cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An exploratory study of spatial ability and student achievement in sonography

Spatial ability refers to an individual’s capacity to visualize and mentally manipulate 3D objects. Since sonographers manually manipulate 2D and 3D sonographic images to generate multi-viewed logical, sequential renderings of an anatomical structure, it can be assumed that spatial ability is central to the perception and interpretation of these medical images. However, little is known about the relation between spatial ability and performance of sonographers. This study explores this possible relationship. Seventeen first-year sonography students were administered a spatial abilities test prior to their initial scanning lab coursework. The students’ spatial ability scores were compared with their scanning competency performance scores after the first 30 hours and after two semesters of instruction. A significant relationship between the students’ spatial ability scores and their scanning performance scores was found. This study suggests that the use of spatial ability tests for admission to sonography pr...
The Geographic Spread of Militarized Disputes

A thriving literature investigates the claim that geographic processes cause military conflict to cluster and diffuse. With the recent update of the Militarized Interstate Dispute (MID) data and the collection of geographic locations to accompany these data, it is now possible to offer a location-based examination of the geographic spread of conflict. Consideration of the literature that identifies a role for physical geography in conflict processes leads to the derivation of hypotheses in which territory and resources are expected to provide incentives for states to seek to increase territorial acquisitions, while impassable terrain is expected to act as a barrier to such spread. These hypotheses are tested using ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation - regressing the spread of individual MIDs in the years 1993-2001 upon a range of location- and dispute-specific variables. These regressions demonstrate that the spread of individual disputes is a function of the issue over which they are fought, the presence of vital resources in the host country, the prevailing terrain of that country, and the relevant conflict history of the participants. It is argued that knowledge of the precipitants of the spread of individual conflicts is of great benefit to policymakers seeking to mitigate the detrimental impact of conflict upon the societies in which it occurs, as well as to those deploying peacekeeping troops to conflict zones.
The Zen of Unit One: Residential Learning Communities Can Foster Liberal Learning at Large Universities

A residential learning community that melds academic affairs and student affairs concerns can address the whole student through fostering liberal learning experiences. Students can explore innovative and controversial ideas and activities designed to challenge their personal and intellectual growth in a community of faculty and student affairs staff who encourage, value, and support open exchange.
Extrapair paternity and the opportunity for sexual selection in a socially monogamous passerine

Effects of alternate mating strategies on the opportunity for sexual selection are widely debated, and recent studies have concluded that the effects of extrapair (EP) paternity on the opportunity for sexual selection may have been overstated due to 1) methodological limitations of empirical studies and 2) the potential for males to gain from additional within-pair (WP) reproductive opportunities. We therefore examined the impact of EP paternity on the opportunity for sexual selection in the socially monogamous and single-brooded eastern kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus). EP paternity was common in all 3 years of our study (61% of 89 broods, 47% of nestlings) and realized reproductive success (EP 1 WP young) ranged from 0 to 9 young/male/ year. A total of 31% of males lost all WP paternity (24% sired neither WP nor EP young, whereas 7% sired EP but not WP young), and variance in male realized reproductive success was more than 9 times greater than that of apparent reproductive success. Nearly half of EP mates were not nearest neighbors, and many were separated by 3 or more territories (.1000 m). EP success was independent of nest defense behavior, but early singing males and males with high song rates were most successful at both a population level and when cuckolders and cuckoldees were compared. EP paternity contributed significantly to the opportunity for sexual selection in kingbirds, and we suggest that this is probably due to the low potential for WP variation in reproductive success, apparent long-distance movements of one or both sexes, and consequent absence of reciprocal cuckoldry.
Animated vectors for visualization of power system phenomena

This paper presents an exact mechanical analog for an electric power system that proves to be a powerful visualization tool for studying power systems issues such as load flow, transient stability, and the effects of FACTS devices. Techniques based on color and highlighting that make the method applicable to the visualization of large systems are introduced. The analog provides a means for demonstrating complex issues to audiences with little or no background in power systems. For the power engineer, the analog provides unique insights into the hows and whys of power system behavior. To the control center operator, an accurate model of the dynamic modes may bring about improved understanding of system behavior after contingencies and illustrate the relative merits of various dispatch options.
Traveltime inversion of vertical radar profiles

Traveltimes of direct arrivals in vertical radar profiles VRPs are tomographically inverted to estimate the earth’s electromagnetic EM velocity between a surface transmitter and a downhole receiver. We determine the 1D interval velocity model that best fits the first-arrival traveltimes by using a weighted, damped, least-squares inversion scheme. We assess the accuracy of the velocity model using synthetic traveltimes from a known velocity-distribution model simulating an unconfined aquifer. The inverted velocity profile closely matched the velocity profile of the input model in the synthetic examples. Using vertical radar profile data from an unconfined aquifer near Boise, Idaho, we inverted traveltimes to obtain velocity estimates at the well location. The velocity change at a depth of 2.0 m corresponds well with the measured depth to the water table of 1.95 m, and at depths between 2 and 18 m, the velocities ranged between 0.06 and 0.1 m/ns. Our estimates approximately match the velocity distribution determined from neutron-derived porosity logs at depths greater than about 2 m. An important function of inverse methods is to assess quantitatively and qualitatively the uncertainty of inverted velocity estimates. We note that the velocity values in the upper and lower parts of the inverted model are not as well constrained compared to those between the depths of 4 and 13 m. From the model resolution and model covariance matrices of the real-data inversion,we determine theuncertainty in ourvelocity model, leading to more reliable interpretations of the subsurface.
Performance limits of stereoscopic viewing systems using active and passive glasses

In time sequential stereoscopic displays a major contributor to ghost image intensity, as quantified by the system leakage ratio, is due to the persistence of the CRT's phosphor. Two approaches to solving this problem are presented. One is to use a system that has a sectioned electrooptical device mounted directly in front of the CRT. The second is to use phosphors that have less persistence. >
Digital spotlighting and coherent subaperture image formation for stripmap synthetic aperture radar

The paper presents a method for imaging from the data obtained from a synthetic aperture radar that does not utilize spotlighting. The SAR database, that is commonly encountered in reconnaissance imaging with stripmap SAR, is passed through a digital spotlighting algorithm for range and cross-range gating. The resultant filtered SAR data is used in the high-resolution spotlight SAR inversion to image the desired target area. A subaperture processing and coherent imaging method to implement the algorithm is presented. >
Numerical Solution of Unstable Initial Value Problems by Invariant Imbedding

This paper shows how a generalised Ricatti transformation, which grew out of the study of invariant imbedding, may be used to convert certain unstable linear second order initial value problems into equivalent initial value problems which are often quite stable.
Double-judgment psychophysics: problems and solutions

Many paradigms for comparing identification thresholds with detection thresholds require the observer to make double judgments. We show that these paradigms can produce misleading results because of response biases and attentional shifts. For example, the subject's response bias plus correlated noise can mimic inhibition between channels. Some of these same problems can affect single-judgment paradigms. A detailed analysis of the double-judgment forced-choice paradigm reveals that there are a multiplicity of optimal strategies, some of which enhance identification over detection. Several improved analysis techniques for minimizing the effects of cognitive factors are proposed for both the double-judgment forced-choice paradigm and the double-judgment rating-scale paradigm. A classification scheme for distinguishing different types of interactions and correlations is developed. When the new rating-scale algorithm is applied to the detection of well-separated spatial frequencies, substantial masking but negligible inhibition is found. The rating-scale paradigm is shown to be useful in revealing not only the sensitivity and the interactions of the underlying mechanisms but also the observer's information-processing strategies.
Growth Responses of Juvenile Red Drum Sciaenops ocellatus to Dietary Phenylalanine and Tyrosine Can Be Used to Calculate the Total Aromatic Amino Acid Requirement

Background: A current priority in aquaculture is the replacement of fish meal with alternative feedstuffs to ensure the industrys sustainability. However, most alternative protein sources are deficient in $1 indispensable amino acids (IAAs). Therefore, there is a critical need to establish refined estimates of IAA requirements of fish. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine the total aromatic amino acid (TAAA) requirement (Phe + Tyr) and the Tyr replacement value for Phe in juvenile red drum Sciaenops ocellatus. Methods: The TAAA requirement was obtained by feeding juvenile red drum diets that contained incremental amounts of Phe (0.54, 0.84, 1.14, 1.44, 1.74, and 2.04 g/100 g dry diet) and a fixed concentration of Tyr. Because of the TAAA requirement obtained, a second feeding trial was conducted to determine the maximum Tyr replacement value for Phe when a control diet was prepared with an 80%:20% Phe-to-Tyr ratio (Phe:Tyr; 1.60 g Phe/100 g dry diet and 0.41 g Tyr/100 g), and 5 experimental diets were prepared by decreasing the inclusion of Phe and increasing the inclusion of Tyr (Phe:Tyr of 70%:30%, 60%:40%, 50%:50%, 40%:60%, and 30%:70%). Results: Weight gain, feed efficiency ratio, and protein efficiency ratio increased 354%, 133%, and 134%, respectively, above that of fish fed the basal diet as Phe amount increased up to 1.44 g/100 g of dry diet; at higher amounts of Phe, no significant differences were found among treatments. Analysis of the weight gain data with a broken-line model estimated the TAAA requirement of red drum to be 2.10 g/100 g dry diet (1.69 g Phe + 0.41 g Tyr). The maximum Tyr replacement value for Phe was estimated at a 40%:60% Phe:Tyr, because only fish fed the diet with a 30%:70% Phe:Tyr showed a significant reduction (42%) in growth performance. Conclusion: The TAAA requirement for maximum growth of juvenile red drum was estimated at 2.10 6 0.08 g/100 g dry diet. Moreover, Tyr can account for up to 60% of the TAAA requirement of juvenile red drum. JN utrdoi: 10.3945/jn.115.215848.
Discrete dynamical system models of turbulence-chemical kinetics interactions

An approach to subgrid-scale (SGS) modeling for large-eddy simulation of turbulent non-premixed combustion is proposed and tested against experimental data. The model is composed of three specific factors: an amplitude, an anisotropy correction and a temporal fluctuation to be evaluated at each discrete point, during each time step, of resolved-scale calculations. We employ discrete dynamical systems (DDSs) for the third factor and in the present work focus on construction of these for a reduced kinetic mechanism and compare results with experimental data from the Technische Universitat Darmstadt H/sub 2//N/sub 2/-air jet diffusion flame H/sub 3/. The DDS model is derived as a single-mode Galerkin approximation (with the mode left arbitrary) of the governing partial differential equations, but with the mode number and normalization (s) incorporated into bifurcation parameters. Such algebraic systems are capable of producing the full range of temporal behaviors of the original differential equations (while being very efficient to evaluate) and, in particular, can exhibit the chaotic behavior of fractal (strange) attractors that can be associated with turbulence. Moreover, they are able to mimic specific reaction pathways for any given kinetic mechanism on the subgrid scales. We compare computed results from the SGS model with the above mentioned data, both qualitatively (appearance of the time series) and quantitatively (rms fluctuation levels) and show reasonable agreement, especially for the former.
Section 202 and 811 Operating Costs Needs

HUD funds the operating costs of housing produced under the current Section 202 program for the elderly and the Section 811 program for persons with disabilities through a Project Rental Assistance Contract or PRAC. Created by the National Affordable Housing Act of 1990, these programs provide capital advances for non-profit developers to finance the construction and rehabilitation of supportive housing for the elderly and persons with disabilities. Thus, the properties have no debt, and the PRAC pays the difference between rental revenues and HUD-approved operating expense levels. Each PRAC has a three-year term and is renewable subject to the availability of federal funds. Before 1990, federal housing assistance for the elderly and persons with disabilities was provided through the Section 202 Direct Loan Program for Housing for the Elderly or Handicapped, which offered direct loans to non-profit sponsors. Instead of PRAC, the federal operating subsidy for these developments was provided as part of project-based Section 8 rental assistance. (These projects are henceforth referred to as Section 8 202s, while projects with operating subsidies provided by PRAC are called PRAC 202s and PRAC 811s.) Under the Section 8 202 program, a contract rent agreed to at the time of the development of the housing and subsequently adjusted for inflation covered both repayment of the Section 202 loan and operating expenses. Congress changed the structure of the program — from a repayable loan plus a rent subsidy to a grant plus an operating subsidy — in order to reduce the budget authority that had to be appropriated to support the program. In effect, the government was appropriating funds to repay itself, which the legislators who enacted the National Affordable Housing Act decided made the program appear to cost more than it really did and made it harder for the program to compete for funds each year within the federal budget.
Efficiency of Health Care Production in Low-Resource Settings: A Monte-Carlo Simulation to Compare the Performance of Data Envelopment Analysis, Stochastic Distance Functions, and an Ensemble Model

Low-resource countries can greatly benefit from even small increases in efficiency of health service provision, supporting a strong case to measure and pursue efficiency improvement in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, the knowledge base concerning efficiency measurement remains scarce for these contexts. This study shows that current estimation approaches may not be well suited to measure technical efficiency in LMICs and offers an alternative approach for efficiency measurement in these settings. We developed a simulation environment which reproduces the characteristics of health service production in LMICs, and evaluated the performance of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Stochastic Distance Function (SDF) for assessing efficiency. We found that an ensemble approach (ENS) combining efficiency estimates from a restricted version of DEA (rDEA) and restricted SDF (rSDF) is the preferable method across a range of scenarios. This is the first study to analyze efficiency measurement in a simulation setting for LMICs. Our findings aim to heighten the validity and reliability of efficiency analyses in LMICs, and thus inform policy dialogues about improving the efficiency of health service production in these settings.
Alloplastic Augmentation of the Asian Face: A Review of 215 Patients

Background Asian aesthetic surgery has become increasingly popular over the last decade, especially augmentation of characteristically flattened facial features. Alloplastic implants are an option for facial augmentation, however many avoid their use due to concerns for morbidity associated with their use. Objectives To validate our hypothesis that when used properly, alloplastic implants have a low complication profile and provides excellent aesthetic results. Methods A retrospective review was performed of all Asian patients undergoing alloplastic facial augmentation between 2009 and 2013 by a single surgeon. Procedures included augmentation of the forehead, nasal dorsum, midface, and chin. Charts were reviewed for outcomes including infection, extrusion, malposition, and operative revision. Results Two hundred and fifteen patients had 243 implants placed. Of 141 nasal augmentations, there were 2 infections (1.4%), 1 extrusion (0.7%), 7 malpositions (4.9%), and 16 revisions (11.3%), 5 for malposition, 2 for contour irregularity, and 9 for aesthetic change. Augmentation genioplasty was performed in 40 patients with 1 malposition (2.5%) and 6 revisions (15%), 4 for under-correction and 2 for aesthetic change. Thirty-one midface and 31 forehead augmentations were performed without complications. One patient (3.2%) had forehead implant removal for aesthetic change. Overall infection and extrusion rates were 0.8% and 0.4%, respectively. Conclusions By utilizing surgical techniques such as creation of a precise sub-periosteal pocket, placing the implant away from the incision site, and leaving well-vascularized soft tissue coverage under minimal tension, alloplastic implants can safely be used as a first-line option for Asian facial augmentation. Level of Evidence 4![Graphic][1] Therapeutic [1]: /embed/inline-graphic-1.gif
Analysis of Time-Dose-Mortality Data

Mortality of last instar western spruce bud worm, Choristoneura occidentalis Freeman, exposed to a series of increasing doses (topical application) or concentrations (diet incorporation) of 10 insecticides was analyzed over 7 d by time-dose-mortality regression. Regression based on the complementary log-log model was useful for analyzing time trends for all dose levels simultaneously. Each of the 10 insecticides acted more quickly when applied topically. In both kinds of experiments, speed of lethal action of the insecticides depended on dose or concentration. The statistical methods developed to estimate lethal doses as functions of time and median times of death as functions of dose are more efficient than methods published previously.
The medical ethics of hospitalizing inmates with severe mental illness

Summary Medical ethics principles of beneficence towards patients, including primacy of patient welfare and promoting access to medical care, favor the hospitalization of severely mentally ill inmates whose condition would require such level and quality of treatment were they not incarcerated. Today, more for fiscal concerns than for liberty interests of patients, hospitalization is removed from the spectrum of mental health services afforded to mentally ill persons behind bars. The most serious ethical challenge for correctional psychiatrists in the United States today is providing hospital care for inmates in need of this level of services. Hospitalization of the most severely psychotic inmate whose condition is deteriorating is frustrated by four barriers: the need for an adversarial hearing for legal approval to transfer the inmate; a shortage of hospital beds creating inhumanely long delays even for legally approved transfers; administrative decisions to categorically deny hospital admission for inmates regardless how psychotic who are not first adjudicated incompetent to stand trial or not guilty by reason of insanity, and mental health professionals relinquishing the effort to hospitalize inmates in need of intensive psychiatric care and turning to partial solutions which ultimately provide policy makers and administrators with excuses for denial of proper care. It is this last barrier, the indifference and acquiescence of mental health professionals themselves to the withdrawal of hospital services, that should be of greatest ethical concern. This creates a challenge for correctional medical and mental health providers who must make a difficult choice regarding the clinically and ethically proper treatment of the most severely disturbed inmates. Options include: redirect efforts towards inmates who can be treated properly without hospital transfer, resign from employment in correctional health care, incorporate hospital methods, specifically enforced medication, into the non-medical correctional facility, and with creativity and determination strive to effect changes that will provide hospital care for the few but most seriously disturbed inmates who are in need of this level of treatment. This article examines the merits of each of these four approaches within a framework of medical ethics, and concludes that the fourth option is the most ethically defensible.
Single-Event Effects in a W-Band (75-110 GHz) Radar Down-Conversion Mixer Implemented in 90 nm, 300 GHz SiGe HBT Technology

This paper investigates single-event effects in a W-Band (75-110 GHz) SiGe HBT down-conversion mixer intended for use in a space-based remote sensing radar system. Transient pulse propagation to the output of the mixer as a linear time variant system is analyzed theoretically. This study facilitates the understanding of transient propagation in RF receivers. Device- and circuit-level simulations were conducted to verify the results of the proposed theory. A two photon absorption laser was used to induce transients on different SiGe HBTs within the circuit to assess the impact of SETs on performance. This study shows that significant transients can be produced at the output of the mixer, which can potentially corrupt the received data or received pulse of the radar. It is shown that a differential double-balanced structure can effectively eliminate some of the transients at the output of the mixer. To the authors' best knowledge this is the first study of single event transients conducted on a millimeter-wave SiGe circuit.
Export Diversity and Human Rights

In this article, I synthesize a number of recent studies exploring how exports affect human rights, highlighting a common implication that this relationship is conditional on how exports are associated with leaders’ relative costs of repression and accommodation. Beginning with this synthesis, I develop a theory demonstrating how the composition of exports affects human rights via its impact on leader expectations. More diverse exports promote continued growth and prosperity, provide leaders with greater resources, and suggest conditions less conducive to severe dissent, all of which reduce the relative costs of accommodation. Repression is likely to threaten the benefits otherwise associated with greater export diversity; thus its relative cost increases amid greater export diversity. I test this theory using commodity-level data from the United Nations Comtrade database to create a country-year-level measure of export diversity. Statistical analyses spanning 1981 to 2009 support my expectation. My resul...
The Orthogonal Experimental Design in SPSS17.0 and Data Analysis

It has very important practical significance for correct realization of orthogonal experimental design in SPSS 17.0 and data analysis.It has been discovered through real evidence comparison that in regardless of the interactive impact it is essential to arrange the experiment using the orthogonal design table from the orthogonal design book.Apart from determining the number of experiments,SPSS17.0 is able to apply all other procedures,which include generating orthogonal table through Menu-Data-Orthogonal Design-Generate,printing out orthogonal design project using Display and finally completing ANOVA in orthogonal experimental design utilizing multi-factor ANOVA in SPSS with consideration of the interactive impact.Therefore,it is possible to achieve orthogonal experimental design and analysis of its result in SPSS 17.0,which would fill the gap in SPSS textbooks.
Detrusor Instability: A Delayed Complication in Association with the Artificial Sphincter

Of 45 children with an artificial sphincter 6 had elevated filling pressure of the detrusor and/or uninhibited contractions of the bladder after the implantation surgery, which produced hydronephrosis in 3 and urinary incontinence in 3. All affected individuals had myelodysplasia (17 per cent of this subgroup), 3 had evidence of tethering of the spinal cord and 3 may have had unrecognized detrusor hypertonicity, which was masked by the low outlet resistance before sphincter implantation. Corrective surgery consisted of either decompressive laminectomy with untethering of the spinal cord or augmentation cystoplasty when indicated. Factors affecting the change in the detrusor postoperatively, and recommendations for improved selection and surveillance of individuals undergoing implantation of the artificial device are promulgated.
Methemoglobinemia In Rhesus Monkeys Due To M-Hemoglobinopathy

M-hemoglobinopathies in humans are usually due to amino acid changes, which tend to stabilize the heme iron in ferric state and inaccessible to methemoglobin reductase. Consequently, blood methemoglobin concentrations are elevated despite normal methemoglobin reductase activity. No naturally-occurring animal models for M-hemoglobinopathies have been described. In contrast to humans where thousands of hereditary disorders and genetic predispositions to disease have been described, inborn errors of metabolism in non-human primates have been very rarely documented (e.g. globoid cell leukodystrophy). As part of an NIH-supported National Referral Center for Animal Models of Human Genetic Disease , which focuses on homologous hereditary diseases in dogs and cats, we present here the discovery and characterization of an M-hemogobinopathy in rhesus monkeys ( Macaca mulatta ). Adult rhesus monkeys of Chinese origin with persistent cyanotic mucous membranes and healthy controls were studied from two institutions. Despite the apparent cyanosis, these primates did clinically not show any other overt signs. Routine complete blood cell counts, chemistry screens and urinalyses as well as cardiopulmonary examinations did not reveal any abnormalities. Fresh EDTA blood samples were analyzed to determine the degree and cause of methemoglobinemia and results were compared to healthy rhesus monkeys from the same institutions. Blood methemoglobin concentrations were persistently increased to 15-30% in affected monkeys, while control animals had in vitro and found to be normal compared to controls. Based upon the hemoglobin-oxygen dissociation curves and p50 values (14.8 mmHg; compared to 14.5 and 14.6 mmHg for controls) the oxygen transport function was normal. Both cation-exchange as well as reversed-phase and high performance liquid chromatography analyses revealed normal elution patterns of hemoglobin isotype and globin chains. DNA studies identified a disease-associated polymorphism in the alpha globin gene (CAC → CAA) in the affected animals. This change in the alpha globin protein was confirmed by mass spectrometry (α78 His → Gln). Our findings indicate an electrophoretically silent α-globin polymorphism is associated with methemoglobinemia in these rhesus monkeys. This is the first description of methemoglobinemia in a non-human primate and represents the first animal model of an M-hemoglobinopathy. While clinical signs were relatively mild in these rhesus monkeys, our findings represent one of the first inborn errors of metabolism described in non-human primates, thus emphasizing how unusual disorders caused by “experiments of nature” provide rare opportunities to gain a better understanding of both medicine and biology. Rhesus monkeys represent unique, valuable animal models for developing and testing new treatment options for hemoglobinopathies. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Of philosophers and pharmacists.

During a recent Republican presidential primary debate, Florida senator Marco Rubio opined that the country needs “more welders and less philosophers.” Beyond the obvious grammatical faux pas (perhaps we need more grammarians and fewer politicians), there was something else about this remark
Analyzing the impact of microstructural defects on the failure response of ceramic fiber reinforced aluminum composites

Abstract The computational homogenization technique is employed to investigate the effect of pre-existing microstructural voids on the failure response of a ceramic fiber reinforced aluminum composite subjected to loads in transverse to the fiber direction. Automated numerical simulations are carried out using a hierarchical interface-enriched finite element method (HIFEM), which enables the use of simple structured meshes for creating the discretized model. The HIFEM is integrated with a new microstructure quantification algorithm relying on the Random Sequential Adsorption (RSA) and Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS) to create realistic periodic unit cells of the composite based on imaging data. A strain-driven homogenization problem is then solved at the microscale to simulate the damage evolution in the aluminum matrix using the Lemaitre elasto-plastic damage model. Six virtual models of the composite microstructure with varying volume fractions and spatial distributions of pre-existing voids are analyzed to determine their failure responses subject to macroscopic normal and shear strains. The outcomes of this study indicate that although for the latter type of loading the impact of small volume fractions of voids on the failure response is negligible, their presence significantly deteriorates the composite mechanical strength subject to uniaxial and equi-biaxial macroscopic normal strains.
Perspectives in Biogerontology

After reaching sexual maturity, individual members of a species accumulate physiological decrements that lead to an increase in their likelihood of dying. This decline in function is called aging. For man, the likelihood of dying doubles every seven years beyond the age of 30.
CXCL12-induced macropinocytosis modulates two distinct pathways to activate mTORC1 in macrophages

Although growth factors and chemokines elicit different overall effects on cells-growth and chemotaxis, respectively-and activate distinct classes of cell-surface receptors, nonetheless, they trigger similar cellular activities and signaling pathways. The growth factor M-CSF and the chemokine CXCL12 both stimulate the endocytic process of macropinocytosis, and both activate the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1), a protein complex that regulates cell metabolism. Recent studies of signaling by M-CSF in macrophages identified a role for macropinocytosis in the activation of mTORC1, in which delivery of extracellular amino acids into lysosomes via macropinocytosis was required for activation of mTORC1. Here, we analyzed the regulation of macropinosome (MP) formation in response to CXCL12 and identified 2 roles for macropinocytosis in the activation of mTORC1. Within 5 min of adding CXCL12, murine macrophages increased ruffling, macropinocytosis and amino acid-dependent activation of mTORC1. Inhibitors of macropinocytosis blocked activation of mTORC1, and various isoform-specific inhibitors of type 1 PI3K and protein kinase C (PKC) showed similar patterns of inhibition of macropinocytosis and mTORC1 activity. However, unlike the response to M-CSF, Akt phosphorylation (pAkt) in response to CXCL12 required the actin cytoskeleton and the formation of macropinocytic cups. Quantitative fluorescence microscopy showed that phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-trisphosphate (PIP3), a product of PI3K and an upstream activator of Akt, localized to macropinocytic cups and that pAkt occurred primarily in cups. These results indicate that CXCL12 activates mTORC1 via 2 mechanisms: 1) that the macropinocytic cup localizes Akt signaling and 2) that MPs convey extracellular nutrients to lysosomes.
Health Challenges in Midwestern “Niche” Pork Production Systems

Organic pork production is increasing in popularity in the Midwest. Little information is available to identify specific disease pressures associated with this unique method of pork production. This project was initiated to identify health challenges within these production systems to enable veterinarians to implement management plans specifically designed to combat the individual farms’ pathogens while staying within the guidelines of the Niche production company. This project was initiated in late 2005 and outlined two specific goals at inception. The first was to analyze Niche pork production and financial records. The second goal of the project was to identify herd health challenges through targeted diagnostic analysis. 26 producers representing 5 Midwestern states submitted samples for standardized diagnostic analysis to Iowa State University’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VDL). Internal parasites were present in all age groups. Ileitis (Lawsonia intracellurlaris) lesions were present in pigs as young as seven weeks old. Swine Influenza virus (SIV) levels ranged from 50-80% in the project’s submissions. Vaccination and wormer use in these herds is variable and the use of these products is not prohibited by most Niche marketing companies. Knowledge of what pathogens are present in Niche herds will better prepare veterinarians to control these problems.
In Vitro Comparison of Stone Fragmentation When Using Various Settings with Modern Variable Pulse Holmium Lasers.

Abstract Introduction and Objective: There are limited data regarding optimal laser and energy settings during stone fragmentation. We assessed effects on fragmentation using a variety of energy and frequency settings with two laser systems. Methods: Artificial stones were created using BegoStone. A clear polyvinylchloride (PVC) tube with an inner diameter of 13 mm was closed at one end with a removable plug to create the in vitro ureteral and caliceal environments. The Lumenis Pulse 120H and the Cook Rhapsody H-30 holmium lasers were studied in the caliceal and ureteral models. A single urologist fragmented each stone to <2 mm. The caliceal studies assessed the time to fragmentation (n = 56). The ureteral studies measured the retropulsion distance of each stone phantom after 5 minutes of laser treatment time using different pulse width settings (n = 15). Results: Complete treatment of the stone with the 120H required 10.9 minutes at ≥1 J vs 26.9 minutes at <1 J (p < 0.001). The H-30 showed similar result...
Minimally Invasive Approaches to the Surgical Management of Fibroids.

Uterine fibroids, as the most common benign neoplasm of the female reproductive tract, can significantly impact a woman's quality of life through abnormal uterine bleeding, infertility, and bulk symptoms. When medical therapy for symptomatic fibroids fails, surgery is the recommended treatment. While a hysterectomy through laparotomy was historically the first-line surgical approach for fibroids, multiple minimally invasive and uterine-sparing techniques are now available. An evidence-based literature review of the following minimally invasive approaches is detailed in this article: hysteroscopic myomectomy, laparoscopic and robotically assisted myomectomy, laparoscopic and robotically assisted hysterectomy, and ultrasound-guided radiofrequency ablation. For each approach, this review discusses the indications, patient selection, adjunct preoperative treatment modalities, instrumentation, techniques, and pertinent intraoperative considerations such as fluid management, interventions to reduce blood loss, antiadhesion barriers, and tissue extraction. Perioperative benefits, long-term outcomes including recurrence and fertility, and comparisons of outcomes among the various approaches are outlined as well. With continued technological advancements and surgical innovations, minimally invasive techniques will become the mainstay of surgical management for symptomatic fibroids to provide high-quality patient-centered care.
Sudden Cardiac Death: Interface Between Pathophysiology and Epidemiology

The population incidence of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and sudden cardiac death have not changed appreciably during the decades of improvement in general outcomes from cardiovascular diseases, but the age, clinical circumstances, and pathophysiologic mechanisms have. The epidemiology and pathophysiology of SCA are linked, in that mechanisms of SCA can be modeled based on substrate and expression characteristics. The goal for the future is to expand pathophysiologic and epidemiologic interactions to achieve strong individual risk prediction, to complement the limits of application of population risk data to individuals.
AMSR-E and unified AMSR (AMSR-U) products

The hydrologic cycle is the process, powered by the sun's energy, which moves water between the oceans, the sky, and the land. Atmospheric scientists look for data that would help understand and eventually predict the atmospheric phenomena. The AMSR instruments have obtained atmospheric data since 2002, which are helping in understanding the Earth's atmosphere. Long-term atmospheric products sets (15 or more years) like AMSR-U, will further the understanding of the atmospheric hydrologic cycle.
A mini review: Proteomics approaches to understand disused vs. exercised human skeletal muscle.

Immobilization, bed rest, or denervation leads to muscle disuse and subsequent skeletal muscle atrophy. Muscle atrophy can also occur as a component of various chronic diseases such as cancer, AIDS...
Chapter 2 The Central Yellowstone Landscape: Terrain, Geology, Climate, Vegetation

Theme Ecological research can be defined as the study of interactions between organisms and their environment. While the interactions between individuals, species, and communities of organisms are typically dynamic and complex, the backdrop of landscape and climate variables upon which these interactions occur can also assume significant importance and equal complexity. Variation in a system's terrain, geology, soils, climate, snow pack, and vegetation at fine and broad spatial and temporal scales can create considerable landscape heterogeneity, potentially affecting the distribution and abundance of resources and influencing the spatial, demographic, and behavioral dynamics of organisms. Therefore, adequately characterizing the heterogeneity of a landscape is an important aspect of understanding the ecological processes that occur upon it. We described a highly heterogeneous landscape strongly influenced by severe winters, geological processes, and natural disturbances in the central portion of Yellowstone National Park. Using data on climate, geology, soils, hydrology, terrain, and vegetation, we created detailed Landsat maps of forest cover and vegetation type to provide a baseline upon which the composite dynamics of landscape, climate, and large mammal communities can be evaluated.
Q-FADD: A mechanistic approach for modeling the accumulation of proteins at sites of DNA damage by free diffusion

The repair of DNA damage requires the ordered recruitment of many different proteins that are responsible for signaling and subsequent repair. A powerful tool for studying the orchestrated accumulation of these proteins at damage sites is laser microirradiation in live cells, followed by monitoring of the accumulation of the fluorescently labeled protein in question. Despite the widespread use of this approach, there exists no rigorous method for characterizing this process quantitatively. Here we introduce a free diffusion model that explicitly accounts for the unique topology of individual nuclei and quantitatively describes the accumulation of two test proteins, poly-ADP-ribose polymerases 1 and 2. Application of our model to other proteins will yield novel insights into the timing and mechanism of DNA repair.
Biomechanics of Prophylactic Tethering for Proximal Junctional Kyphosis: Characterization of Spinous Process Tether Pretensioning and Pull-Out Force

Abstract Study Design Biomechanical evaluation of cadaver functional spinal units (FSUs). Objectives Demonstrate the effect of increasing spinous process (SP) tether pretension on FSU flexion range of motion (ROM), intervertebral disc (IVD) pressure, and SP force. Quantify SP tether pull-out forces and relate them to SP forces generated at maximum flexion. Summary of Background Data There has been recent interest in the use of SP tethering for prophylactic treatment of proximal junctional kyphosis (PJK). There is currently no consensus on standard tethering technique and no biomechanical data on the effect of tether pretension. Methods Nine T11–T12 FSUs were tested to 5 Nm of flexion-extension bending. A strain gauge was applied at the base of the T11 SP to measure force. Two custom pressure sensors were inserted into the anterior and posterior thirds of the IVD. Motion kinematics were measured by a motion capture system. An untethered test was done to describe baseline behavior. A 5-mm polyester tether was looped through holes drilled at the base of each SP and pretensioned to five different pretensions ranging from 0 to 88 N. Following ROM testing, specimens were dissected into individual vertebra and then SP pull-out testing was done at each level. Results Increasing pretension significantly reduced flexion ROM, reduced IVD pressures, and increased SP force. All pretensions, including the minimum, significantly reduced flexion ROM. SP pull-out forces were significantly greater than SP forces generated at maximum flexion. Conclusions Tether pretension significantly affects segmental FSU biomechanics. Pretension should be considered an integral factor in the overall success of a tethering strategy. Efforts should be made to control and record pretension intraoperatively. Level of Evidence Level V, biomechanical study.
Electron transfer NO2++NO→N02+NO+ in aromatic nitration

A simple model for computing the electron transfer rate constant of a cross-reaction has been proposed in the framework of semiclassical theory and employed to investigate the electron transfer system NO2+ /NO. The encounter complex of electron transfer NO2++NO→N02+NO+ has been optimized at the level of UHF/6-31G. In the construction of diabatic potential energy surfaces the linear coordinate was used and the kinetic quantities, such as the activation energies and the electron transfer matrix elements, have been obtained. For comparison, the related selfexchange reactlon systems NO2+/NO2 and NO+/NO were kinetically investigated. The calculated activation energies for the electron transfer reactions of systems NO2+/NO, NO2+/NO2, and NO+/NO are 81.4, 128.8, and 39.8 kJ.mol-1, respectively. With the solvent effect taken into account, the contribution of solvent reorganization to the activation energy has been estimated according to the geometric parameters of the transition states. The obtained rate constants show that the activity of NO2+ as an oxidizing reagent in the aromatic nitration will be greatly decreased due to a high activation barrier contributed mainly from the change of bond angle ONO.
Techniques for Evaluation of Biophysical Factors of Resistance in Crop Plants

Biophysical plant characters confer resistance or susceptibility to the phytophagous insect attack. The quantification of the role of biophysical features is key to designing and developing cultivars’ resistance/tolerance to pests under field conditions. While enumerating the data on the role of plant physical characters, a data sheet is provided to record field observations. Data to indicate the extent to which biophysical features are associated with resistance or susceptibility are also given.
Dynamic Communities on the Mesa Verde Cuesta

This article systematically and quantitatively characterizes interaction dynamics and community formation based on changes in spatial patterns of contemporaneous households. We develop and apply a geospatial routine to measure changing extents of household interaction and community formation from AD 600 to 1280 on the Mesa Verde cuesta in southwestern Colorado. Results suggest that household spatial organization was shaped simultaneously by the maintenance of regular social interaction that sustained communities and the need for physical space among households. Between AD 600 and 1200, households balanced these factors by forming an increased number of dispersed communities in response to population growth and variable environmental stressors. However, as population rebounded after the megadrought of the mid-1100s, communities became increasingly compact, disrupting a long-standing equilibrium between household interaction and subsistence space within each community. The vulnerabilities created by this change in community spatial organization were compounded by a cooler climate, drought, violence, and changes in political and ritual organization in the mid-1200s, which ultimately culminated in the complete depopulation of the Mesa Verde cuesta by the end of the thirteenth century.
Full-Field Interferometric Imaging of Action Potentials

High-speed quantitative phase microscopy enables full-field imaging of cellular deformations during action potential. In spiking HEK cells, displacements of up to 3nm (0.9mrad) have been observed, and they match the time course electrical recordings.
Wallant and Friedman

(1968). Wallant and Friedman. Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction: Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 31-47.