cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A fuzzy adaptive resonance theory—supervised predictive mapping neural network applied to the classification of multivariate chemical data

Abstract A fuzzy adaptive resonance theory—supervised predictive mapping (Fuzzy ARTMAP) neural network has been studied for the classification of multivariate chemical data. Fuzzy ARTMAP achieves a synthesis of fuzzy logic and adaptive resonance theory (ART) by exploiting the close formal similarity between the computations of fuzzy subset membership and ART category choice, resonance, and learning. To examine the properties of Fuzzy ARTMAP, the well-known Italian olive oil data set was employed. Then this method was applied to a practical agricultural data set to classify different soil samples depending on the crops grown on them. For comparison, the back-propagation (BP) neural network has also been used to treat these data. The results show that the classification performance of the Fuzzy ARTMAP neural network is as good or better than the BP network in the present applications. Among other features, the Fuzzy ARTMAP needs less training time and fewer algorithmic parameters to be optimized than BP does to achieve good classification.
Madelung potentials and valences in the Y1Ba2Cu3O7 superconductor

Abstract Using Ewald's method, we calculated the ion-site potentials and Madelung energy of Y 1 Ba 2 Cu 3 O 7 (orthorhombic, Pmmm, No. 47). We considered the effects of copper-ion and oxygen-ion valences. Among seven suggested copper-oxygen ion-charge configurations, only two give a low electrostatic bonding energy to agree with oxygen vacancies on O( 1 ) sites. Only one configuration gives a realistic bulk modulus. We perturbed this configuration by equalizing the Cu( 1 )-Cu( 2 ) valences and introducing a hole into the CuO 2 plane at the oxygen sites. This configuration also agrees well with observation.
Early experiences in using computerized patient record data for monitoring charting compliance, supporting quality initiatives and assisting with accurate charging at Allina Hospitals & Clinics

Allina Hospitals & Clinics has been an early adopter of electronic medical records in both their hospitals and clinics. This article describes some of the ways their hospitals monitor the quality of the data and adherence to documentation policies, as well as how they use the data from the computerized patient records for healthcare quality initiatives, medical research and support of accurate charging. A key feature of their work is real-time, on-demand reporting from any workstation.
Stereotactic core needle breast biopsy

Summary The coupling of advanced computer-assisted software technology to hardware and manufacturing initiatives has ushered in an era in which percutaneous core biopsy of nonpalpable breast lesions detected by screening mammography is feasible and virtually equivalent in accuracy to radiographically localized excisional biopsy for appropriately chosen cases. Indeed, most (though not all) lesions are candidates for this procedure. Although it has not been discussed herein, ultrasound guided CNB may be another option. CNB under guidance of magnetic resonance imaging is also under investigation. To be successful, a CNB program must follow basic patterns of preferred medical practice: proper lesion selection, adequate and calibrated technology, experience in image interpretation and guidance of biopsy, and reconciliation of image and histological findings. The actual biopsy procedure may be the simplest component of the equation.
Isolate mixture and random mating

Under some conditions, a heterogeneous mixture of random mating isolates cannot be distinguished from a homogeneous random mating population. This emphasizes that knowledge of the homogeneity of the population is imperative before the assumption of panmixia can be invoked. Such cautions are more important because with usual sample size the natural level of deviations from panmixia is difficult to detect.
Large-scale integration of digital adaptive elements

Techniques of large-scale integration are now being applied to "adaptive" type computing elements because the nature of the partitioning of the adaptive computing function yields building blocks that can be both economically realized and applicable to a wide variety of other uses. The adaptive element devices are actually members of a hardware line of digital filter building blocks consisting of four members: digital filter shift register chip; digital-pulse converter output chip; serial/parallel multiplier; adaptive-element shift register chip. This paper discusses the last two of these devices.
Ensemble analysis of pseudocodewords of protograph-based non-binary LDPC codes

This paper presents a method for evaluating pseudocodeword weight enumerators of nonbinary LDPC codes built out of protographs. The ensemble enumerators are evaluated for both the finite-length and infinite-length regimes. Results of this type can be particularly useful for designing structured non-binary LDPC codes with good properties under message passing or linear programming decoding.
Prominent ECG repolarization changes associated with intracoronary infusion of normal saline: comparisons with alternate coronary catheter flush solutions.

Normal saline (NS) is commonly used as a coronary catheter flush solution. We tested the hypothesis that intracoronary (i.c.) infusions of lactated Ringer's solution (LR) and LR with 5% dextrose (D5LR), both of which contain potassium and calcium, would be associated with less prominent surface ECG changes compared with i.c. infusions of NS. In 34 patients, 10 mL each of NS, LR, and D5LR at 37 degrees C were infused over 5 sec into the left main coronary artery. A 12-lead ECG was recorded before, continuously during, and after each infusion. Blinded ECG analysis revealed T-wave amplitude changes > 0.2 mV in 94%, 12%, and 3% of patients with the use of i.c. NS, D5LR, and LR, respectively (P 40 msec occurred in 88%, 15%, and 18% of patients with i.c. NS, D5LR, and LR, respectively (P 40 msec in 26% of patients during i.c. NS infusion compared to only 3% of patients with i.c. LR and D5LR infusions (P < 0.01). In conclusion, i.c. NS infusion is associated with more marked repolarization changes as compared with i.c. LR and D5LR infusions. Since such changes may lower arrhythmogenesis thresholds, the routine use of LR as a coronary catheter flush solution should be considered. Cathet. Cardiovasc. Intervent. 48:359-364, 1999.
Energetics for the reaction of CBr2O with water

Abstract The transition states and reaction products for the reaction of carbonyl dibromide (CBr2O) with water have been examined using quadratic configuration interaction (QCISD) methods. There are two competition steps in the reaction of CBr2O with water. The first involves addition of water across the carbonyl oxygen of CBr2O to produce Br2C(OH)2. The barrier to elimination of HBr and BrC(O)OH from Br2C(OH)2 is predicted to be quite high, i.e., 39.8 kcal mol−1, suggesting that Br2C(OH)2 could be a sink for bromine. The second pathway involves a four-center transition state where the OH of water is added across the carbon bromine bond of CBr2O, eliminating HBr and producing bromoformic acid (BrC(O)OH). Bromoformic acid can proceed to decompose to CO2 and HBr. Overall, the reaction of CBr2O with H2O is predicted to yield CO2 and HBr.
Modification of Walleyes Stizostedion vitreum Tolerance to Hydrogen Peroxide Bath Treatment

— Hydrogen peroxide is being evaluated for its potential as a therapeutic compound for a variety of external disease organisms of fish. The value of hydrogen peroxide as a therapeutic compound for use in walleye Stizustedion vitreum culture has been questioned due to the high sensitivity (i.e., high mortality) of walleyes to this compound. We conducted bioassays and histopathological studies to determine if exposure of walleye to hydrogen peroxide bath treatments would result in increased tolerance to subsequent exposure. Test fish exhibited increased tolerance to hydrogen peroxide after initial exposures. This phenomenon of increased tolerance of walleyes to hydrogen peroxide may be of value in the development of management strategies for the successful treatment of fish diseases.
Realism of Aspiration Levels in Indian and American College Students

(1968). Realism of Aspiration Levels in Indian and American College Students. The Journal of Social Psychology: Vol. 75, No. 2, pp. 169-173.
A new method for twist theorems

We present a new method to prove twist theorems. The method applies to C3+γ, measure-preserving twist maps which are not necessarily perturbations of the classical Twist, but it assumes “good behavior” for some finite orbit (which is guaranteed in particular if the map is a perturbation or if F has a good rotation number on a boundary circle) and guarantees a set of positive measure of C2+γ−e invariant curves.
Simulation of NMR data from oriented membrane proteins: practical information for experimental design

Several hundred solid state NMR dipolar couplings and chemical shift anisotropies were simulated for the polytopic membrane protein, bacteriorhodopsin, and for an idealized transmembrane peptide conforming to several different secondary structures (alpha- and 3(10)-helices and parallel and antiparallel beta-sheets), each at several tilt angles with respect to the bilayer normal. The use of macroscopically oriented samples was assumed. The results of these simulations suggest: (i) Because of the r-3 dependence of dipolar coupling, it is likely to prove difficult to successfully execute uniform isotopic enrichment strategies to generate large numbers of quantitatively interpretable structural measurements in oriented sample NMR studies of membrane proteins. (ii) There are a number of readily implementable specific isotopic labeling schemes which can yield data patterns sufficient to identify local secondary structure for transmembrane segments of idealized proteins which are tilted by
Absorption and Excretion of Mercury in Man. X. Dental Amalgams as a Source of Urinary Mercury.

A study was made of 114 adults of whom 85 had from 1 to 28 amalgam dental fillings. The average number of fillings was ten. None of the 114 subjects was under active dental treatment. One was using a mercurial diuretic. Only six persons in this group showed detectable mercury in the urine. No evidence was found that amalgam fillings which are more than a few weeks old contribute appreciably to urinary mercury. Of 24 persons in the process of having teeth filled, five showed mercury in the urine before and after treatment. The possibility of mercury appearing in the urine of persons undergoing fillings as a result of sources other than amalgam was demonstrated. Dental amalgams do not appear to be an important source of mercury absorption and excretion.
Responses of high-altitude graminoids and soil fungi to 20 years of experimental warming

High-elevation ecosystems are expected to be particularly sensitive to climate warming because cold temperatures constrain biological processes. Deeper understanding of the consequences of climate change will come from studies that consider not only the direct effects of temperature on individual species, but also the indirect effects of altered species interactions. Here we show that 20 years of experimental warming has changed the species composition of graminoid (grass and sedge) assemblages in a subalpine meadow of the Rocky Mountains, USA, by increasing the frequency of sedges and reducing the frequency of grasses. Because sedges typically have weak interactions with mycorrhizal fungi relative to grasses, lowered abundances of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi or other root-inhabiting fungi could underlie warming-induced shifts in plant species composition. However, warming increased root colonization by AM fungi for two grass species, possibly because AM fungi can enhance plant water uptake when soils are dried by experimental warming. Warming had no effect on AM fungal colonization of three other graminoids. Increased AM fungal colonization of the dominant shrub Artemisia tridentata provided further grounds for rejecting the hypothesis that reduced AM fungi caused the shift from grasses to sedges. Non-AM fungi (including dark septate endophytes) also showed general increases with warming. Our results demonstrate that lumping grasses and sedges when characterizing plant community responses can mask significant shifts in the responses of primary producers, and their symbiotic fungi, to climate change.
Thermal analysis of a small expendable tether satellite package

The Small Expendable Deployer System developed by Langley Research Center has an opportunity to deploy a student experiment package in mid-summer 1993. This paper outlines a preliminary bulk thermal analysis of this small satellite. The satellite thermal design is passive in elliptical low earth orbit. Calculations of the equilibrium space craft temperature uses a total energy balance method. Transient response during eclipse periods is also addressed.
Exploring consumers' perceptions of online credit card theft

Abstract Retailers offer consumers assurances and attempt to allay their fears over using their credit card for online transactions. Consumers, however, may not be reacting to these assurances. This exploratory study examines how consumers assess the risks associated with using their credit card online. Results of this study support the notion that consumers assess risk in a multi-dimensional manner. Consumers may be concerned with the possibility of losing many forms of resources (such as financial and time).
Critical flow and spurious solutions Part I. The case of a single equation

Abstract This paper presents a detailed analysis of the various flow regimes which may occur in channels of variable cross-sectional area through which there flows a compressible fluid. The analysis uses topological methods which make it possible to draw wide-ranging physical conclusions without actually solving the governing equation. The present paper constitutes Part I of a wider study aimed at extending considerations in the case of two-phase flow. The flows which occur in practice are modeled on a one-dimensional version of the conservation laws augmented by appropriate closure conditions and equations of state. The resulting mathematical model is a set of n coupled partial differential equations which, in the case of critical flow, can be reduced to a set of n coupled ordinary differential equations for the local tangent V = dσ/dz to a solution (trajectory) in the phase space σ ∪ z. Here σ is the state-velocity vector of the dependent quantities of the problem. This reduces the analysis to the well-known methodology used in the field of dynamical systems. Profiting from the fact, proved earlier, that the basic topological relations are the same regardless of the complexity of the problem expressed by the number n of components of σ, the present paper concentrates on the simplest possible case when n = 1. This corresponds to the adiabatic, one-dimensional flow of a perfect gas with constant specific heats which is governed by a single uncoupled equation in the (M2, z) projection, where M is the Mach number. The essential thesis of this paper is that the ensemble of solutions of the problem is induced by the singular points of the differential equation for V. In the most popular case, this is a saddle point S. Critical flow is described by the two trajectories crossing the saddle point. A saddle point has the property that the directions of V at S are radically different from those in its immediate neighborhood. As a consequence, numerical solutions can never reach the saddle point by a forward-marching algorithm which, under certain conditions, may produce spurious solutions. The latter may be either grossly inaccurate or plain wrong. Prescriptions for avoiding spurious branches are discussed. The paper further examines the flow regimes which may occur in channels of less conventional profiles. In particular, a case of two singular points, a saddle followed by a spiral, leads to a number of flow regimes whose occurrence is not intuitively obvious.
Bioaccumulation of DDT in a marine polychaete, the conveyor-belt deposit feeder Heteromastus filiformis (Claparede)

Abstract To better understand the fate of toxic pollutants within the sediment column and their uptake by the benthic community, the effects of several sub-lethal DDT concentrations were determined on Heteromastus filiformis (a marine head-down deposit feeder) under laboratory conditions. Net DDT uptake by this polychaete (measured at 5, 11, and 28 days) increased through time for all treatments (2, 4, and 8 μg g −1 DDT in sediments) and reached concentrations of 240, 500, and 870 μg of DDT per g of lipid, respectively, at the end of the experiment. Biota sediment accumulation factor (BSAF) for DDT (organism concentration normalized to lipid content divided by sediment concentration normalized to the sediment total organic carbon content) ranged from 0.4 to 0.8. Sediment reworking rate of H. filiformis measured by fecal pellet production was reduced only when the worms were exposed to the highest concentration (8 μg g −1 DDT after 28 d exposure). Initially, fecal pellets contained 5 to 8 times greater DDT concentrations than the spiked sediments, but these values decreased at 11 and 28 days. In this study, DDT reduced the feeding rate of H. filiformis at a relatively low DDT concentration (8 μg g −1 ), compared to concentrations reported for marine sediments, after a relatively short time (28 days), and the buried DDT was transported to the sediment-water interface through the fecal pellets.
WHIM, the Window Handler and Input Manager

This article describes WHIM, the Window Handler and Input Manager, a window management system being developed as part of the QuickSilver operating system project at IBM's Almaden Research Center. Another version of WHIM runs under AIX on the IBM PC RT. This article contrasts and compares the overlapped window scheme used in WHIM with the tiled window scheme used in other systems. The advantages of the window management scheme used in WHIM are detailed, and the effect of display interfaces on the window manager is described.
Real-Time Robot Capability Analysis

Robot Capability Analysis (RCA) is a process in which force/motion capabilities of a manipulator are evaluated. It is very useful in both the design and operational phases of robotics. Traditionally, ellipsoids and polytopes are used to both graphically and numerically represent these capabilities. Ellipsoids are computationally efficient but tend to underestimate while polytopes are accurate but computationally intensive. This article proposes a new approach to RCA called the Vector Expansion (VE) method. The VE method offers accurate estimates of robot capabilities in real time and therefore is very suitable in applications like task-based decision making or online path planning. In addition, this method can provide information about the joint that is limiting a robot capability at a given time, thus giving an insight as to how to improve the performance of the robot. This method is then used to estimate capabilities of 4-DOF planar robots and the results discussed and compared with the conventional ellipsoid method. The proposed method is also successfully applied to the 7-DOF Mitsubishi PA10-7C robot.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Uncertain innovation with uncertain product durability

This paper adds to two strands of the economics literature, the literature on product durability and on technical change, in a small way by introducing the possibility that an uncertain invention may be exogenously durable. Durability makes otherwise fully appropriable innovation porous. We consider a duopoly where firms maximize the present discounted rewards from innovation that might turn out to be a durable good or a non-durable good. Comparative-static results show that greater appropriability of rewards from the durable good innovation induces the firm to increase its profit-maximizing research spending. The effect of a change in the probability of the durable innovation is shown to depend on the degree of appropriability. The consideration of the effect of changes in the probability of durable innovation is unique to the literature. The effects of change in R&D competition are ambiguous and in line with earlier findings. Two special cases are considered and policy implications discussed.
The origins of behavior in macromolecules and protocells

Abstract This paper was prepared in honor of Marcel Florkin's eightieth birthday, before which he was stricken. Professor Florkin did attain, or rather had bestowed upon him, leadership in several areas of science, especially biochemistry. In his writing, in his editorships, in his organizational activities, and in his investigations he stressed meaningful overviews as well as accurate specialization. He understood the nature of the demanding efforts required to attain significant insight. All who knew him personally recall a thoughtful, friendly, occasionally jolly, personality. He epitomized the senior statesman of science. He will be sorely missed, and long remembered.
Antenatal Fetal Diagnosis and Maternal Transport Gastroschisis A Maternal-Infant Case Report

Gastroschisis is a rare congenital birth defect of the abdominal wall that invariably is fatal if not managed appropriately. Early in utero diagnosis is now possible using maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein and ultrasound. As with other serious congenital disorders, antenatal diagnosis allows therapeutic options and time for preparation. Even if the diagnosis is made late, however, efforts to achieve prenatal maternal transport are still reasonable. The neonatal outcome of an unplanned delivery of an anomalous child requiring immediate attention is likely to be better if the delivery occurs in a tertiary center. These facilities generally have specialized services and teams available for critical care around the clock. The authors describe the maternal transport and delivery of a neonate with a serious disorder that required specialized attention at an hour when most hospitals are staffed with a skeleton crew. The necessary resources were available immediately, and the neonatal outcome was favorable. Although this report describes gastroschisis specifically, the concept of tertiary site delivery for potentially seriously ill neonates applies to any condition. With a late diagnosis, possible other anomalies, and a logistically unfavorable hour, the advantages of maternal transport are evident. This report also briefly reviews the area of antenatal ultrasound diagnosis and the newer mechanisms used to develop a perinatal care plan.
Single-stock futures: Evidence from the Indian securities market

Abstract Although single-stock futures (SSFs) are useful multi-purpose stock derivatives, they have not received much attention in developed markets. We analyze SSFs in the Indian market to understand their contribution in price leadership. The findings indicate that trades in the stock market contribute more to price discovery than trades in the SSF market (72% and 28%, respectively), while quotes in the SSF market are more price innovative than quotes in the stock market (39% and 61%, respectively). Our analysis suggests that while stock and SSF trade returns have predictive ability for each other, in the case of quotes, only SSF quotes have predictive ability for stock and SSF returns.
Some Methods of Controlling Quenching in Extractive Scintillators for Liquid Scintillation Counting of Alpha-Emitting Nuclides

Abstract Problems in alpha energy resolution and identification in liquid scintillation are noted and the advantages of using organic -phase-soluble extractants to incorporate alpha-emitting nuclides into the scintillator are discussed. The quenching effects of seven extractants are examined and are found to be in the order tributyl phosphate < di(2-ethylhexyl) -phosphoric acid = trioctylphosphine oxide < didecylamine sulfate = 1-nonyldecylamine sulfate < trioctylamine chloride < trioctylamine nitrate. Some general techniques for improving pulse height and resolution of a liquid scintillator are described.
Pediatric obstructive sleep apnea—base of tongue obstruction

Various anterior glossectomy techniques have been used in the past for airway obstruction at the base of the tongue due to glossoptosis and/or macroglossia. This has largely focused on treating the enlarged, anteriorly protruding tongue. However, these procedures do not address the posterior and base of tongue areas that are more often the problem in pediatric sleep disordered breathing and obstructive sleep apnea. Techniques to evaluate for site of obstruction as well as current possible surgical approaches for treating the base of tongue and glossoptosis are discussed in this article.
Curatorial Agents: How Systems Shape Our Understanding of Personal and Familial Digital Information

As people increasingly turn to digital channels to share, store, and reflect on their lives and experiences, the processes by which they manage the diverse collection of information generated over the course of their lives are changing. These processes, once a matter of hands-on curation and personal meaning making, are now deeply rooted in interactions with digital systems. In this work, we drew from prior research from personalization, memory, and information management to create four interactive, provocative systems. Through sessions with 12 adults from Pittsburgh, PA we used a combination of these systems and interviews to examine how systems might play a role in the near and long term resurfacing of personal and familial digital information. Findings point to an opportunity to create systems that can openly mediate the curation and transmission of digital content, and ways to draw meaning from the differences between how systems and people recall and represent their experiences.
Importance of landfills to urban-nesting herring and ring-billed gulls

Abstract Little information exists on the importance of landfills to urban gulls and the influence landfills have on the establishment of urban-nesting gull colonies. Thus, there is critical need for data to determine factors contributing to increasing populations of urban gulls. Our objectives were to determine the importance of landfills to the reproductive success, diet, and movements (via radio telemetry) of urban-nesting herring gulls ( Larus argentatus ) and ring-billed gulls ( L . delawarensis ) in northern Ohio. Hatch success of herring gulls (198 breeding pairs) and ring-billed gulls (4502 breeding pairs) at urban-nesting colonies was ≥41% lower than hatch success of traditional Great Lakes nesting colonies and more closely approximated hatch success of other urban-nesting colonies. Based on diet and habitat use, ring-billed gulls appeared more dependent on landfills than did herring gulls. Anthropogenic food, primarily from three landfills, was the major component of the diets of ring-billed gulls, whereas fish, primarily from Lake Erie, was used more extensively by herring gulls. On average, adult (25 km) and hatching-year (24 km) ring-billed gulls were located farther from their nesting colony than were adult (18 km) or hatching-year (12 km) herring gulls. Habitat use by hatching-year gulls of both species was similar to habitat use by adult conspecifics. Landfills contain a dependable source of food for urban-nesting gulls. Thus, size and distribution of urban-nesting gull colonies are likely to continue increasing, provided adequate anthropogenic food and colony sites remain available.
Increasing the versatility of an EMscope SP2000A sputter cryo system on a Hitachi S‐570 scanning electron microscope

The EMscope SP2000A Sputter Cryo System provides biologists with a quick and reproducible procedure to freeze, fracture, etch, and sputter coat biological samples, which are then transferred to a cold stage for scanning electron microscopic (SEM) observations. The standard specimen holder, which is supplied with the unit and referred to as a “stub,” will accommodate most specimens; however, fabricating a variety of additional holders to perform more specialized functions considerably increases the versatility of the cryounit and the resolution that can be achieved. For example, the adaptation of small hinged or hingeless gold holders, which are used in the freeze-fracture technique, produces clean fractures, allows for storage of samples in liquid nitrogen and permits samples to be frozen much more rapidly than the large standard holder. A short working distance holder has been designed, which allows samples to be inserted into the final objective lens, thereby resulting in a negative working distance up to −3 mm. Use of this holder with the upper detector in the Hitachi S-570 SEM, enhances the secondary electron signal and thereby increases resolution of frozen samples severalfold. Another specimen holder has been designed, which allows conventional SEM stubs to be observed without removal of the cryostage. This modification permits use of the EMscope stage and specimen transfer device at room temperature without any further alteration or adjustment. These and other types of modified holders allow investigators to store, manipulate, fracture, and observe biological samples at resolutions not normally attainable with a standard SEM cryostage.
Intranasal vaccination with peptidoglycan primes mice for Th2 biased airway hypersensitivity responses, while intranasal vaccination with immunostimulatory sequence oligodeoxynucleotide is protective☆

Abstract Background Environmental exposures to toll like receptor (TLR) ligands, including LPS (TLR4) and microbial DNA (TLR9), may provide immunological protection against the pathogenesis of allergic diseases. However, some TLRs utilize unique intracellular signaling pathways, suggesting that ambient TLR ligand exposures may induce a range of host responses. Methods In in vitro studies, innate cytokine production and co-stimulatory molecule expression by peptidoglycan (PGN; TLR2) and immunostimulatory sequence oligodeoxynucleotide (ISS-ODN; TLR9) activated APCs were compared. In additional experiments, mice were intranasally (i.n.) immunized with OVA, OVA and PGN, or OVA and ISS-ODN and adaptive immune profiles and responses to airway allergen challenge were evaluated. Results PGN and ISS-ODN induced divergent innate responses suggestive of PGN and ISS-ODN being potent adjuvants with Th2 and Th1 biasing activities, respectively. As predicted, mice i.n. immunized with ovalbumin (OVA) alone developed relatively weak adaptive responses, while i.n. OVA/PGN and OVA/ISS-ODN co-immunized mice developed robust and Th2 and Th1 biased responses, respectively. Finally, mice i.n. immunized with OVA developed moderate allergen induced airway hypersensitivity responses, while airway challenge responses were minimal in mice i.n. immunized with OVA and ISS-ODN. However, mice i.n. immunized with OVA and PGN developed high levels of pulmonary eosinophilia and substantially increased airway methacholine sensitivity post airway allergen challenge. Conclusions Considered in a larger context, these results suggest that inspired air may contain TLR ligands capable of both preventing or precipitating the asthmatic phenotype.
Lattice-dynamical calculation of the thermodynamic properties of NaCl, KCl and RbCl

Abstract Results of a lattice-dynamical calculation of the coefficient of thermal expansion, the heat capacity, and the macroscopie Gruneisen ratlo for NaCl, KC1 and RbCl are presented. Good agreement with the experimentai results is obtained without adjustable parameters. The needed normal mode frequencies and mode-Gruneisen parameters were caiculated with a deformation dipole model with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor central-force interactions. Predicted values for the static elastic constants, the strain derivatives of the static potential energy, the mechanical equilibrium value of the nearest-neighbor distance, and the mode-Gruneisen parameters are given.
Annotare—a tool for annotating high-throughput biomedical investigations and resulting data

Summary: Computational methods in molecular biology will increasingly depend on standards-based annotations that describe biological experiments in an unambiguous manner. Annotare is a software tool that enables biologists to easily annotate their high-throughput experiments, biomaterials and data in a standardscompliant way that facilitates meaningful search and analysis. Availability and Implementation: Annotare is available from http:// code.google.com/p/annotare/ under the terms of the open-source MIT License (http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php). It has been tested on both Mac and Windows.
Capitalism and Its Culture: Rethinking Twentieth-Century American Social Thought

Between February 28 and March 1, 2003, an interdisciplinary group of scholars gathered at the University of California, Santa Barbara to consider the evolu tion of Americans' thinking about capitalism in the last half of the twentieth cen tury. The conference, organized by Nelson Lichtenstein (University of Califor nia, Santa Barbara) and entitled ''Capitalism and Its Culture* Rethinking Twentieth-Century American Social Thought," focused on the years between 1938 and 1973, when capitalism as an idea and a system moved from a term of some contestation to an almost naturalized phenomenon that equated the mar ket with progress, democracy, and civil society In these mid-century decades, in tellectuals increasingly substituted a discourse involving bureaucracy, modern ization, and mass culture for earlier concerns over class conflict, social inequality, and the place of the large corporation in the democratic polity The conference provided an opportunity for scholars of the family, academia, radicalism, femi nism, and conservatism to explore the development of and challenges to capi talism and its culture
Functional test generation for path delay faults

We present a novel test generation technique for path delay faults, based on the growth (G) and disappearance (D) faults of programmable logic arrays (PLA). The circuit is modeled as a PLA that is prime and irredundant with respect to every output. Certain tests for G faults, generated by using known efficient methods are transformed into tests for path delay faults. Our algorithm generates tests for all robustly detectable path delay faults in the two-level circuit and its multilevel implementation synthesized using algebraic transformations. Experimental results confirm that the generated vectors, beside robustly covering all path delay faults, also cover most stuck faults in the algebraically factored multilevel circuit. We present some of the best known timings and robust path delay fault coverages for the scan/hold versions of several ISCAS89 circuits, for which the PLA description could be obtained.
Integrating Murine Gene Expression Studies to Understand Obstructive Lung Disease Due to Chronic Inhaled Endotoxin

Rationale Endotoxin is a near ubiquitous environmental exposure that that has been associated with both asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). These obstructive lung diseases have a complex pathophysiology, making them difficult to study comprehensively in the context of endotoxin. Genome-wide gene expression studies have been used to identify a molecular snapshot of the response to environmental exposures. Identification of differentially expressed genes shared across all published murine models of chronic inhaled endotoxin will provide insight into the biology underlying endotoxin-associated lung disease.
An introduction to the stability of distributed systems via a liapunov functional

Liapunov's direct method is extended to determine the stability of distributed systems with single and multiple equilibrium profiles. The method is simple to apply and makes use of certain inequalities to establish the sign definiteness of the time derivative of the Liapunov functional. Two numerical examples are presented, the adiabatic catalyst particle and an empty adiabatic tubular reactor with axial diffusion.
Uncovering health literacy: Developing a remotely administered questionnaire for determining health literacy levels in health disparate populations.

Introduction: Low health literacy contributes to health disparities. We sought to develop and evaluate a remotely administered tool to measure health literacy in health disparate populations. The basic research design involved asking the remotely administered questions in conjunction with an existing and valid measure of health literacy, the S-TOFHLA, to a non-representative convenience sample of individuals drawn from lower income communities. The measures of the remotely administered questions were then correlated with the results of the S-TOFHLA to determine if there was a connection between the two measures. We found a statistically significant correlation between a single question in the remotely administered survey and the validated S-TOFHLA measure. This research supports previous work that points to the importance of just a single remotely administered question in terms of correspondence with the S-TOFHLA. Objective : Develop a questionnaire that can be remotely administered to check for Health Literacy. Methods : Correlation analysis is conducted between various questions and S-TOFHLA scores to determine criterion validity. Results : A single question, “How confident are you in filling out medical forms by yourself?” outperforms other measures in correlating with the S-TOFHLA scores. Conclusions: Further assessment of the confidence question both in isolation and in conjunction with other literacy identifiers should be conducted. Also, this question should be tested against other measures of health literacy beyond the S-TOFHLA.
Phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase plays a role in protecting cancer cells from docosahexaenoic acid–induced cytotoxicity

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6, n-3) is known to exert cytotoxic effects against various types of tumors via lipid peroxidation. Whereas several enzymes influence the response of cells to oxidative stress, only one enzyme, phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase (GPx-4), directly reduces lipid hydroperoxides in mammalian cells. The present study was designed to examine the involvement of GPx-4 in determining the effects of DHA addition to various human cancer cell lines. Although baseline levels of GPx-4 did not correlate with the relative sensitivity of human cancer cell lines to DHA, DHA reduced the level of protein expression of GPx-4 by at least 50% in all six lines. Knockdown of GPx-4 by small interfering RNA technique in a human ovarian cancer cell line significantly enhanced the cytotoxic effect of DHA in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. This cytotoxic effect of DHA was reversed by pretreatment with vitamin E, suggesting that the enhanced toxicity of GPx-4 knockdown is due to changes in the ability of the cells to handle oxidative stress. Neither baseline superoxide dismutase-1 nor catalase expression correlated with the relative sensitivity of the cells to DHA treatment. These results illustrate that susceptibility to the oxidative stress imposed by DHA, and possibly other therapeutic agents, is due to complex interactions among multiple antioxidant systems. The modulation of GPx-4 levels by DHA administration is of potential importance and may influence the cellular response to other oxidant stresses.
Visible light response of tin oxide nanobelts

In the present work we report the effect of visible (VIS) light on the conductivity of SnO2 nanobelts. The existence of visible light effect is unusual, since bulk SnO2 is a wide band gap semiconductor. Two types of nanobelt alignment/trapping methods were used in fabricating devices for study of the visible light effect. Fluid flow alignment was used for making individual nanobelt devices, while AC dielectrophoresis was used to trap multiple nanobelts. DC current passing through the SnO2 nanobelt devices was monitored under VIS and UV light illumination. Visible photoluminescence was also observed in the nanobelt samples.
Food Thermometer Educational Materials: "Now You're Cooking…Using a Food Thermometer!"

Use of food thermometers for checking the end-point temperature of small pieces of meat, such as hamburger patties, is recommended by the US Department of Agriculture but is uncommon among consumers.1 ,2 Most consumers rely on visual cues to judge the doneness of meat.2 We developed a set of educational materials to educate and motivate consumers to routinely use a thermometer for small cuts of meat, with the long-term goal of reducing the incidence of foodborne illnesses, particularly Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections. We used the Transtheoretical Model (TTM),or Stages of Change (SOC) theory, to assess consumer readiness regarding use of food thermometers.TTM assumes that 5 stages, precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance, are associated with behavior changes.Stage-matched interventions have been shown to be more effective than standardized treatments in moving people toward behavior change.3,4
Healthy food availability and participation in WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) in food stores around lower- and higher-income elementary schools

A growing body of obesity research focuses on the food environment and how increased access to nutritious foods might enable people to make better food choices. Much of the existing research on children’s food environments has centred on the school food environment, with a focus on the foods that children consume during school hours(1,2). However, the school food environment extends beyond the school walls, and into the immediate neighbourhoods that surround schools, especially for those children who walk or bike to and from school. Fast-food outlets(3,4) and convenience stores(5) are concentrated around schools. Their presence near schools increases student access to high-fat foods. Students are particularly exposed to the food environment around their school during travel to and from school, as well as during the lunch hour when schools have an ‘open campus’ policy permitting students to leave campus for lunch(6). Given the evidence that lower-income and minority children have higher rates of walking to school than do their counterparts(7), the food environment around schools may be particularly relevant for them. Research with US schoolchildren in Philadelphia showed that as many as 48% of these inner-city children routinely bought snacks at corner stores after school(8). The present study examines the range of food outlets around lower-income schools compared with higher-income schools and compares the availability of nutritious food items in food stores encountered near these schools. In addition, the present study aimed to determine whether stores accepting vouchers for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (a federal programme in the USA for improving health and nutrition of low-income mothers, known as WIC)(9) differ in their availability of nutritious items when compared with stores that do not accept WIC vouchers.
Designing Crowdsourcing Techniques Based on Expert Creative Practice

Current crowdsourcing workflows comprise of discrete tasks that guide the crowd towards predetermined goals. However, this approach is ill-suited towards supporting massively collaborative open-ended creative work, which often involves an exploration of possible end results and revision of creative goals. My dissertation explores how existing expert creative practice can inform new crowdsourcing techniques that allow the crowd to collaborate on complex creative tasks such as writing short stories.
A Description of Local and Nonlocal Eddy–Mean Flow Interaction in a Global Eddy-Permitting State Estimate

AbstractThe assumption that local baroclinic instability dominates eddy–mean flow interactions is tested on a global scale using a dynamically consistent eddy-permitting state estimate. Interactions are divided into local and nonlocal. If all the energy released from the mean flow through eddy–mean flow interaction is used to support eddy growth in the same region, or if all the energy released from eddies through eddy–mean flow interaction is used to feed back to the mean flow in the same region, eddy–mean flow interaction is local; otherwise, it is nonlocal. Different regions have different characters: in the subtropical region studied in detail, interactions are dominantly local. In the Southern Ocean and Kuroshio and Gulf Stream Extension regions, they are mainly nonlocal. Geographical variability of dominant eddy–eddy and eddy–mean flow processes is a dominant factor in understanding ocean energetics.
GIVE-N-TAKE—a balanced code placement framework

GIVE-N-TAKE is a code placement framework which uses a general producer-consumer concept. An advantage of GIVE-N-TAKE over existing partial redundancy elimination techniques is its concept of production regions, instead of single locations, which can be beneficial for general latency hiding. GIVE-N-TAKE guaranteed balanced production, that is, each production will be started and stopped once. The framework can also take advantage of production coming “for free,” as induced by side effects, without disturbing balance. GIVE-N-TAKE can place production either before or after consumption, and it also provides the option to hoist code out of potentially zero-trip loop (nest) constructs. GIVE-N-TAKE uses a fast elimination method based on Tarjan intervals, with a complexity linear in the program size in most cases.We have implemented GIVE-N-TAKE as part of a Fortran D compiler prototype, where it solves various communication generation problems associated with compiling data-parallel languages onto distributed-memory architectures.
CLINICAL MANAGEMENT OF FOREIGN BODIES OF THE GENITOURINARY TRACT

Purpose: The variety of foreign bodies inserted into or externally attached to the genitourinary tract defies imagination and includes all types of objects. The frequency of such cases renders these objects an important addition to the diseases of the urinary organs.Materials and Methods: We performed a computerized MEDLINE search followed by a manual bibliographic review of cross-references. These reports were analyzed and the important findings summarized.Results: Our review encompassed approximately 800 single case reports on foreign bodies in the English world literature published between 1755 and 1999. We structured the range of introduced objects, by referring to origin and material as well as the genitourinary organs involved. Furthermore, we noted symptomatology and diagnoses, including psychological involvement, as well as possible treatment options.Conclusions: The most common motive associated with foreign bodies of the genitourinary tract is sexual or erotic in nature. The most suitable method...