found that for D 30 , D 45 , D 60 , and D 75 (doses to a percent volume of PB: 30%, 45%, 60%, and 75%), higher than the corresponding median dose (defined as high-dose group) correlated with an increased risk of impotence (erectile dysfunction firmness score=0) (odds ratio [OR] = 7.5, p = 0.02; OR=7.5, p = 0.02; OR=8.6, p = 0.008; and OR=6.9, p = 0.015, respectively). Similarly, for EJD D 30 , D 45 , D 60 , and D 75 , doses higher than the corresponding median ones correlated with worsening ejaculatory function score (EJ = 0 or 1) (OR = 8, p = 0.013; OR=8, p = 0.013; OR=9.2, p = 0.015; and OR=8, p = 0.026, respectively). For quality of life, low (≤median dose) dose groups of patients improve over time, whereas high-dose groups of patients worsen. Conclusions This study supports the existence of a penile bulb dose–volume relationship underlying the development of radiation-induced erectile dysfunction. Our data may guide the use of inverse treatment planning to maximize the probability of maintaining sexual potency after radiation therapy.
Genotype-Environment Interactions in Wheat: Effects of Temperature on Coleoptile Length

Temperature effects on coleoptile development were studied in 18 genotypes of spring and semi-winter wheats, illustrating a simple experimental approach for choosing genotypes and management practices that would minimize genotype–environment interactions for stand establishment.
Is inflammation good for the ischemic heart – perspectives beyond the ordinary

In recent years, early reperfusion of the myocardial infarct has become the mainstay of optimal therapeutic management since it limits ventricular injury and infarct expansion and improves patient survival [14]. It has become clear that reperfusion promotes effective tissue repair and decreases ventricular remodeling even under circumstances where reperfusion is effected at too late a time to limit myocardial necrosis [4]. One of the striking differences between reperfused and non-reperfused myocardial infarctions is that the early intense inflammatory reaction which ensues immediately upon reperfusion has been demonstrated to potentially extend myocardial injury [9]. Substantial evidence suggests that this inflammatory reaction is important in tissue repair, leading to an obvious paradox with regard to the role of the inflammatory reaction. This communication takes the position that inflammatory injury occurring upon reperfusion of the infarcted myocardium results from the overwhelming of tissue defenses against inflammation resulting from the sudden entry of large amounts of neutrophils to an area of infarction where chemotactic factors have built up to high concentration. However, we hypothesize that inflammation fundamentally evolved as a protective mechanism to promote tissue healing and protect jeopardized myocardium. In this presentation, we will discuss our approach and data designed to evaluate potential protective roles of the inflammatory reaction after reperfusion.
Are repeaters responsible for gamma-ray burst average V/V(max) less than 0.5?

We show that gamma-ray bursts, observed by the Konus experiment on Venera 11 and Venera 12, from the three identified sources of short-term repeating bursts have a very low average V/V(max) of only 0.17 +/- 0.10 and are very important contributors to the low average V/V(max) of 0.43 +/- 0.03 found from the entire Konus burst sample. We further point out that the expected number of additional, as yet unidentified, repeating sources is quite sufficient to account for the low Konus average V/V(max), assuming that the average V/V(max) for bursts from all other sources is 0.5. Thus we suggest that the class of short-term repeating gamma-ray burst sources, as yet only partially identified, are a high-luminosity population that could be responsible for the values of average V/V(max) less than 0.5 also found by the BATSE, SMM, and other gamma-ray burst experiments. We note, however, that repeating bursts cannot as yet be identified solely by their spectral and temporal properties.
MHC class I–deficient natural killer cells acquire a licensed phenotype after transfer into an MHC class I–sufficient environment

In MHC class I–deficient hosts, natural killer (NK) cells are hyporesponsive to cross-linking of activation receptors. Functional competence requires engagement of a self–major histocompatability complex (MHC) class I–specific inhibitory receptor, a process referred to as “licensing.” We previously suggested that licensing is developmentally determined in the bone marrow. In this study, we find that unlicensed mature MHC class I–deficient splenic NK cells show gain-of-function and acquire a licensed phenotype after adoptive transfer into wild-type (WT) hosts. Transferred NK cells produce WT levels of interferon-γ after engagement of multiple activation receptors, and degranulate at levels equivalent to WT NK cells upon coincubation with target cells. Only NK cells expressing an inhibitory Ly49 receptor specific for a cognate host MHC class I molecule show this gain-of-function. Therefore, these findings, which may be relevant to clinical bone marrow transplantation, suggest that neither exposure to MHC class I ligands during NK development in the BM nor endogenous MHC class I expression by NK cells themselves is absolutely required for licensing.
Fetal tachycardia: Mechanisms and predictors of hydrops fetalis

Objectives. This study had three objectives: 1) determine the electrophysiologic mechanisms of fetal supraventricular tachycardia at presentation and postnatally; 2) to identify the clinical and electrophysiologic predictors of hydrops fetalis; and 3) to describe the medium-term follow-up (1 to 7 years) of patients with fetal supraventricular tachycardia. Background. Fetal supraventricular tachycardia causes significant fetal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. Prenatal analysis and postnatal confirmation of fetal supraventricular tachycardia mechanisms have been limited. Methods. Supraventricular tachycardia mechanisms were evaluated by prenatal Doppler/M-mode echocardiography, immadiate neonatal surface electrocardiography and postnatal transesophageal electrophysiologic procedures in 30 consecutive patients presenting with fetal supraventricular tachycardia (17 managed preventally, 13 first managed postnatally). Results. The fetal supraventricular tachycardia mechanism was 1:1 atrioventricular conduction in 22 patients and supraventricular tachycardia with atrioventricular block (atrial flutter) in 8. At the postnatal transesophageal electrophysiologic procedure, tachycardia was induced in 27 of 30 patients; atrioventricular recentrant tachycardia in 25 (93%) of 27 and intraatrial reentrant tachycardia in only 2 (7%) of 27. Hydrops was present in 12 of 30 fetuses. Sustained supraventricular tachycardia (> 12 h) and lower gestation at presentation correlated with hydrops (p < 0.02, p < 0.05), but mechanism of tachycardia and heart rate did not. Gestational age at delivery was significantly greater in those who received intrauterine management (39 ± 1.3 vs. 37 ± 2.9 weeks, p = 0.04) despite earlier presentation (32.6 vs. 37.1 weeks). Cesarean section deliveries were reduced in the same group (3 of 17 vs. 11 of 13, p = 0.0006). Conclusions. Atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia was the pr predominant mechanism of supraventricular tachycardia in the fetus. There was a high association of supraventricular tachycardia with atrioventricular block in utero and accessory atrioventricular connections. Outcome at 1 to 7 years was excellent regardless of severity of illness at clinical presentation.
Role of osteoblast suppression in multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma is the most common form of plasma cell dyscrasia and virtually all cases of myeloma exhibit osteolytic lesions, which result in bone pain, pathological fractures, spinal cord compression, and hypercalcaemia. Malignant plasma cells disrupt the delicate balance between bone formation and bone resorption, which ultimately leads to the debilitating osteolytic lesions. This review focuses principally on mechanisms of osteoblast inhibition by malignant plasma cells with emphasis placed on our experimental findings, which support a model for abnormal Wnt signaling in osteoblast suppression. We describe how excessive amounts of soluble Wnt inhibitors secreted by malignant plasma cells in multiple myeloma could promote osteolytic lesions, tumor growth, suppress hematopoiesis, prevent proper engraftment, and expansion of transplanted stem cells. Finally, we detail current therapies shown to disrupt the interaction between the myeloma cell and the microenvironment, leading to activation of osteoblasts. J. Cell. Biochem. 98: 1–13, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Toward Automatic Motion Control

Motion control for computer animation is a rich area for new research. The trend toward greater complexity in animation makes the development of more convenient and automatic methods of motion control important. Most commonly used motion control methods, such as keyframing and scripts, require a great deal of user effort to design acceptable animations. More automic methods will allow the production of sophisticated animation with less user effort. These methods include dynamic analysis, path planning and collision avoidance, stimulus-response control, and learning algorithms.
Strategic decisions in supply‐chain intelligence using knowledge management: an analytic‐network‐process framework

Purpose – To investigate the linkage between organization performance criteria and the dimensions of agility, e‐supply‐chain drivers and knowledge management.Design/methodology/approach – The analytic network process is applied as the research methodology in the context of executive decisions that include qualitative and quantitative attributes. The decision model is presented, along with a case study with an e‐supply chain of a global telecommunications company.Findings – The study develops a framework for measuring the relative importance of a particular dimension based on the application of theoretical concepts from the information systems and management science literature to the digital, knowledge economy. Since contextual factors play a critical role in the design of effective knowledge‐management (KM) systems, technical and process solutions need to be customized to fit the organization performance criteria, dimensions of agility and supply chain drivers.Research limitations/implications – The model...
Spectroelectrochemistry of a system with product deposition

Abstract An analysis of the spectroelectrochemistry of systems containing a species which deposits onto the electrode is presented. In this model, in addition to the Nernst equation, a thermodynamic condition for phase equilibrium between the deposited and solution species of the product is assumed. Relations between the variables of the Nernst plot were derived and procedures for obtaining the formal potential, number of electrons involved, and the maximum equilibrium concentration of the product are presented. These results are applied to the experimental data on the aqueous solution of the laser dye, 1-methyl-4-(5-phenyl-2-oxazolyl) pyridinium p -toluenesulfonate.
Large deflection effects of cracked aluminum plates repaired with bonded composite patches

Highly complicated 3D stresses in a metallic panel under in-plane loading are developed if composite patches are bonded to its surfaces either symmetrically (double-sided) or especially unsymmetrically (single-sided). Unsymmetric repairs present a great challenge in modeling due to the presence of out-of-plane bending. The problem is further complicated by thermal residual stresses arising from the thermal coefficient mismatch of the patch and aluminum plates. An efficient model using Mindlin plate theory and spring elements is used to model both the host and repair plates and adhesive. Large deflection theory is used to study the effect of different variables including the thermal residual stresses and host and repair plate thicknesses.
Photocurrent spectra of GeGaAs heterojunctions

Abstract The room temperature short-circuit photocurrent spectra are presented for GeGaAs n - n , n - p , p - p , and p - n heterojunctions. The results are generally those expected from considerations of the energy band diagrams and the relative dopings. A narrow peak in the response at hv = 1·38 eV is present for those heterojunctions utilising p -type GaAs, but not for those using n -type GaAs. This peak is explained by selective absorption in the GaAs ‘window’. At photon energies above 1·4 eV, the response is higher than expected and is thought to result from photon absorption near the surface, re-radiation at lower energies, transmission to and absorption in the transition region.
High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of pterostilbene in biological fluids using fluorescence detection.

Abstract A method of analysis of pterostilbene [trans-3,5-dimethoxy-4′-hydroxystilbene] is necessary to study the kinetics of in vitro and in vivo metabolism and determine its concentration in foodstuffs. A novel and simple high-performance liquid chromatographic method was developed for determination of pterostilbene in rat serum. Serum proteins (0.1 mL) are precipitated with cold acetonitrile after addition of the internal standard, pinosylvin. Separation was achieved on a Phenomenex C18 column (250 mm × 4.60 mm) with fluorescence excitation at 330 nm and emission at 374 nm. The calibration curves were linear ranging from 0.5 to 100 μg/mL. The mean extraction efficiency was >99%. Precision of the assay was
Serine Proteolytic Pathway Activation Reveals an Expanded Ensemble of Wound Response Genes in Drosophila

After injury to the animal epidermis, a variety of genes are transcriptionally activated in nearby cells to regenerate the missing cells and facilitate barrier repair. The range and types of diffusible wound signals that are produced by damaged epidermis and function to activate repair genes during epidermal regeneration remains a subject of very active study in many animals. In Drosophila embryos, we have discovered that serine protease function is locally activated around wound sites, and is also required for localized activation of epidermal repair genes. The serine protease trypsin is sufficient to induce a striking global epidermal wound response without inflicting cell death or compromising the integrity of the epithelial barrier. We developed a trypsin wounding treatment as an amplification tool to more fully understand the changes in the Drosophila transcriptome that occur after epidermal injury. By comparing our array results with similar results on mammalian skin wounding we can see which evolutionarily conserved pathways are activated after epidermal wounding in very diverse animals. Our innovative serine protease-mediated wounding protocol allowed us to identify 8 additional genes that are activated in epidermal cells in the immediate vicinity of puncture wounds, and the functions of many of these genes suggest novel genetic pathways that may control epidermal wound repair. Additionally, our data augments the evidence that clean puncture wounding can mount a powerful innate immune transcriptional response, with different innate immune genes being activated in an interesting variety of ways. These include puncture-induced activation only in epidermal cells in the immediate vicinity of wounds, or in all epidermal cells, or specifically in the fat body, or in multiple tissues.
On the Calculation of Changes in the Earth's Inertia Tensor due to Faulting

Summary Recent interest has arisen in the possibility that changes in the Earth's inertia tensor accompanying earthquakes may provide the excitation for the ‘Chandler’ wobble of the rotation axis. We present a simple procedure for calculating these changes based on the elastic reciprocal theorem and Volterra's formula. In particular, if τ is the shear stress created in the slip direction on a prospective fault surface when a perfect, unfaulted sphere is steadily rotated at unit angular velocity about some axis, then the change in moment of inertia about that same axis is shown to be twice the work of τ when carried through the actual slip displacement which occurs in faulting. It is shown that changes of products of inertia may be computed in a similarly simple way. The method is applied to two homogeneous Earth models, the relation to previous treatments is discussed, and it is noted that inertia changes accompanying less-catastrophic mass movements may be calculated in a similar way. The development in the body of the paper is in the context of classical linear elasticity. An Appendix extends the reciprocal theorem and Volterra's formula, and hence the basis for similar inertia change calculations, to the linearized incremental deformation of self-gravitating, initially stressed elastic systems, such as real-Earth models.
Science and Pseudoscience

People hold beliefs for many reasons, but two important ones are direct personal experience and communication with others. A young child that attempts to grasp a flame acquires without further teaching the true belief that fire is hot. But individual experience is limited, and can be hazardous the child left to find out for itself about the dangers of pills and razor blades has poor prospects. Human beings, and a few other species, have evolved to learn from others most of what they need to know to survive.
Development and Testing of a New Instrument for Measuring Concerns about Dying in Health Care Providers

A new measure of concerns about dying was investigated in this psychometric study. The Concerns About Dying instrument (CAD) was administered to medical students, nursing students, hospice nurses, and life sciences graduate students (N = 207) on two occasions; on one occasion they also completed three related measures. Analyses included descriptive statistics, factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha, test-retest correlations, t tests, and correlations with other measures. Results suggest the CAD measures three distinct but related areas: general concern about death, spirituality, and patient-related concern about death. Reliability estimates were good, and correlations with related measures were strong. Between-group differences suggest scores are related to actual differences in level of concern and beliefs about death and dying. The CAD has the advantage of being very brief and of explicitly assessing concerns about working with patients who are dying.
Alcohol Treatment Effects on Secondary Nondrinking Outcomes and Quality of Life: The COMBINE Study

Objective: To evaluate the full range of alcohol treatment effectiveness, it is important to assess secondary nondrinking outcome dimensions in addition to primary alcohol consumption outcomes. Method: We used a large sample (n = 1,226) of alcohol-dependent participants entering the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism-sponsored COMBINE (Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions) Study, a multisite clinical trial of pharmacological (naltrexone [ReVia] and acamprosate [Campral]) and behavioral interventions, to examine the effects of specific treatment combinations on nondrinking functional outcomes. We assessed the outcomes at baseline and at the end of 16 weeks of alcohol treatment and again at the 26-week and/or 52-week postrandomization follow-ups. Results: (1) Drinking and secondary outcomes were significantly related, especially at the follow-up periods. A higher percentage of heavy drinking days, more drinks per drinking day, and lower percentage of days abstinent were associa...
Sensitivity to glacial forcing in the CCSM4

AbstractResults are presented from the Community Climate System Model, version 4 (CCSM4), simulation of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) at the standard 1° resolution, the same resolution as the majority of the CCSM4 CMIP5 long-term simulations for the historical and future projection scenarios. The forcings and boundary conditions for this simulation follow the protocols of the Paleoclimate Modeling Intercomparison Project, version 3 (PMIP3). Two additional CCSM4 CO2 sensitivity simulations, in which the concentrations are abruptly changed at the start of the simulation to the low 185 ppm LGM concentrations (LGMCO2) and to a quadrupling of the preindustrial concentration (4×CO2), are also analyzed. For the full LGM simulation, the estimated equilibrium cooling of the global mean annual surface temperature is 5.5°C with an estimated radiative forcing of −6.2 W m−2. The radiative forcing includes the effects of the reduced LGM greenhouse gases...
Institutional Case Management Applied to Acute Psychiatric Care in Correctional Mental Health

Abstract The case management model developed at the Corrections Mental Health Unit within the Florida Department of Corrections is a treatment model developed to better care for acute psychiatric inmate patients. The rate of readmission to the acute care facility had nearly quadrulped over a six-year period. In response to that, a new case management approach was introduced. It has been shown that this treatment approach has significantly reduced the length of stay for these clients by nearly 27%. This significant finding not only benefits the clients by stabilizing them faster but the treatment has also saved Floridians tax dollars by returning the offenders to their home institution sooner.
Postshock mesenteric lymph is a significant source of systemic inflammation

Mesenteric hypoperfusion of circulatory shock is a key event in the pathogenesis of subsequent distant organ injury. Previous studies have shown that postshock mesenteric lymph (PSML) contains cytotoxic mediators elaborated from the ischemic gut and that lymph diversion abrogates postshock acute lung injury. In this study we observed that maximal PSML cytotoxicity occurred during the period of greatest PSML volume contribution into the systemic circulation. Method. Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to hemorrhagic shock (30 mmHg × 45 min) and then resuscitated over 2 h in a clinically relevant manner: 2× volume of shed blood using normal saline (NS) in the first 30 min; 50% volume shed blood in the next 30 min; another 2× volume shed blood using NS over the remaining 60 min. Mesenteric lymph was collected hourly and flow rates were recorded up to 6 h postshock. Superoxide was measured from isolated human neutrophils incubated with 5% (v/v) lymph taken from different time points. Results. Shocked rats recovered to baseline hemodynamics within 60 min of resuscitation. Despite blood pressure recovery, mesenteric lymph flow at 2–4 h postshock increased to 400% above the preshock level (Fig. 1). Mesenteric lymph fractions collected during the peak flow had the greatest cytotoxicity (Fig. 2). Conclusion. With clinically relevant resuscitation of shock, maximal PSML cytotoxicity and flow into the systemic circulation occurs 2–4h after shock. This finding suggests that the systemic contribution of gut-derived cytotoxic lymph after hemorrhagic shock may be more significant than previously realized. Figure options Download full-size image Download as PowerPoint slide
Single-crystal neutron studies of La1.7Sr0.16Pb0.14CuO4 and La1.7Sr0.3CuO4

Abstract Single-crystal neutron diffraction data indicate that in the low temperature orthorhombic phase crystals of La 1.7 Sr 0.3 CuO 4 and La 1.7 Sr 0.16 Pb 0.14 CuO 4 are composed of twinned domains of space group Bmab. The temperature dependence of the orthorhombic-tetragonal structural phase transition is similar for both materials. La 1.7 Sr 0.16 Pb 0.14 CuO 4 undergoes a metal-to-insulator transition at 5 K, although it is nearly isostructural to the superconductor La 1.7 Sr 0.3 CuO 4 , with T c =16 K.
Multilayer coatings for narrowband imaging in the extreme ultraviolet

Multilayer coatings for narrowband imaging in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) have been designed and prepared. Multilayers were designed to optimize reflectivity at O+ 83.4 nm spectral line, and simultaneously to reject radiation at 121.6 nm Lyman (alpha) hydrogen line. Al/MgF2/Mo multilayer coatings were prepared and high reflection/suppression ratios at the above wavelengths were measured. The coatings also exhibited a dip in reflectivity at 102.6 nm Lyman (beta) . The coatings showed some slow degradation over time, but maintained a high reflection/suppression ratio after a few months. Sample cleaning was found effective in restoring a very low reflectivity at 121.6 nm for samples aged of over 100 days.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Concentration and enzyme content of in vitro-cultured Babesia bigemina-infected erythrocytes.

. Clones of in vitro-cultured Babesia bigemina-infected erythrocytes were concentrated by several density gradient procedures. The density range of infected erythrocytes containing pairs of parasites was 1.077 to 1.089 g/ml, whereas the density range of infected erythrocytes containing single parasites was 1.092 to 1.100 g/ml. Three enzymes-lactate dehydrogenase, glucose-phosphate isomerase, and glutamate dehydrogenase-were found associated with infected erythrocytes. The parasite-specific enzyme and/or isoenzymes were shown to have different mobility patterns in starch gel electrophoresis from those found in the normal bovine erythrocytes. The enzyme 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase was not detected as a parasite-specific enzyme in B. bigemina-infected erythrocytes.
Observations of Slug Dissipation in Downward Flow

Detailed observations were made for slug flow in an upward to downward pipeline configuration with 13 capacitance sensors. The results presented in this study are based on four typical tests, which demonstrate the phenomena encountered in slug dissipation. In downward flow, slug frequency decreases with different extent at different flow rates. There is a reduction of slug length after the turning over from upward to downward flow. However, the slug tends to recover its stable length in further downstream development, except for flow that quickly becomes stratified. Growth of the slug length is accomplished by picking up liquid left by the downstream dissipating slug before being fully absorbed by the liquid film.
Temperature adaptation of cytosolic malate dehydrogenases of limpets (genus Lottia): differences in stability and function due to minor changes in sequence correlate with biogeographic and vertical distributions.

SUMMARY We characterized functional and structural properties of cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenases (cMDHs) from six limpets of the genus Lottia that have different vertical and latitudinal distributions. Particular attention was given to the cryptic species pair Lottia digitalis (northern occurring) and L. austrodigitalis (southern occurring) because of recent contraction in the southern range of L. digitalis and a northward range extension of L. austrodigitalis . As an index of adaptation of function, we measured the effects of temperature on the apparent Michaelis–Menten constant ( K m ) of the cofactor NADH ( K m NADH ). K m NADH values of cMDHs from the mid- to high-intertidal, low-latitude species L. scabra and L. gigantea were less sensitive to high temperature than those of cMDHs from the low- and mid-intertidal, high-latitude species L. scutum and L. pelta . cMDH of L. digitalis was more sensitive to high temperatures than the cMDH ortholog of L. austrodigitalis . Thermal stability (rate of loss of activity at 42.5°C) showed a similar pattern of interspecific variation. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences showed that interspecific differences ranged from one to as many as 17 residues. Differences in K m NADH and thermal stability between orthologs of L. digitalis and L. austrodigitalis result from a single amino acid substitution. At position 291, the glycine residue in cMDH of L. digitalis is replaced by a serine in cMDH of L. austrodigitalis , a change that favors additional hydrogen bonding and reduced conformational entropy. This difference between closely related congeners demonstrates the role of minor alterations in protein sequence in temperature adaptation and suggests that such variation is important in governing shifts in biogeographic range in response to climate change.
Spectroscopic constants and potential energy curves of GeF

Abstract Spectroscopic constants and potential energy curves of 27 electronic states of GeF+ are computed using the complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) followed by first- and second-order configuration interaction (FOCI, SOCI) methods that included up to 1.6 million configurations. Our computed spectroscopic constants of the 1Σ+ electronic state fit well with the experimentally observed X ground state. Other yet to be observed properties of several excited electronic states are reported.
Active Immunotherapy of Human Melanoma Exploiting the Immunopotentiating Effects of Cyclophosphamide

Malignant tumors may escape rejection by the immune system because they induce a state of immunological tolerance mediated by tumor antigen-specific suppressor T cells. In animal systems, cyclophosphamide can reverse the tolerance and thereby facilitate immunologically mediated tumor destruction. We have applied these concepts to the immunotherapy of human malignant melanoma. Forty-three patients with metastatic disease were treated with a whole cell vaccine 3 days after intravenous administration of cyclophosphamide, 300 mg/m2. The vaccine consisted of cryopreserved, irradiated autologous melanoma cells, obtained from metastatic masses by dissociation with collagenase and DNAse, mixed with bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) and injected intradermally. The cyclophosphamide (CY) + vaccine combination was repeated every 28 days. Delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) was tested by injecting 1 x 10(6) melanoma cells intradermally and measuring the diameter of induration at 48 h. Most patients had minimal pretreatment DTH responses to melanoma cells (mean +/- SE, mm = 2.4 +/- 0.5). After two vaccine treatments, the responses increased significantly (mean increase +/- SE = 12.1 +/- 1.6 p less than .001) and that level of response was maintained after 4, 6, and 8 treatments. The patients were also skin-tested with a mixture of the enzymes used to dissociate the tumors. No patients exhibited DTH to collagenase + DNAse prior to vaccine injection, but every patient developed DTH to the mixture following two treatments (mean, mm = 26.4 +/- 3.9). Although extracting viable cells from tumor tissue without the use of enzymes proved difficult, we were able to test DTH to mechanically dissociated tumor cells in 23 patients. After two vaccine treatments, there was a significant increase in DTH to enzyme-free autologous melanoma cells (mean DTH +/- SE, mm: 5.4 +/- 1.0, p less than .01). Whereas 5 of 23 patients had positive DTH responses (5 mm induration or greater) before treatment, 11 of 23 were positive after two treatments. Further significant increases in DTH enzyme-free cells were observed after 6 and 8 treatments. Thus, it appears that patients receiving CY + vaccine developed DTH to tumor-associated antigens as well as to residual collagenase and DNAse on the cell surface. Thirty-three patients could be evaluated for antitumor effects of cyclophosphamide + vaccine. There were 3 complete remissions, 1 partial remission, and 2 minor responses. Two complete responders remain alive and free of disease after 57 and 12 months, respectively, and the third died after 39 months. The partial remission consisted of 75% regression of a pulmonary metastasis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Birth Order and the Language Experience of Bilingual Children.

N TESOL professionals are increasingly called on to defend the maintenance of heritage languages and to recognize the issues associated with language loss (e.g., Kouritzin, 2000). Research findings such as those indicating that the earlier Spanish-speaking Mexican immigrants began learning English, the lower their levels of proficiency in Spanish (Hakuta & D'Andrea, 1992) prompt questions about the factors affecting language loss and maintenance. However, a very limited research base exists concerning personal factors that may influence an individual child to develop or neglect his or her heritage language. This report presents some initial data concerning one such factor-birth order, a child's place relative to other children in a family.
distruct: a program for the graphical display of population structure

In analysis of multilocus genotypes from structured populations, individual coefficients of membership in subpopulations are often estimated using programs such as STRUCTURE . DISTRUCT provides a general method for visualizing these estimated membership coefficients. Subpopulations are represented as colours, and individuals are depicted as bars partitioned into coloured segments that correspond to membership coefficients in the subgroups. DISTRUCT , available at www.cmb.usc.edu/∼ noahr/distruct.html, can also be used to display subpopulation assignment probabilities when individuals are assumed to have ancestry in only one group.
A reconfigurable fully-integrated 0.18-/spl mu/m CMOS feed forward equalizer IC for 10-Gb/sec backplane links

In order to realize adjustable equalization over various backplane channel configurations, a reconfigurable fully-integrated equalizer IC is presented. Backplane channels over different trace lengths and dielectric materials were measured and characterized. Feed-forward equalizer (FFE) topology with finite impulse response (FIR) architecture was chosen for optimal equalization for the corresponding backplane configurations. For a reconfigurable FFE IC implementation, wide-range tunable active delay line, variable tap-gain multiplier and 8-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC) were fabricated in a 0.18-/spl mu/m standard CMOS technology. The proposed reconfigurable FFE demonstrated successful equalization at 10Gb/sec over various channel configurations.
Influencing Probability Judgments by Manipulating the Accessibility of Sample Spaces

Two experiments are reported that evaluate predictions derived from the sample space framework of probability judgment, according to which both accuracy and error in judgments can be explained in terms of the sets of information, or sample spaces, on which they are based. Participants judged probabilities concerning fictitious individuals about whom a small amount of information was provided. The probability judgments took the form p(AIB), for which the set of B's delineates the appropriate sample space and the set of A's delineates the inappropriate sample space. The accessibility of the sets was manipulated by having participants explicitly describe typical instances from the applicable sets (Experiment 1) or by priming the relevant categories (Experiment 2). Results showed that judgments of conditional probabilities were more accurate when the appropriate set B was made accessible than when the in appropriate set A was made accessible.
Modeling multi-port systems from frequency response data via tangential interpolation

System identification from frequency domain data arises in many areas, e.g., in control, electronics, mechanical and civil engineering and many other fields. Currently available techniques work well for the single input single output case. However, for the case of large numbers of inputs and outputs, present methods are expensive. This paper proposes a new approach which is based on the concept of tangential interpolation. Our approach allows the identification of the underlying system using small CPU times. The numerical results we present show that our algorithms yield more accurate models in less time, when compared to the column-wise implementation of vector fitting.
A Pilot Test of the CM-GAF among Offenders with Mental Disorders

A pilot test of clinician-rated validity of scores on a Correction Modified-Global Assessment of Functioning (CM-GAF) scale was performed by assessing a random sample of 60 adult male and female offenders at two correctional facilities. Pairs of trained clinicians assessed the offenders with the CM-GAF and GAF instruments. Regression analyses were conducted. Variables included in the analysis were demographic characteristics (age, gender, and race), criminal history (number of incarcerations, violent/non-violent offense, year of current incarceration), number of disciplinary reports (tickets), and Connecticut Department of Corrections (CDOC) risk scores. The model for the CM-GAF yielded one significant predictor variable, Presence of Pending Charges Risk Score (B = -7.25, p = .003), predicting 44.4% of the variance. This finding suggests that higher functioning offenders tend not to have pending charges, which may be a proxy for length of incarceration. Newly admitted offenders are more likely to have pending charges and more likely to exhibit disruptive and disorganized behaviors. Management of mentally ill persons who are incarcerated is facilitated when inter-professional frontline staff can communicate using a common language. Frequent assessment with an instrument that is understandable across disciplines has the potential to improve care, and as few standardized mental health instruments are modified and tested for use in the prison environment. Additional studies, refining scoring across subsamples by age, race, gender, diagnosis, and levels of security, are still needed.
Task and context determine where you look

The deployment of human gaze has been almost exclusively studied independent of any specific ongoing task and limited to two-dimensional picture viewing. This contrasts with its use in everyday life, which mostly consists of purposeful tasks where gaze is crucially involved. To better understand deployment of gaze under such circumstances, we devised a series of experiments, in which subjects navigated along a walkway in a virtual environment and executed combinations of approach and avoidance tasks. The position of the body and the gaze were monitored during the execution of the task combinations and dependence of gaze on the ongoing tasks as well as the visual features of the scene was analyzed. Gaze distributions were compared to a random gaze allocation strategy as well as a specific "saliency model." Gaze distributions showed high similarity across subjects. Moreover, the precise fixation locations on the objects depended on the ongoing task to the point that the specific tasks could be predicted from the subject's fixation data. By contrast, gaze allocation according to a random or a saliency model did not predict the executed fixations or the observed dependence of fixation locations on the specific task.
Photonic mixers for wide bandwidth RF receiver applications

Optoelectronic mixers can exhibit a very wide bandwidth of operation with significantly reduced third-order intermodulation products. A 20 GHz bandwidth optoelectronic mixer has been constructed and characterized. The third-order intermodulation terms were demonstrated to be more than 70 dB below the IF output. The mixer was then incorporated into a simple superheterodyne receiver architecture, which was shown to have a tangential sensitivity of -66 dBm and a compressive dynamic range of 44 dB. System limitations and possible improvements are discussed. >
Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Functionalization of Dry-spun Multi-walled Carbon Nanotubes Sheets and its application in CNT-Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Composites

Robust sheets comprised of aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) drawn from spin-able carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays were developed. Surface modification of these sheets was carried out via an atmospheric pressure plasma jet as a post-treatment process. Helium/Oxygen plasma was utilized to produce carboxyl (-COO-) functionality on the surface of the nanotubes. Raman Spectroscopy, X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy confirm the presence of functional groups on the nanotube surface. Composite laminates made from functionalized CNT sheets in a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) matrix demonstrate increase in tensile strength over those made with pristine sheets used as reinforcement material.
The precarious couple effect: verbally inhibited men + critical, disinhibited women = bad chemistry.

When critical, verbally disinhibited women are paired with verbally inhibited men, relationship quality suffers, rendering the relationship precarious. This effect theoretically emerges when (a) verbally disinhibited women pair with relatively inhibited men (man-more-inhibited couples) and (b) the disinhibition of women in man-more-inhibited couples amplifies women’s criticalness and alienates men. Three studies (Ns 437, 300, and 564) provided evidence that relationship quality suffered in man-more-inhibited couples; a 4th study (N 168) showed that the criticalness of women in man-moreinhibited couples did indeed undermine relationship quality. Implications for understanding the impact of gender expectations on relationships and for integrating behavioral and personological approaches to close relationships are discussed. What is the source of the ineffable “chemistry” that some couples enjoy? This question is both fascinating and frustrating: Fascinating because of its richness and complexity; frustrating because it has proven difficult to answer. Indeed, although researchers have made significant strides in understanding why members of some couples get along better than others, many key issues remain cloaked in mystery. Some of the most promising attempts to identify the roots of relationship harmony have focused on what goes wrong in troubled couples. Some researchers have reported that distressed marriages are often characterized by a wife-demand/husbandwithdraw pattern (e.g., Heavey, Christensen, & Malamuth, 1995; Heavey, Layne, & Christensen, 1993), in which women make demands because they lack power in their relationships, and men withdraw because they feel that they have nothing to gain from confrontations (Christensen & Heavey, 1990). In this same tradi
Learning neighborhood cooccurrence statistics of sparse features for human activity recognition

A common approach to activity recognition has been the use of histogram of codewords computed from Spatio Temporal Interest Points (STIPs). Recent methods have focused on leveraging the spatio-temporal neighborhood structure of the features, but they are generally restricted to aggregate statistics over the entire video volume, and ignore local pairwise relationships. Our goal is to capture these relations in terms of pairwise cooccurrence statistics of codewords. We show a reduction of such cooccurrence relations to the edges connecting the latent variables of a Conditional Random Field (CRF) classifier. As a consequence, we also learn the codeword dictionary as a part of the maximum likelihood learning process, with each interest point assigned a probability distribution over the codewords. We show results on two widely used activity recognition datasets.
Invariant scaling relationships and their possible application in predicting radionuclide uptake in plants

Scaling factors, used to predict radionuclide uptake as a function of mass, have tremendous potential to provide a more transparent approach to risk assessment. Although the historical literature might seem to offer a wealth of data for the purposes of testing these scaling relationships, a more defensible alternative may be to conduct new site-specific data collection efforts. Trace element analysis was conducted on 16 plant species from a single location in Oregon. Results for ten elements and six species exhibit mass dependence on trace-element uptake. Transfer factors calculated for several elements spanned only an order of magnitude across all plant species. Conversely, radionuclide data taken from the open literature was inconclusive in the analysis for mass effects.
Hearing conspecific vocal signals alters peripheral auditory sensitivity

We investigated whether hearing advertisement calls over several nights, as happens in natural frog choruses, modified the responses of the peripheral auditory system in the green treefrog, Hyla cinerea. Using auditory evoked potentials (AEP), we found that exposure to 10 nights of a simulated male chorus lowered auditory thresholds in males and females, while exposure to random tones had no effect in males, but did result in lower thresholds in females. The threshold change was larger at the lower frequencies stimulating the amphibian papilla than at higher frequencies stimulating the basilar papilla. Suprathreshold responses to tonal stimuli were assessed for two peaks in the AEP recordings. For the peak P1 (assessed for 0.8-1.25 kHz), peak amplitude increased following chorus exposure. For peak P2 (assessed for 2-4 kHz), peak amplitude decreased at frequencies between 2.5 and 4.0 kHz, but remained unaltered at 2.0 kHz. Our results show for the first time, to our knowledge, that hearing dynamic social stimuli, like frog choruses, can alter the responses of the auditory periphery in a way that could enhance the detection of and response to conspecific acoustic communication signals.
Gestalt: fast, unified fault localization for networked systems

We show that the performance of existing fault localization algorithms differs markedly for different networks; and no algorithm simultaneously provides high localization accuracy and low computational overhead. We develop a framework to explain these behaviors by anatomizing the algorithms with respect to six important characteristics of real networks, such as uncertain dependencies, noise, and covering relationships. We use this analysis to develop Gestalt, a new algorithm that combines the best elements of existing ones and includes a new technique to explore the space of fault hypotheses. We run experiments on three real, diverse networks. For each, Gestalt has either significantly higher localization accuracy or an order of magnitude lower running time. For example, when applied to the Lync messaging system that is used widely within corporations, Gestalt localizes faults with the same accuracy as Sherlock, while reducing fault localization time from days to 23 seconds.
Tests for Predictability of Statistical Models

T HERE is an urgent need in economic research for more emphasis on performance testing of statistical mod ls. A nu ber of studies have presented shortand long-term predictions from statistical formulations.' But few have used quantitative methods to validate the model or to test the forecast values. Still fewer have tested predictions both qualitatively and quantitatively. Some decision makers are chiefly interested in predictions of direction of change or turning points in prices and consumption. Others are primarily interested in the predicted value (price or quantity). But the majority of today's policy makers are looking for accuracy of prediction in both the direction of change and the quantitative estimate. A statistical model has frequently been said to be as good as its ability to forecast. Explanation of past changes in price and consumption may be of interest. But accuracy in predicting future changes in these variables is a critical test of the model.