cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Altered dopaminergic profile in the putamen and substantia nigra in restless leg syndrome

Restless leg syndrome (RLS) is a sensorimotor disorder. Clinical studies have implicated the dopaminergic system in RLS, while others have suggested that it is associated with insufficient levels of brain iron. To date, alterations in brain iron status have been demonstrated but, despite suggestions from the clinical literature, there have been no consistent findings documenting a dopaminergic abnormality in RLS brain tissue. In this study, the substantia nigra and putamen were obtained at autopsy from individuals with primary RLS and a neurologically normal control group. A quantitative profile of the dopaminergic system was obtained. Additional assays were performed on a catecholaminergic cell line and animal models of iron deficiency. RLS tissue, compared with controls, showed a significant decrease in D2R in the putamen that correlated with severity of the RLS. RLS also showed significant increases in tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in the substantia nigra, compared with the controls, but not in the putamen. Both TH and phosphorylated (active) TH were significantly increased in both the substantia nigra and putamen. There were no significant differences in either the putamen or nigra for dopamine receptor 1, dopamine transporters or for VMAT. Significant increases in TH and phosphorylated TH were also seen in both the animal and cell models of iron insufficiency similar to that from the RLS autopsy data. For the first time, a clear indication of dopamine pathology in RLS is revealed in this autopsy study. The results suggest cellular regulation of dopamine production that closely matches the data from cellular and animal iron insufficiency models. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that a primary iron insufficiency produces a dopaminergic abnormality characterized as an overly activated dopaminergic system as part of the RLS pathology.
Sidewall Surface Roughness of Sputtered Silicon II: Model Verification

AbstractExperiments were carried out to verify sidewall surface roughness models for sputtered silicon. The beam shape was determined by measuring the topograph of craters sputtered by focused ion beam (FIB) on single crystal (100) silicon and then the appropriate beam radius was selected to form a steady state sidewall surface profile. The surface profile was the unsputtered material attached to the sidewall and therefore, the material function did not affect the sidewall surface profile. Sidewall microsurface was generated by FIB sputtering of a single crystal (100) silicon wafer. The surface roughness at the sidewall of the sputtered features was then measured by using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Theoretical surface roughness was calculated for different combinations of beam radius and pixel spacing. These calculated surface roughness values were found to be within ±1 and ±2 nm of the measured surface roughness values with a measurement uncertainty of about ±0.5 and ±1.0 nm for Ra and Rt respectively.
Community Colleges: Choosing Change

The nation's community colleges want it all. They have committed themselves to dramatic increases in college completion rates for their eight million wildly diverse credit students. They are acting...
Impaired elkind recovery in hematopoietic colony-forming cells of aged mice.

SummarySpleen colony-forming cells (CFU) in the bone marrow of old mice (25–27 months) are deficient in their ability to recover from fractionated sublethal doses of X-rays in vivo. This lack of repair is not evident from single-dose radiation survival data. Fractionation survival curves suggest that old CFU which survive the first dose of fractionated radiation may not be as radioresistant as comparable young (3 months) survivors.
Comparative sensitivities of electrophoretic assays for human enzymes

The sensitivities of 26 starch gel electrophoretic enzyme assays have been compared using HeLa human cells and A9 mouse cells grown in vitro.
Pixel-pyramid model for divergent projection geometry

Divergent projection refers to fan-beam or cone-beam projection originating from a point source, which is commonly seen in x-ray imaging. Conventionally, the divergent projection calculation is carried out using a ray model, in which each detector pixel (cell) receives radiations emanating from a point source, in a form of straight-line ray. The finite dimension of the detector pixel develops a zero-width ray into a nonzero-width strip, with its cross section assuming the effective aperture of a detector pixel facet. In the pursuit of accuracy, we portray the divergent projection from the point source radiation on a detector cell by a pyramidal element (pyrel), which is formed by a pyramidal base (detector pixel facet) and an apex (point source). A pyrel intersects the object and circumscribes a trapezoidal zone for fan-beam projection (a frustum volume for cone-beam projection), wherein the object voxels are accumulated (appropriately weighted) to produce the detector cell's signal. In addition to the forward divergent projection calculation, the pyrel model can be used for iterative object reconstruction by repeating the backprojection and reprojection. Since the pyrel model portrays more naturally the divergent projection geometry, it maximizes the calculation accuracy, though at the cost of more computations. This model may be rewarding in certain situations: (1) when the detector resolution is unacceptably low, (2) when the projection data set is severely incomplete (for example, the number of projections 40 deg). Simulations on an iterative fan-beam tomographic reconstruction, using the pyrel model, the ray model, and the voxel-splatting model, are demonstrated.
Analysis of surface plasmon polariton mediated energy transfer in organic photovoltaic devices

Organic photovoltaics (PV) are constrained by a tradeoff between exciton diffusion and optical absorption. The short exciton diffusion length within organic semiconductors demands the use of extremely absorptive materials. Unfortunately, the excitonic character of most organic materials yields highly structured absorption spectra, with regions of strong and weak absorption. Here, we describe a device architecture that decouples light absorption and exciton diffusion in organic PV through the addition of a light absorbing 'antenna' layer external to the conventional charge generating layers. Radiation absorbed by the antenna is transferred into the thin charge generating layers via surface plasmon polaritons (SPP) in an interfacial thin silver contact and radiation into waveguide modes. SPPs are a particularly effective energy transfer mechanism as they propagate in the plane of the PV rather than parallel to the incident radiation, thereby providing a more efficient means of pumping thin charge generating structures. We exploit efficient SPP-mediated energy transfer by attaching a resonant cavity antenna to a conventional small-molecular weight organic PV. We find that the resonant cavity antenna boosts the performance of a phthalocyanine-based PV in the absorption gap between the phthalocyanine Q and Soret bands. Off resonance the antenna serves as a mirror, but near the resonant wavelength, the antenna absorption is significantly enhanced, and energy is fed back into the PV cell via SPP-mediated energy transfer. Thus, the resonant antenna may be employed to supplement the performance of the PV cell at resonance, with no degradation off-resonance.
Use of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) for maritime domain awareness (MDA)

The Automatic Identification System (AIS) was developed primarily as a tool for maritime safety - vessel collision avoidance, use by Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) and as a means for littoral states to get information on vessels operating near their coasts. AIS equipment aboard vessels continuously and autonomously transmits information about the vessel including its identity, position, course and speed to enhance safety. This information has also come to be seen by the U. S. Coast Guard as a critical tool in enhancing Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) in support of all Coast Guard missions. MDA is the effective understanding of anything associated with the global maritime environment that could affect the security, safety, economy, or environment of the United States. To achieve MDA, the Coast Guard must collect as much information as possible on activities occurring in the maritime domain. A large part of this activity relates to the movement of vessels, therefore detection, classification, identification and monitoring of vessels is a key component of MDA. The Coast Guard believes that AIS can provide a critical part of vessel tracking needs to build maritime domain awareness
Coupling of M2 muscarinic receptor to L-type Ca2+ channel via c-src kinase in rabbit colonic circular smooth muscle

Abstract Background & Aims: The L-type Ca 2+ channel is a major pathway for Ca 2+ influx in colonic smooth muscle and is modulated by endogenous levels of nonreceptor tyrosine kinase, c-src. Tyrosine kinases are also activated by G-protein–coupled receptors (GPCR). This study determined whether muscarinic receptor couples to Ca 2+ channels via c-src kinase. Methods: Currents were measured in rabbit colonic smooth muscle cells and in transfected HEK293 cells by patch-clamp technique. Tyrosyl phosphorylated proteins were detected by Western blots and the interaction of c-src with the c-terminus of α subunit of Ca 2+ channel was determined by a GST pull-down assay. Results: Methacholine (10 μmol/L) enhanced Ca 2+ channel currents by 30% under conditions whereby the M 3 receptor pathway was blocked by either 4-DAMP or by intracellular dialysis with anti-Gαq antibody. Similar effects were observed by blocking intracellular Ca 2+ release with heparin. Enhancement was abolished by intracellular anti-Gαi antibody and by the c-src inhibitor, PP2 but unaffected by the inactive analog PP3. Immunoblot with anti-src antibody revealed increased src phosphorylation by muscarinic receptor stimulation. Purified c-src directly associated with the c-terminus of α1c subunit of the Ca 2+ channel. In M 2 receptor transfected HEK293 cells, currents were enhanced 2-fold by carbachol. Conclusions: These studies demonstrate stimulation of Ca 2+ current in colonic smooth muscle cells by M2 receptor coupled to Gαi–G protein and c-src activation. They also suggest a central role of c-src kinase in the cross-talk between tyrosine kinase receptor and GPCR. GASTROENTEROLOGY 2002;123:827-834
Potential Contribution of Combined Atmospheric Ca2+ and Mg2+ Wet Deposition Within the Continental U.S. to Soil Inorganic Carbon Sequestration

Abstract Soil inorganic carbon (SIC) stocks continuously change from the formation of pedogenic carbonates, a process requiring inputs of Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ ions. This study ranked the soil orders in terms of potential inorganic carbon sequestration resulting from wet Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ deposition from 1994 to 2003 within the continental United States. The analysis revealed that average annual atmospheric wet deposition of Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ was the highest in the Central Midwest-Great Plains region, likely due to soil particle input from loess-derived soils. The soil orders receiving the highest total average annual atmospheric wet Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ deposition, expressed as potential inorganic carbon formation (barring losses from erosion and leaching), were: 1) Mollisols (1.1 × 10 8 kg C), 2) Alfisols (8.4 × 10 7 kg C), 3) Entisols (3.8 × 10 7 kg C), and 4) Aridisols (2.8 × 10 7 kg C). In terms of area-normalized result, the soil orders were ranked: 1) Histosols (73 kg C km −2 ), 2) Alfisols and Vertisols (64 kg C km −2 ), 3) Mollisols (62 kg C km −2 ), and 4) Spodosols (52 kg C km −2 ). The results of this study provide an estimate of potential soil inorganic carbon sequestration as a result of atmospheric wet Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ deposition, and this information may be useful in assessing dynamic nature of soil inorganic carbon pools.
LONG VERTICAL ARRAYS IN ACOUSTICAL SOUNDING OF THE OCEAN

The use of mode-resolving long vertical arrays has potential for solving inverse problems in ocean acoustics. In particular, new possibilities are offered by coherent processing of signals received by a system of such arrays. Theoretical aspects of applications of vertical arrays are discussed. A new scheme of acoustical tomography of the ocean, based on measuring horizontal refraction of modes by two acoustic interferometers, is presented.
Practical permissions for race-free parallelism

Type systems that prevent data races are a powerful tool for parallel programming, eliminating whole classes of bugs that are both hard to find and hard to fix. Unfortunately, it is difficult to apply previous such type systems to "real" programs, as each of them are designed around a specific synchronization primitive or parallel pattern, such as locks or disjoint heaps; real programs often have to combine multiple synchronization primitives and parallel patterns. In this work, we present a new permissions-based type system, which we demonstrate is practical by showing that it supports multiple patterns (e.g., task parallelism, object isolation, array-based parallelism), and by applying it to a suite of non-trivial parallel programs. Our system also has a number of theoretical advances over previous work on permissions-based type systems, including aliased write permissions and a simpler way to store permissions in objects than previous approaches.
Thermally invariant dielectric coatings for micromirrors

Thermal expansion-induced curvature becomes a major effect in micromirrors as the mirror diameter exceeds 100 microm. Such mirrors are used for optical switching, scanning, and many other applications. By using multilayer coatings instead of a single metal reflector, one can use the mechanical properties of the multilayer to create mirrors with zero curvature across temperature. We demonstrate the fabrication of such thermally invariant mirrors using dielectric coatings. A semianalytic model based on free-plate elastic theory is developed that uses empirical parameters in place of the true thermal expansion coefficients of the coating materials. Micromirrors are demonstrated that maintain their design curvature to within lambda/60 for lambda = 633 nm across an operating range from 21 degrees C to 58 degrees C.
Velocity‐porosity relationships in smectite‐rich sediments: Shikoku Basin, Japan

[1] At the Nankai Trough, Japan, smectite-rich sediments of the Shikoku Basin are both underthrust beneath and frontally accreted to the outer accretionary wedge. To understand the changes that occur in the physical properties of sediments as they are underthrust or incorporated into the accretionary wedge, it is necessary to characterize those physical properties outboard of the deformation front. One key relationship to constrain is between the compressional wave velocity (vp) and porosity (ϕ) in order to estimate pore fluid pressure and determine the strength of fault rocks at depth. Here we investigate how the type of clay minerals and proportions of the different clays may affect the velocity-porosity relationship, with particular emphasis on the abundance of hydrous smectitic clays. Using data from IODP Sites C0011 and C0012 in the Shikoku Basin, we demonstrate that when the core-based porosity is corrected for the abundance of smectite, the resultant velocity-porosity relationship does not fit previously established transforms. Therefore, we propose a new empirical relationship for the smectite-rich sediments of the Shikoku Basin, and caution against the indiscriminate use of global and/or pre-existing models in smectite rich formations.
Methodology for Deriving Deep-Layer Mean Temperatures from Combined Satellite Infrared and Microwave Observations

Abstract Deep-layer mean temperatures from Microwave Sounding Unit (MSU) observations have been used by scientists to study trends and interannual variations of tropospheric and lower-stratospheric temperature. The spatial resolution of MSU deep-layer mean temperatures is rather poor for studying trends in localized regions. A method is developed in which infrared observations from the High-resolution InfraRed Sounder (HIRS) is used in combination with MSU to derive deep-layer mean temperatures with improved vertical and horizontal resolution. Even though the relationship between infrared radiance and temperature is not linear, the layer associated with the mean temperature is shown to be well defined with a small airmass dependency that is similar to MSU’s airmass dependency. Preliminary validation of HIRS–MSU-derived layer mean temperatures with radiosonde layer mean temperatures show similar precision when compared to MSU-only derived temperatures.
Relationship between muscle sympathetic nerve activity and aortic wave reflection characteristics in aerobic- and resistance-trained subjects.

Increased arterial stiffness is associated with an impairment of ventricular–vascular coupling efficiency and increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. Recently, it has been suggested that an increase in arterial stiffness is associated with resistance exercise training. Therefore, the aims of this study were to compare augmentation index (AIx) and left ventricular wasted pressure energy (LVEW) as markers of arterial stiffness and ventricular–vascular coupling efficiency in young aerobic-trained (AT) and resistance (RT)-trained subjects. We also investigated the relationship of muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) and flow-mediated dilation (FMD) to AIx in both sets of subjects to determine if endothelial function or sympathetic outflow could explain any differences in arterial stiffness. To achieve our aims, we measured MSNA in 15 male subjects (8 RT, 7 AT) using microneurography. We also used applanation tonometry of the radial pressure waveform to noninvasively synthesize aortic pressure waveforms. FMD was calculated as percent dilation of the radial artery from baseline following a 5 min occlusion. RT subjects had an increased AIx (12 ± 3 vs. −7 ± 2; P < 0.01), LVEW (429 ± 111 vs. −360 ± 77; P < 0.01) and MSNA burst incidence (34 ± 4 vs. 26 ± 4; P < 0.01) when compared with AT subjects. There was no difference in FMD between groups. MSNA burst incidence was also significantly related to AIx in subjects (R 2 = 0.61; P < 0.01) with a distinct demarcation between RT and AT subjects. These results confirm previous reports of a positive association between MSNA and AIx in young male resistance-trained subjects. Furthermore, RT is associated with increased arterial stiffness and elevated sympathetic outflow.
Nongenomic Glucocorticoid Inhibition via Endocannabinoid Release in the Hypothalamus: A Fast Feedback Mechanism

Glucocorticoid negative feedback in the brain controls stress, feeding, and neural-immune interactions by regulating the hypothalamic—pituitary—adrenal axis, but the mechanisms of inhibition of hypothalamic neurosecretory cells have never been elucidated. Using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in an acute hypothalamic slice preparation, we demonstrate a rapid suppression of excitatory glutamatergic synaptic inputs to parvocellular neurosecretory neurons of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) by the glucocorticoids dexamethasone and corticosterone. The effect was maintained with dexamethasone conjugated to bovine serum albumin and was not seen with direct intracellular glucocorticoid perfusion via the patch pipette, suggesting actions at a membrane receptor. The presynaptic inhibition of glutamate release by glucocorticoids was blocked by postsynaptic inhibition of G-protein activity with intracellular GDP-β-S application, implicating a postsynaptic G-protein-coupled receptor and the release of a retrograde messenger. The glucocorticoid effect was not blocked by the nitric oxide synthesis antagonist N G-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride or by hemoglobin but was blocked completely by the CB1 cannabinoid receptor antagonists AM251 [ N -(piperidin-1-yl)-5-(4-iodophenyl)-1-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)-4-methyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxamide] and AM281 [1-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)-5-(4-iodophenyl)-4-methyl- N -4-morpholinyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxamide] and mimicked and occluded by the cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN55,212-2 [(β)-(+)-[2,3-dihydro-5-methyl-3-(4-morpholinylmethyl)pyrrolo[1,2,3-de]-1,4-benzoxazin-6-yl]-1-naphthalenylmethanone mesylate], indicating that it was mediated by retrograde endocannabinoid release. Several peptidergic subtypes of parvocellular neuron, identified by single-cell reverse transcripton-PCR analysis, were subject to rapid inhibitory glucocorticoid regulation, including corticotropin-releasing hormone-, thyrotropin-releasing hormone-, vasopressin-, and oxytocin-expressing neurons. Therefore, our findings reveal a mechanism of rapid glucocorticoid feedback inhibition of hypothalamic hormone secretion via endocannabinoid release in the PVN and provide a link between the actions of glucocorticoids and cannabinoids in the hypothalamus that regulate stress and energy homeostasis.
The interaction of factor XIa with activated platelets but not endothelial cells promotes the activation of factor IX in the consolidation phase of blood coagulation.

Abstract We have previously shown that the zymogen factor XI (FXI) binds to activated platelets but not to human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), a conclusion that is in conflict with previous reports stating that FXI binds to 2.7–13 × 106 high affinity sites per HUVEC (Berrettini, M., Schleef, R. R., Heeb, M. J., Hopmeier, P., and Griffin, J. H. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 19833–19839; Shariat-Madar, Z., Mahdi, F., and Schmaier, A. H. (2001)Thromb. Haemostasis 85, 544–551). It has also been reported that activated FXI (FXIa) binds to 1.5 × 106sites per HUVEC and promotes the activation of factor IX by cell bound FXIa (Berrettini, M., Schleef, R. R., Heeb, M. J., Hopmeier, P., and Griffin, J. H. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 19833–19839). Therefore, the binding of FXIa to activated platelets was compared with FXIa binding to HUVEC and HEK293 cells immobilized on microcarrier beads. Specific and saturable zinc-dependent FXIa binding was demonstrated to 250 ± 48 sites per activated platelet (K D = 1.7 ± 0.78 nm) and 6.5 ± 0.4 × 104 sites per HUVEC (K D = 2.4 ± 0.5 nm), whereas no binding to HEK293 cells was detected. A titration with high molecular weight kininogen had no effect on FXIa binding to platelets, but revealed a concentration-dependent decrease in the amount of FXIa bound to HUVEC. The rate of factor IXa generation catalyzed by FXIa was unaffected by the presence of surfaces; however only the activated platelet surface protected FXIa from inhibition by protease nexin 2. The results presented here confirm the conclusion that activated platelets are procoagulant while unstimulated endothelial cells are not.
Royal Tigers and Ruling Princes: Wilderness and wildlife management in the Indian princely states*

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Indian princes correlated the preservation and use of well-maintained hunting grounds rich in desirable flora and fauna with the enjoyment of higher status, stronger defences against foreign interference, and more compliant subjects. As a result, they carefully managed wilderness and wildlife in their territories. Major past impacts on environments and biodiversity, with ongoing relevance to the ways in which wildlife and wilderness are perceived in the subcontinent today, emerged from the widespread conviction of these rulers that their attempts to govern ecosystems and wildlife demographics were natural and necessary functions of the state. Evidence drawn from hunting memoirs, shooting diaries, photographs, paintings, archival records, and administration reports from a selection of North Indian states calls into question exactly how, and even if, wildlife or wilderness existed in separation from people and the realm of civilization. The intimate relationship between Indian sovereigns, wilderness, and wildlife, therefore, informs new understandings of princely identity, South Asian environmental history, and elite Indian receptions of European and colonial science and managerial practice relating to forests and wild animals in the era of British paramountcy.
Development of a multicore power system simulator for ship systems

An important impediment to using widely available software to simulate the behavior of advanced power systems for electric ships is that the simulation time is too long to be practical. Consequently, the Center for Electromechanics at the University of Texas at Austin (UT-CEM) is developing a multicore power system solver to simulate large shipboard power systems. In its first year of development, the focus is on testing CEM's solver (CEMS) for accuracy. This paper presents an overview of the major traits of CEMS, and compares its simulation results to the well-known commercial power system simulator SimPowerSystems. Preliminary results show that accuracy is maintained and improved in specific test cases.
Multimodality endoscopic treatment of pancreatic duct disruption with stenting and pseudocyst drainage: how efficacious is it?

Abstract Background Few studies have described the role of multimodality therapy and the complexity of endoscopic management of pancreatic duct disruption. Our study aim was to analyse and confirm factors associated with the resolution of pancreatic duct disruption. Methods Over 6 years, retrospective data on patients with pancreatic duct disruption managed endoscopically were retrieved. Success was defined as resolution of the pancreatic duct disruption at 12 months. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine factors associated with resolution. Results 113 patients (78 male) with a mean age 51.3 year were included. Resolution of the pancreatic duct leak occurred in 80 cases (70.2%). 72 cases received transpapillary pancreatic duct stents, with 51 demonstrating resolution of pancreatic duct leak (71%) cystenterostomy was performed in 68 patients with 51 resolved (75%). In partial duct disruptions, pancreatic duct stenting combined with endoscopic drainage of fluid collections resulted in an increased rate of resolution (80%) compared to complete disruptions treated in a similar manner (57%). In complete pancreatic ductal disruptions, transpapillary pancreatic duct stenting had no additional benefit (9/17, 52.9%) compared to cystenterostomy or percutaneous drainage alone (24/34, 70.6%; P = 0.61). Conclusion Pancreatic duct disruptions require multimodality treatment, addressing not only the integrity of the pancreatic duct but also any fluid collections associated. Partial ductal disruption should be managed by a bridging stent.
LABORATORY TESTING OF LOW-VOLUME ROAD BRIDGE ALTERNATIVE

In Iowa there are over 20,000 bridges on the secondary road system. The majority of these bridges are under the jurisdiction of county engineers with limited budgets; therefore many county engineers design and construct their own short-span bridges with their own labor force. The objective of this research is to perform laboratory testing on a bridge alternative that counties can design and construct. This concept involves the fabrication of precast units composed of two steel beams connected by a thin concrete deck. The concrete deck thickness is limited so that the units can be fabricated at one location and then transported to the bridge site. The number of units required is obviously a function of the width of bridge desired. After the precast units have been connected, an additional concrete deck is placed. The concrete surface of the units is scarified so that the two layers of concrete are bonded together, thus providing the required deck thickness. Since this bridge replacement system is primarily...
An entropy approach to disclosure risk assessment: Lessons from real applications and simulated domains

We live in an increasingly mobile world, which leads to the duplication of information across domains. Though organizations attempt to obscure the identities of their constituents when sharing information for worthwhile purposes, such as basic research, the uncoordinated nature of such environment can lead to privacy vulnerabilities. For instance, disparate healthcare providers can collect information on the same patient. Federal policy requires that such providers share ''de-identified'' sensitive data, such as biomedical (e.g., clinical and genomic) records. But at the same time, such providers can share identified information, devoid of sensitive biomedical data, for administrative functions. On a provider-by-provider basis, the biomedical and identified records appear unrelated, however, links can be established when multiple providers' databases are studied jointly. The problem, known as trail disclosure, is a generalized phenomenon and occurs because an individual's location access pattern can be matched across the shared databases. Due to technical and legal constraints, it is often difficult to coordinate between providers and thus it is critical to assess the disclosure risk in distributed environments, so that we can develop techniques to mitigate such risks. Research on privacy protection has so far focused on developing technologies to suppress or encrypt identifiers associated with sensitive information. There is a growing body of work on the formal assessment of the disclosure risk of database entries in publicly shared databases, but less attention has been paid to the distributed setting. In this research, we review the trail disclosure problem in several domains with known vulnerabilities and show that disclosure risk is influenced by the distribution of how people visit service providers. Based on empirical evidence, we propose an entropy metric for assessing such risk in shared databases prior to their release. This metric assesses risk by leveraging the statistical characteristics of a visit distribution, as opposed to person-level data. It is computationally efficient and superior to existing risk assessment methods, which rely on ad hoc assessment that are often computationally expensive and unreliable. We evaluate our approach on a range of location access patterns in simulated environments. Our results demonstrate that the approach is effective at estimating trail disclosure risks and the amount of self-information contained in a distributed system is one of the main driving factors.
Competition in the brewing industry: Does further concentration imply collusion?

Earlier papers reach conflicting conclusions about the effect of concentration in the US brewing industry. This paper argues that stock market data on a more recent set of events, the intense merger activity of 1981-2, can help to resolve these differences. The results indicate that mergers between brewers, excluding the two industry leaders (Anheuser-Busch and Miller Brewing), enhance industry performance by enabling smaller brewers to exploit the scale economies enjoyed by the large ones.
Pulsar atmospheric current loops

THE basic difficulty with the theories of pulsar radiation is that there is as yet no self-consistent model of the large scale structure of the plasma atmosphere of the pulsar1,2. The lack of such a model is perhaps most strikingly exemplified by the fact that there is no consistent explanation of how an aligned rotating magnetised neutron star can maintain a net zero current from its surface—that is, how either a finite current loop in its atmoshere, or an ‘infinite’ loop to the nebula, is established consistent with the space charge and the electromagnetic fields3,4. This letter will be limited to a discussion of how current loops are established when the rotational and magnetic axes are aligned.
A delayed case of fatal atrioesophageal fistula following radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation.

A Delayed Case of Fatal Atrioesophageal Fistula. We describe the case of a 61-year-old man with a fatal atrioesophageal fistula following radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF). Esophageal injury was first noted on computed tomography (CT) scan 10 days following RFA. Fistulization occurred 41 days following the procedure. This is a delayed time course in comparison with published reports. The patient declined intervention and we have serial CT imaging documenting the natural progression from ulceration to fistula. Although the patient was on acid suppression, he received 2 courses of corticosteroids, which may have contributed to the progression of his esophageal ulcer. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 21, pp. 708-711, June 2010)
Linking Microbial Phylogeny to Metabolic Activity at the Single-Cell Level by Using Enhanced Element Labeling-Catalyzed Reporter Deposition Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (EL-FISH) and NanoSIMS

To examine phylogenetic identity and metabolic activity of individual cells in complex microbial communities, we developed a method which combines rRNA-based in situ hybridization with stable isotope imaging based on nanometer-scale secondary-ion mass spectrometry (NanoSIMS). Fluorine or bromine atoms were introduced into cells via 16S rRNA-targeted probes, which enabled phylogenetic identification of individual cells by NanoSIMS imaging. To overcome the natural fluorine and bromine backgrounds, we modified the current catalyzed reporter deposition fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) technique by using halogen-containing fluorescently labeled tyramides as substrates for the enzymatic tyramide deposition. Thereby, we obtained an enhanced element labeling of microbial cells by FISH (EL-FISH). The relative cellular abundance of fluorine or bromine after EL-FISH exceeded natural background concentrations by up to 180-fold and allowed us to distinguish target from non-target cells in NanoSIMS fluorine or bromine images. The method was optimized on single cells of axenic Escherichia coli and Vibrio cholerae cultures. EL-FISH/NanoSIMS was then applied to study interrelationships in a dual-species consortium consisting of a filamentous cyanobacterium and a heterotrophic alphaproteobacterium. We also evaluated the method on complex microbial aggregates obtained from human oral biofilms. In both samples, we found evidence for metabolic interactions by visualizing the fate of substrates labeled with 13C-carbon and 15N-nitrogen, while individual cells were identified simultaneously by halogen labeling via EL-FISH. Our novel approach will facilitate further studies of the ecophysiology of known and uncultured microorganisms in complex environments and communities.
Josephson Junction Comparator as a Quantum-Limited Detector for Flux Qubit Readout

We have applied the Langevin-Heisenberg-Lax formalism for dissipative quantum systems to a balanced Josephson junction comparator operating as a fast, single-shot detector of state of a flux (rf-SQUID) qubit. Earlier experiments and theoretical analysis have shown that such a detector may reach quantum- limited resolution when it measures signal from a high-impedance (current) source. In this work, we have calculated the flux resolution of a detector for a signal source with finite inductive impedance (e.g., a flux qubit) for both an instant switching of the comparator, and for its switching with a realistic SFQ driver. The results show that the flux resolution may be quite high: for typical experimental parameters, the signal-to-noise ratio may be on the order of 10, at 10-ps-scale measurement time. Moreover, the natural energy measure of the resolution, Eout, may be made (within a narrow range of parameters) smaller than planck/2. This situation is similar to the case of continuous flux measurements using SQUIDs. In both cases, a more adequate sensitivity measure requires an account of the fluctuation back-action of the detector on the signal source. In this work we have shown that in the case of single-shot measurements, the back-action effects as characterized by the "information/dephasing" measure, may be brought down to their fundamental limit by at least two methods: coupling quenching and feedback compensation.
A potential role for spectrin during neurulation

An actin—myosin complex located in apical regions of the neurectoderm has been postulated to play a role in neurulation. Numerous studies have documented the presence of microfilaments in this area and confirmed their composition as actin. By necessity, if such a contractile system is to exert a force, these filaments must be anchored in some way to the cell membrane. In this study, the presence of the actin-binding protein, spectrin (fodrin), is demonstrated in the neurectoderm of neurulating mouse embryos using antispectrin antibodies and indirect immunofluorescent techniques. The patterns of spectrin localization correlate with the previously reported regions of increased numbers of microfilaments and also with the morphology of the neural folds. Thus, during the initial stages of cranial fold elevation, a process reportedly dependent on increased glycosaminoglycan synthesis, little spectrin is present in the neuroepithelial cells. Later as the folds begin to converge toward the midline, deposition of the protein, as demonstrated by the intensity of fluorescence, is increased in the apices of these cells, and is most prominent in regions of greatest bending in the neural folds. Caudal neural fold regions show a similar pattern of staining. Thus, the hypothesis that a cytoskeletal system assists in neurulation is supported by these results, which for the first time demonstrate the presence of a putative actin-membrane attachment protein in a morphogenetically active system.
Clothing and the Affects on a Teacher's Image: How Students View Them.

Clothing is an essential element of our daily lives that is basically an expression of who we are. People shop to buy clothing for a variety of reasons, such as enjoyment and socialization. It is fundamental that participating in social activities and life satisfaction are related to well-being. Our well-being is influenced by education, income, health, and how we see ourselves. Clothing is a means by which we see ourselves (Mee Joung and Miller, 2007). The purpose of this study is to try and determine what affect clothing has on students comfort zone and whether instructors clothing creates images of friendly, trustworthy, and approachable; it is not to measure the impact of instructors attire on students perceptions of teaching competence.
Readability of discharge summaries: with what level of information are we dismissing our patients?

Abstract Background We assessed the health literacy of trauma discharge summaries and hypothesize that they are written at higher-than-recommended grade levels. Methods The Flesch–Kincaid grade level (FKGL) and Flesch reading ease scores (FRES), 2 universally accepted scales for evaluating readability of medical information, were used. Results A total of 497 patients were included. The mean patient age was 56 ± 22 years. Average FKGL and FRES were 10 ± 1 and 44 ± 7, including 132 summaries classified as very or fairly difficult to read. A total of 204 (65%) patients had functional reading skills at grade levels below the FKGL of their dismissal note; only 74 patients (24%) had the reading skills to adequately comprehend their dismissal summary. Total 30-day readmissions were 40, 65% of whom were patients with inadequate literacy for dismissal summary comprehension. Conclusions Patient discharge notes are written at too advanced of an educational level. To ensure patient comprehension, dismissal notes should be rewritten to a 6th-grade level.
The Eigenvalues of Mathieu's Equation and their Branch Points

A comprehensive account is given of the behavior of the eigenvalues of Mathieu's equation as functions of the complex variable q. The convergence of their small-q expansions is limited by an infinite sequence of rings of branch points of square-root type at which adjacent eigenvalues of the same type become equal. New asymptotic formulae are derived that account for how and where the eigenvalues become equal. Known asymptotic series for the eigenvalues apply beyond the rings of branch points; we show how they can now be identified with specific eigenvalues.
The Productivity of the Human Agent in Agriculture: An International Comparison

The underlying structural and historical forces which are responsible for this disparity are, I am sure, familiar ground for most of you. The economic environment is characterized by (1) a rapid rate of technological progress and capital accumulation; (2) a cumulative rise of from one to three per cent per annum in the national income; (3) a low income-elasticity of demand for agricultural products; and (4) a relatively high rural birthrate. This means that a sizable net transfer of labor from the agricultural to the industrial sector must occur if the real earnings of the human agent in the two sectors are to be equivalent at any given moment of time. Even if capital accumulation, labor saving technology, and birth rates were identical in the two areas, the low income elasticity of demand for primary products would, in and of itself, create the necessity for a sizeable marginal transfer of labor power to the urban sector if productivity of the human factor in both areas is to be equivalent. But the mechanism of reallocation does not operate instantaneously. Social and cultural barriers to farm-urban migration, even under conditions of full employment, are sufficiently intractable so that the marginal increment of transfer is not large enough to bring about equivalent earnings at any given cross section of time. Implications for economic efficiency are obvious-since total product is maximized when marginal products of comparable agents are equalized, net productivity differentials between farm and industry mean that the economy is not making optimum use of its scarce human and material resources. This poses a problem for social and economic policy to facilitate migration and to increase mobility of resources generally without undue sacrifice of other political and social freedoms.
The History of Zeno's Arguments on Motion

(1915). The History of Zeno's Arguments on Motion. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 22, No. 2, pp. 39-47.
"I can profit from my failure, not yours: Loyalty inhibits capitalizing on a close other’s failure"

It is common to see someone invest or hedge in such a way that offsets potential losses in a companion investment. When are we willing to hedge on our own desired outcome versus a close other’s des...
Computed tomography urography, three-dimensional computed tomography and virtual endoscopy

Spiral computed tomography technology allows an entire body region to be imaged as a continuous volume of computed tomography data. The acquisition of genitourinary images can be performed at different intervals after intravenous contrast injection in order to characterize the renal vasculature, the renal parenchyma or the collecting system. Computed tomography scanning as contrast is excreted into the collecting system is termed a 'computed tomography urogram'. Volumetric data from spiral computed tomography can be rendered into conventional two-dimensional images or even reformatted into three-dimensional views of organ systems or hollow structures, as in 'fly-through' virtual endoscopy. Although virtual endoscopy of the urinary tract remains in its infancy, three-dimensional imaging is currently a useful adjunct in the evaluation of renal transplant and donor patients and partial nephrectomy candidates. The role of computed tomography urography compared with intravenous urography in the evaluation of hematuria is discussed.
Effects of Noncatastrophic Control Technologies that Alter Life History Parameters on Insect Population Growth: A Simulation Study

I investigated the effects of noncatastrophic control technologies that alter life history parameters (such as the use of resistant plant varieties) on the growth of insect populations. I used a computer model to simulate population dynamics of the flat grain beetle, Cryptolestes pusillus (Schonherr). The effects of increasing duration of larval development (by 5, 10, 15, or 20 d) or decreasing fecundity or larval survival (by 25, 50, or 75%) on population growth were simulated. Growth curves for populations with reductions in fecundity or larval survival were nearly identical. The effects of decreasing fecundity or larval survival were apparent during the first generation, whereas the effects of increasing duration of larval development did not become apparent until the second generation. Altering any of the life history parameters resulted in as much as 99% reduction in population levels at constant temperatures and as much as 87% reduction in population levels at actual temperatures in a grain bin. The results indicate that use of control technologies that cause even a small change in a life history parameter may have a significant effect on population growth when applied over a growing or storage season. The combination of such technologies with other methods of control may improve the cost effectiveness of pest management techniques, even if the noncatastrophic control techniques do not provide adequate control when used alone.
Assisted Reproductive Outcomes in Hispanic Patients

There is a growing interest in the racial and ethnicity disparities in assisted reproductive technology (ART) outcomes. In this chapter, we systematically review the current literatures of assisted reproductive outcomes in Hispanic patients. Limited studies have been conducted on this topic because of the complex nature of this study. We discussed the strengths and limitations of these studies. Also, PCOS in Hispanic patients has been discussed given the genetic disposition in the population.
Abstract 2333: Possible prediction of tumor specific checkpoint inhibitor response based on TCGA somatic mutation load

Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy has been shown to be effective in a subset of patients with melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and kidney cancer. Recent studies have suggested that the number of non-synonymous mutations (NsM) can be used to select melanoma and NSCLC patients most likely to benefit from immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment. It is hypothesized that NsMs generate novel epitopes and gene products which can be detected by the immune system. The aim of this study is to apply prior information on NsM count and immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment to a range of tumor subtypes in the TCGA database to evaluate the proportion cases that could be possible responders. In our analysis of published studies of melanoma and NSCLC, the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve suggests a cutoff of 192 NsM would have a maximum combination of sensitivity (74%) and specificity (59.3%) for potential clinical benefit for patients. We conducted an analysis of 7,757 samples from 26 different TCGA tumor types and observed that approximately 16.2% of TCGA samples harbor more than 192 NsM, and thus could be in the category associated with a higher likelihood of response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Based on NsM count, bladder, colon, gastric, and endometrial cancers each contained more than 30% of tumors with a high NsM and thus, could be possible candidates for checkpoint immune therapy. Although our model estimates clinical response to immune checkpoint treatment from NsM count is preliminary and needs future validation, information on NsM count can be useful for selecting tumor types most likely to benefit in clinical trials of immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment. Citation Format: Leandro Machado Colli, Mitchell J. Machiela, Timothy Myers, Lea Jessop, Kai Yu, Stephen J. Chanock. Possible prediction of tumor specific checkpoint inhibitor response based on TCGA somatic mutation load. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 2333.