cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Distinguishing competencies of effective physician leaders

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine the particular competencies demonstrated by effective physician leaders. Changing organizational and environmental dynamics present unique challenges to leaders in the field of healthcare. An accelerated emphasis on increasing the quality of health care delivery, containing costs, and restructuring the delivery of health care itself are redefining the very nature of healthcare and the roles of physicians as leaders. Given this context, the authors propose to identify the essential competencies for twenty-first century physician leadership. Design/methodology/approach – In all, 53 critical incident interviews from 28 physicians identified as emerging leaders at the Cleveland Clinic, a top-rated US academic healthcare institution, were examined in two ways: an existing leadership competency model was applied to each critical incident and inductively derived themes were identified through thematic analysis of the incidents. Findings – The predominant distinguishing leadership competencies demonstrated by the physician leaders included: Empathy, Initiative, Emotional Self-Awareness and Organizational Awareness. Communicating deliberately, getting buy-in from colleagues, focussing on the mission of the organization and showing respect for others were also discovered through thematic analysis to be essential practices of these effective physician leaders. Over 90 percent of the critical incident stories dealt with colleague-to-colleague interactions. Research limitations/implications – The research was conducted in one academic healthcare organization, thus limiting the generalizability of the results. Additional research testing these results in a variety of healthcare institutions is warranted. Originality/value – This study identified specific competencies that distinguish effective physician leaders. These leaders actively sought to work with colleagues to obtain their input and consensus in order to enact organizational change and improve health care delivery in their institution. Importantly, their intentions were neither self-focussed nor self-promoting but strongly mission driven. The identification of physician leader competencies will assist incumbent and emerging physician leaders in their ability to be effective leaders, as well as inform the design of training and development programs for physicians.
Delay fault models for VLSI circuits

State-of-the-art technologies for VLSI circuits give rise to various defect mechanisms that may cause a circuit to fail when operated at its designated speed of operation. Such defects are conventionally modeled by delay faults. In this paper, we review delay fault models used for circuits described at the gate level. The shortcomings of these models in accommodating physical phenomena that determine the worst-case delay of a circuit, and in modeling physical defects, were described in several works. We review methods proposed recently to address these shortcomings at the gate level, and describe a new approach based on a generalized fault model. This model requires that several tests be used for each fault to encompass the conditions leading to the worst-case delay associated with the fault, thus alleviating the need for accurate modeling of these conditions. Functional delay fault models were also proposed to address several of the shortcomings of gate-level models. We review these models and discuss their advantages and disadvantages. Throughout this paper, we also review test generation procedures for delay faults, and present experimental results of these procedures where appropriate.
A Cognitive-Behavioral Modification Treatment of Trichotillomania

Abstract The problem of trichotillomania (compulsive hair pulling), though relatively rare, is often resistant to treatment. This presentation describes a cognitive-behavioral intervention which shows promise as a potent treatment technique. This treatment involves, initially, heightening the client's awareness not only of the hair-pulling behavior, but more importantly of the overt and covert behaviors which are precursors to the pulling. The client is then taught to use this awareness as a cue to employ various coping responses which are taught during the course of therapy. These include emitting overt behaviors which are incompatible with pulling as well as covert behaviors (calming self-statements, disputation of permission-giving to pull, coping self-instructions, etc.) which are also aimed at gaining symptom control. A case study is presented to illustrate the technique's application.
Measurement of stress to gauge user satisfaction with features of the computer interface

Abstract Human stress in a computer-related job situation can result from a variety of causes. A comprehensive cause-and-effect model is developed, using extensive confirmation from the literature. Then, the components of user satisfaction are defined and a conceptual measure of user satisfaction is constructed. These definitions use the same cause-and-effect relationships that were identified for user stress. Based on the conjecture that stress, or lack thereof, is an appropriate indicator of the user's level of (dis)satisfaction with a system, a measurement methodology is proposed. It is intended to determine both how satisfied a user is with an interface and what the causes of (dis)satisfaction might be. Techniques for obtaining objective indicators of the user's stress levels are surveyed. A general experimental procedure is outlined and its verification is described. The methodology is considered to be particularly important for application to critical, high-pressure jobs, such as those in air traffi...
Evaluation and optimization of General Atomics' GT-MHR reactor cavity cooling system using an axiomatic design approach

Abstract The development of the Generation IV (Gen-IV) nuclear reactors has presented social, technical, and economical challenges to nuclear engineering design and research. To develop a robust, reliable nuclear reactor system with minimal environmental impact and cost, modularity has been gradually accepted as a key concept in designing high-quality nuclear reactor systems. While the establishment and reliability of a nuclear power plant is largely facilitated by the installment of standardized base units, the realization of modularity at the sub-system/sub-unit level in a base unit is still highly heuristic, and lacks consistent, quantifiable measures. In this work, an axiomatic design approach is developed to evaluate and optimize the reactor cavity cooling system (RCCS) of General Atomics’ Gas Turbine-Modular Helium Reactor (GT-MHR) nuclear reactor, for the purpose of constructing a quantitative tool that is applicable to Gen-IV systems. According to Suh's axiomatic design theory, modularity is consistently represented by functional independence through the design process. Both qualitative and quantitative measures are developed here to evaluate the modularity of the current RCCS design. Optimization techniques are also used to improve the modularity at both conceptual and parametric level. The preliminary results of this study have demonstrated that the axiomatic design approach has great potential in enhancing modular design, and generating more robust, safer, and less expensive nuclear reactor sub-units.
Hyperlipidemia in the nephrotic syndrome.

H YPERLIPIDEMIA may be a severe and refractory manifestation of the nephrotic syndrome, responsible for accelerated atherogenesis. Nephrotic hyperlipidemia results from both the increased hepatic synthesis of lipids and their decreased rate of removal from the circulation. This combined defect may be caused by both the urinary loss of substances necessary for normal lipid metabolism and decreased plasma oncotic pressure. The following case demonstrates both the severity of the hyperlipidemia and the fluctuations that occur in blood lipids in parallel with proteinuria (Fig 1).
A flexible data fusion architecture for persistent surveillance using ultra-low-power wireless sensor networks

We have developed a flexible, target-driven, multi-modal, physics-based fusion architecture that efficiently searches sensor detections for targets and rejects clutter while controlling the combinatoric problems that commonly arise in datadriven fusion systems. The informational constraints imposed by long lifetime requirements make systems vulnerable to false alarms. We demonstrate that our data fusion system significantly reduces false alarms while maintaining high sensitivity to threats. In addition, mission goals can vary substantially in terms of targets-of-interest, required characterization, acceptable latency, and false alarm rates. Our fusion architecture provides the flexibility to match these trade-offs with mission requirements unlike many conventional systems that require significant modifications for each new mission. We illustrate our data fusion performance with case studies that span many of the potential mission scenarios including border surveillance, base security, and infrastructure protection. In these studies, we deployed multi-modal sensor nodes - including geophones, magnetometers, accelerometers and PIR sensors - with low-power processing algorithms and low-bandwidth wireless mesh networking to create networks capable of multi-year operation. The results show our data fusion architecture maintains high sensitivities while suppressing most false alarms for a variety of environments and targets.
Appraising the practice of etiquette-based medicine in the inpatient setting.

BACKGROUND The physician–patient relationship is at the heart of patient care. Dr. Michael Kahn proposed a checklist of six behaviors, defining “etiquette-based medicine”, as a strategy to start each encounter respectfully and improve patient–physician rapport.
Hybrid capture 2 viral load and the 2-year cumulative risk of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or cancer.

Objective The purpose of this study was to determine the clinical value of a semiquantitative measure of human papillomavirus viral load by the hybrid capture 2 assay for stratification of the risk of histologic cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or carcinoma. Study design The Atypical Cells of Unknown Significance and Low-Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesions Triage Study was a randomized clinical trial of 5060 women with 2 years of follow-up to evaluate treatment strategies for women with equivocal or mildly abnormal cervical cytologic condition. The usefulness of the continuous hybrid capture 2 output relative light units/positive controls that were above the positive threshold (1.0 relative light units/positive controls), which was a surrogate for human papillomavirus viral load, for distinguishing between hybrid capture 2 positive women who were diagnosed with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or carcinoma during the study from those who were not diagnosed with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or carcinoma was examined with the use of receiver-operator characteristic analyses. Results Relative light units/positive controls values did not further discriminate between hybrid capture 2 positive women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or carcinoma from those with less than cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or carcinoma. The use of a cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or more severe or carcinoma case definition did not alter our findings. Conclusion Among women with atypical cells of unknown significance or low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion cervical cytologic findings, the hybrid capture 2 viral load measurement did not improve the detection of 2-year cumulative cases of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or carcinoma significantly.
Middleware for Heterogeneous Sensor Networks in Urban Scenarios

We address the issue of self-adaptation of a sensor network with mobile sensors to better observe and track events of interest in an urban scenario. We present middleware called Event-driven Network Controller (ENC) that resides at every sensor node in the network and is independent of the sensor type. ENC translates the requirements of the application layer (focused on improving of the quality of the heterogeneous data fusion) into messages that are diffused throughout the wireless network with the intent of clustering heterogeneous sensor nodes in the vicinity of an event and dynamically changing the local network topology to meet the fusion needs of the cluster. ENC combines the cluster control and the resource management into a unified framework. We implement ENC in NS-2 and we show its applicability for localizing and tracking a mobile target in an urban scenario using a heterogeneous sensor network, formed by pressure, video, and magnetic sensors.
The Modern Middle East: A Political History since the First World War. By Mehran Kamrava

Rev. 2nd ed. (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2011), xv + 520 pp. xv + 520 pp. $27.50/£19.95 paper. When the late Albert Hourani began teaching a course in modern Middle East history ...
β-glucan content and viscosity of extracts from waxy barley

Flours from grain of four waxy barley lines were compared with those from normal isogenic pair lines to determine the effect of the waxy trait on total β-glucan content and on viscosities of acid and alkaline extracts. Total β-glucan content was consistently higher in the waxy than in the normal isotypes. The mean β-glucan contents of the waxy and normal barley lines were 6·.4 and 4·8% respectively. Viscosities of alkaline and acid extracts were higher in all waxy than in normal isotypes. Background genotype affected the β-glucan content and extract viscosities of the waxy isotypes. Over all genotypes the correlation coefficients were 0·55 *** for β-glucan content vs. viscosity of alkaline extracts, 0·64 *** for β-glucan content vs. viscosity of acid extracts, and 0·89 *** for viscosity of alkaline vs. acid extracts. Within isotypes and overall, the relationship between β-glucan content and viscosity of acid extracts was stronger than between β-glucan content and viscosity of alkaline extracts. Viscosity measurements do not appear to be good estimates of β-glucan content for waxy or normal barley, except perhaps for the Compana-waxy genotype series. It appears that advantages of waxy barley starch for malting and brewing, and for food or feed uses, may be offset by the high β-glucan and high extract viscosity characteristics of waxy barley.
The Genesis of Civic Awareness: Agenda Setting in Political Socialization

Agenda-setting theory, a conceptual framework used to trace how issue salience is established among policy makers, media, and the public, has yet to be applied to political socialization. This study extends agenda-setting theory by conceptualizing it as a process of political development. In an analysis of adolescent involvement during the 2002 U.S. elections, data are reported from a quasi-experimental field study of the effects of the Kids Voting USA campaign intervention on students in Arizona, Colorado, and Florida. A model of agenda setting among adolescents is built by investigating the influence of school intervention exposure, news attention, discussion, and information integration on salience, opinion strength, and finally strengthened political predispositions (partisanship and ideology). Findings suggest that agenda setting provides a valuable perspective for understanding how adolescents come to decide what issues are important to them.
Diurnal variation in thermoregulatory response to chlorpyrifos and carbaryl in the rat

Abstract Time of day of exposure is rarely considered in the study of insecticide toxicology. It would be expected that the circadian temperature rhythm (CTR) as well as the circadian rhythms of other physiological processes would affect the efficacy of anticholinesterase (antiChE) insecticides. The ability of antiChE insecticides to alter core temperature ( T c ) could be affected by time of exposure in relation to the CTR. To this end, we assessed time of exposure on the efficacy of the antiChE insecticides chlorpyrifos (CHP) and carbaryl (CAR) to alter T c in the rat. T c and motor activity (MA) were monitored by radiotelemetry. Rats were dosed orally with 0, 30, and 50 mg/kg CHP or 0, 25 and 75 mg/kg CAR at 09:00 and 15:00 h. Both insecticides caused an acute decrease followed by a delayed increase in T c by 24–48 h post-exposure. The temperature index (TI) (area under curve of Δ T c with time) was significantly greater when CHP was given at 15:00 h as compared with 09:00 h. The maximum decrease in T c was similar for morning and afternoon CHP. The TI following CAR was similar for morning and afternoon exposure. CHP suppressed the 24 h MA equally when given in the morning and afternoon. CAR was more effective in reducing MA when given in the morning as compared with the afternoon. The T c increase measured 24 h after dosing was greater when CHP was given in the morning. Overall, time of day affected the thermoregulatory toxicity of CHP but not CAR. Another experiment showed that the hypothermic efficacy of oxotremorine, a muscarinic agonist, was greater when injected at 09:00 h as compared with 15:00 h. Hence, cholinergic stimulation is probably not the only mechanism to explain the effects of the chronotoxicogical effects of some antiChE insecticides.
The exposure data landscape for manufactured chemicals

Abstract The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is developing chemical screening and prioritization programs to evaluate environmental chemicals for potential risk to human health in a rapid and efficient manner. As part of these efforts, it is important to catalog available information on chemical toxicity and exposure from widely dispersed sources. The main objective of this analysis is to define important aspects of the exposure space and to catalog the available exposure information for chemicals being considered for analysis as part of the U.S. EPA ToxCast™ screening and prioritization program. Publicly available exposure data have been extracted into ACToR (Aggregated Computational Toxicology Resource), which combines information for hundreds of thousands of chemicals from > 600 public sources. We use data from ACToR to assess the exposure data landscape for environmental chemicals. Of the roughly 100,000 chemicals that have at least limited toxicity information available, less than one-fifth also have exposure information — and for most of these the information is of limited utility (e.g., production volume). Readily accessible data on concentrations in exposure-related media are only available for a much smaller fraction. Among these, the largest number of chemicals is measured in water with over 1150 unique compounds, followed by 788 substances measured in soil, and 670 in air. These small numbers clearly reflect a focus of resources on those substances previously identified as possibly posing a hazard to human health. Exposure to a much broader number of chemicals will need to be measured in order to fully realize the envisioned goal of using exposure information to guide toxicity testing.
Demography of Dispersal in Attwater's Pocket Gopher (Geomys attwateri)

Weekly dispersal by Attwater's pocket gophers ( Geomys attwateri ) averaged 5.8% of the resident population (range = 1 to 15%/week). Dispersers were primarily young (immature) individuals and intraspecific aggression likely influenced their emigration. Body mass of dispersers within the categories adult male, adult female, and young (sexes pooled) was significantly less than that of residents. Sex ratios of dispersing young and adults were not different from those of residents and reproductive activity of dispersing adults was the same as that of residents.
Emission and performance of continuous flow combustors

The emissions and performance of a relatively simple prevaporizing combustor are considered withethe belief that many of the results are applicable to more practical cases. A portion of the combustor volume is utilized for fuel vaporization. Flame holding is accomplished via a bluff body orifice plate perpendicular to the flow downstream of the vaporization volume. NO, NO 2 , and CO levels are measured in the recirculation zone and compared with predictions assuming the zone to be well stirred and having a residence time determined from the literature. A characteristic fluid mechanic time defined as the time taken by a fluid particle to traverse its time averaged streamline in the recirculation zone one time is computed using the technique of Gosman, et al. , 1 for recirculating flow. This time compares favorably with the residence time above. Also, an ignition delay time (minimum residence time for reactor ignition) is found to be three orders of magnitude below the residence time, indicating the Damkohler first similarity group in the recirculation zone is too long to govern stability, even though it may determine emissions of NO x from the linear.
Dasatinib: A potent SRC inhibitor in clinical development for the treatment of solid tumors

SRC is a tyrosine kinase that plays a role in oncogenic, invasive and bone-metastatic processes. It has therefore been prioritized as a candidate therapeutic target in patients with solid tumors. Several SRC inhibitors are now in development, of which dasatinib has been most explored. Preclinical studies in a wide variety of solid tumor cell lines, including prostate, breast and glioma, have shown that that dasatinib acts as a cytostatic agent, inhibiting the processes of cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis. Dasatinib also inhibits the activity of osteoclasts, which have a major role in the development of metastatic bone lesions. Dasatinib has additive or synergistic activity in combination with a number of other agents, including cytotoxic agents and targeted therapies, providing a rationale for combination treatment in a clinical setting. Emerging clinical data with dasatinib support experimental observations, with preliminary phase 1 and 2 data demonstrating activity, both as a single agent and as combination therapy, in a range of solid tumors. Future clinical trials will further assess the clinical value of SRC inhibition with dasatinib.
Hematological Studies on Mammals from Alaska

It is evident, according to Downey (1938), that hematological studies on mammals other than the common laboratory and domestic forms are relatively scarce. The comprehensive tabulations in the appendix of Wintrobe's (1953) work on hematology show the dearth of information in this field. During the course of a research problem dealing with the physiology of arctic animals, considerable hematological data were obtained from a variety of mammalian specimens. The work of Slane and Wilber (1952) on the hematology of the red backed mouse, Clethrionomys dawsoni from central Alaska, is the only recent contribution to our knowledge of blood cells in wild Alaskan mammals. In order to keep interested investigators informed, this report on blood counts, differentials and erythrocyte measurements from a number of mammals collected in Alaska is presented. Species .—The following species were studied in this investigation: Hudson Bay ground squirrel, Citellus parryii parryii ; Yukon ground squirrel, Citellus osgoodi ; Alaska red squirrel, Sciurus hudsonicus petulans ; MacFarlane meadow mouse, Microtus macfarlani ; black bear, Ursus americanus ; ochraceous wood-chuck, Marmota monax ochracea ; snowshoe hare, Lepus americanus; cottontail rabbit, Sylvilagus sp .; Richardson weasel, Mustela erminea richardsonii ; north-western muskrat, Ondatra zibethica spatulata ; Alaska porcupine, Erethizon epixan thum myops . Field and laboratory work .—During the summer of 1951, red squirrels, meadow mice, woodchucks, snowshoe hares and muskrats were collected at various places in central Alaska. Some ground squirrels, porcupines, weasels, rabbits and the black bear were supplied from the menagerie at the Arctic Aeromedical Laboratory, Ladd Air Force Base, Fairbanks, Alaska. Blood samples for counts and differentials were generally taken by bleeding an animal from a digit. The blood smears were stained with Wright's or Giemsa's technique. Erythrocyte measurements were made using a calibrated ocular micrometer. This research project was supported in part by …
Nonpoint sources of volatile organic compounds in urban areas - Relative importance of land surfaces and air

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) commonly detected in urban waters across the United States include gasoline-related compounds (e.g. toluene, xylene) and chlorinated compounds (e.g. chloroform, tetrachloroethane [PCE], trichloroethene [TCE]). Statistical analysis of observational data and results of modeling the partitioning of VOCs between air and water suggest that urban land surfaces are the primary nonpoint source of most VOCs. Urban air is a secondary nonpoint source, but could be an important source of the gasoline oxygenate methyl-tert butyl ether (MTBE). Surface waters in urban areas would most effectively be protected by controlling land-surface sources.
The FLOW-MATIC and MATH-MATIC automatic programming systems

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses about FLOW-MATIC and MATH-MATIC automatic programming systems. An AUTOMATIC programming system is an ordinary computer program. Its input is a definition of the program the user wants, and the output is the coded program concerned, and generally, a good write-up of this program. In FLOW-MATIC, which is a business data processing compiler, the pseudo-code language is a form of English with restrictions on the form of sentences, and verbs. It can be seen that conditions are restrictions, not warpings of the language, and, accordingly, anyone using the full language will have little or no difficulty in understanding the FLOW-MATIC pseudocode even without any previous knowledge of it.
Clinical predictors of computed tomography in epileptic children.

The purpose of this study was to determine which clinical characteristics correlated with abnormal computed tomographic (CT) scans in epileptic children. Thirty variables were examined. Of these, four variables (presence of inherited or congenital disease, focal motor findings, developmental delay, and early onset of seizures) correlated with CT scan outcome. Pardal seizures per se were not highly associated with abnormal CT scans. A crude decision rule based on these results correctly classified the CT scan result in 94% of the patients who were clinically predicted not to have a parenchymal abnormality. (J Child Neurol 1986; 145-148)
Loss of Imprinting of Insulin-Like Growth Factor-II (IGF2) Gene in Distinguishing Specific Biologic Subtypes of Wilms Tumor

Background: Loss of imprinting (LOI) of the insulin-like growth factor-II (IGF2) gene, an epigenetic alteration associated with expression of the normally silent maternal allele, was observed first in Wilms tumor. Although LOI has subsequently been detected in most adult tumors, the biologic role of LOI in cancer remains obscure. We analyzed the imprinting status of Wilms tumors with respect to pathologic subtype, stage, and patient's age at diagnosis and examined the expression of genes potentially affected by LOI. Methods: Of 60 Wilms tumors examined, 25 were informative for an Apal polymorphism in the IGF2 gene, allowing analysis of allele-specific gene expression, and could be classified by pathologic subtype. Gene expression was measured quantitatively by real-time polymerase chain reaction, and pathologic analysis was blinded for genetic status. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: We observed LOI of IGF2 in nine (90%) of 10 Wilms tumors classified as having a pathologic subtype associated with a later stage of renal development and in only one (6.7%) of 15 Wilms tumors with a pathologic subtype associated with an earlier stage of renal development (P<.001). LOI was associated with a 2.2-fold increase (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.6-fold to 3.1-fold) in IGF2 expression (P<.001). Children whose Wilms tumors displayed LOI of IGF2 were statistically significantly older at diagnosis (median = 65 months; interquartile range [IQR] = 47-83 months) than children whose tumors displayed normal imprinting (median = 24 months; IQR = 13-35 months; P<.001). Conclusions: These data demonstrate a clear relationship between LOI and altered expression of IGF2 in Wilms tumors and provide a molecular basis for understanding the divergent pathogenesis of this cancer. Analysis of LOI could provide a valuable molecular tool for the classification of Wilms tumor.
An end-to-end airborne FTS simulation for evaluating the performance trade space in fugitive gas identification

It is of interest to achieve rapid scan rates during airborne spectral collection as spatial blur introduced via platform motion can be minimized. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometers (FTS) are well suited to this task. Unfortunately, the trade in an FTS between scan rate and resolution approaches an inverse relationship. An FTS simulation has been developed incorporating multiple instrument and scene parameters to evaluate the system-level trade space. Error sources such as uncertainty in mirror velocity during sampling and jitter are included. A detection metric comprised of multiple common detector algorithms is used to characterize system performance. Results are shown characterizing system performance degradation under a variety of environmental and system performance conditions.
Primary care screening of depression and treatment engagement in a university health center: a retrospective analysis

Abstract Objectives: This retrospective study analyzed a primary care depression screening initiative in a large urban university health center. Depression detection, treatment status, and engagement data are presented. Participants: Participants were 3,713 graduate and undergraduate students who presented consecutively for primary care services between January and April 2006. Methods: A standardized 2-tiered screening approach for an inception cohort of students utilizing primary services. Primary care providers were trained to triage students with depressive symptoms. Results: Six percent of participants had clinically significant depressive symptoms (CSD). Severe depressive symptoms were found in less than 1.0% of participants. Male rates of severe depressive symptoms were more than double that of females. Only 35.7% of untreated depressed participants started treatment within 30 days following identification. Conclusions: Systematic primary care depression screening in a college health center is a pro...
Interactions between levodopa and other drugs: significance in the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

Levodopa (L-3,4 dihydroxyphenylalanine), an amino acid which is currently the most useful drug for the management of Parkinson’s disease is an excellent case in point for an important generality concerning drug treatment: Since the responses of individual patients to a specific drug may be remarkably diverse, careful individualisation of total management of the treatment is necessary in order to maximise its therapeutic effects. Relevant variables in individual response effects include the natural history of the disease under treatment, associated illnesses, drug interactions, adverse effects of other drugs, idiosyncratic reactions and diet. This article considers, many of the factors which may alter either the therapeutic efficacy or the adverse effects of levodopa in Parkinsonism or in related disorders. Levodopa absorption occurs mainly in the small intestine. The drug can be locally metabolised by decarboxylase at the gastric mucosa. High protein diet and prolonged gastric emptying time may negate the therapeutic efficacy of levodopa. Among the many inhibitors of enzyme processes important to catecholamine metabolism, only peripheral aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase inhibitors appear to have clinical importance at present. Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6) may rapidly minimise or negate the effects of levodopa in Parkinsonism by enhancing its extracerebral metabolism. Concomitant administration of monoamine oxidase inhibitors and levodopa may cause severe hypertensive crisis. Since this phenomenon is not uniform or predictable, the effect of monoamine oxidase inhibitors in slowing degradation of cerebral dopamine cannot be utilised clinically to lower the dosage requirement of levodopa. It is well recognised that selected anticholinergic drugs have modest antiparkinsonian effects. However, in certain parkinsonian patients, these drugs will markedly delay gastric emptying and thus perhaps minimise or negate the therapeutic benefit from levodopa. Reserpine, phenothiazines, butyrophenones and tetrabenazine all may alter the function of dopaminergic pathways and hence may significantly interfere with the therapeutic efficacy of levodopa.
Nonaneurysmal cranial nerve compression as cause of neuropathic strabismus: evidence from high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging.

Purpose To seek evidence of neurovascular compression of motor cranial nerves (CNs) in otherwise idiopathic neuropathic strabismus using high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Design Prospective, observational case series. Methods High-resolution, surface coil orbital MRI was performed in 10 strabismic patients with idiopathic oculomotor (CN III) or abducens (CN VI) palsy. Relationships between CNs and intracranial arteries were demonstrated by 0.8-mm thick, 162-μm resolution, heavily T2-weighted MRI in fast imaging using steady-state acquisition sequences. Images were analyzed digitally to evaluate cross-sectional areas of extraocular muscles. Results In one patient with CN III palsy, an ectatic posterior communicating artery markedly flattened and thinned the ipsilateral subarachnoid CN III. Cross-sections of the affected medial, superior, and inferior rectus muscles 10 mm posterior to the globe–optic nerve junction were 17.2 ± 2. 5 mm 2 , 15.5 ± 1.3 mm 2 , and 9.9 ± 0.8 mm 2 , significantly smaller than the values of 23.6 ± 1.9 mm 2 , 30.4 ± 4.1 mm 2 , and 28.8 ± 4.6 mm 2 , respectively, of the unaffected side ( P 2 and 29.8 ± 3.1 mm 2 , significantly smaller than the values of 33.5 ± 4.1 mm 2 and 36.9 ± 1.6 mm 2 , respectively, in unaffected contralateral eyes ( P Conclusions Nonaneurysmal motor CN compression should be considered as a cause of CN III and CN VI paresis with neurogenic muscle atrophy when MRI demonstrates vascular distortion of the involved CN. Demonstration of a benign vascular cause can terminate continuing diagnostic investigations and can expedite rational management of the strabismus.
Stark-Effect Studies of 1-Phenylpyrrole in the Gas Phase. Dipole Reversal upon Electronic Excitation

High-resolution fluorescence excitation experiments on 1-phenylpyrrole in a molecular beam, both in the absence and presence of an applied electric field, show that the electronic state responsible for the strong features in the gas-phase UV absorption spectrum is the 1Lb state, that this state is significantly more planar than the ground state, and that the direction of the permanent electric dipole moment in the 1Lb state is reversed relative to that of the ground state. Implications of these findings for intramolecular charge transfer in the isolated molecule are discussed.
Single-Channel High-Definition Television Systems, Compatible And Noncompatible

We describe the efforts to develop improved television systems, particularly for broadcasting and cable use. Both technical and regulatory issues are discussed. The questions of compatibility with the large number of existing receivers and with current channelization schemes are stressed. The desirable properties of new systems are given, and methods of improvement outlined. Two systems under development are presented, a receiver-compatible system suitable for immediate over-the-air applications, and a noncompatible (but channel-compatible) scheme suitable for immediate use on cable.
Higher-order numerical model for simulation of time-dependent variable-density flows

A numerical model, first-order accurate in time discretization and second-order accurate in space discretization, is presented for the simulation of time-dependent laminar diffusion flames. The numerical model uses a semi-implicit scheme for time marching and incorporates flux-corrected transport (FCT) for convection terms and projection method for velocity-pressure coupling. A direct solver is used for solving the pressure Poisson equation. A time-splitting method is adopted to split the transport equation into a convection equation in explicit form and a diffusion equation in implicit form. The explicit convection equation allows for implementation of the FCT without introducing an artificial viscosity. The implicit diffusion equation removes the time step size restriction of the von Neumann stability criterion. Theoretical assessments are derived for the order of accuracy of time difference by viewing the projection method as a lower-upper decomposition, and formulation is also given to establish the second-order accuracy. The current numerical model is used to solve the Smith-Hutton problem and the Burke-Schumann diffusion flame with or without external forcing of the fuel jet. The results are compared with solutions using the schemes of lower-order accuracy in the space discretization. The comparison shows that significant numerical diffusion error exists in the solution when a first-order upwind difference scheme or power-law approximation is used. The present study suggests that a higher-order space difference scheme should be used for the simulation of time-dependent laminar jet diffusion flames, although a first-order time difference scheme would be adequate.
Wide Angle Impedance Matching techniques for volumetrically scanned phased arrays

The scan and frequency dependent aperture surface impedance is a useful way to study the effects of the active phased array. The surface impedance of an ideal current sheet diverges for orthogonal E- and H-plane polarizations at large scan angles, based on fundamentals. This phenomenon can be reproduced in the phased array unit cell using modern Finite Element Modeling techniques. It can also be corrected within a limited frequency range using complex conjugate matching schemes, which are also termed Wide Angle Impedance Matching (WAIM) techniques. While these latter techniques often introduce surface wave resonance effects, a parasitic element approach satisfies the complex conjugate condition with minimal surface wave effects. This last approach includes the geometry found in a stacked patch radiator.
The fate of cortisone-T in mice.

KNOWLEDGE of the tissue distribution, the chemical transformation which the molecule undergoes and the eventual disposal of the end products of hormone metabolism may afford significant information with respect to the mode of action or the site of effectiveness of these agents. Certain initial investigations of this problem dealing with the localization and fate of radioactive testosterone in rodents have been reported from this laboratory (Barry, Eidinoff, Dobriner and Gallagher, 1952). In continuation of these investigations, we have studied the tissue distribution of an adrenal hormone, cortisone labeled with tritium and with the greater portion of the isotope in chemically stable locations in the molecule (Fukushima, Kritchevsky, Eidinoff and Gallagher, 1952). We have examined as well the route of elimination of the hormone or its metabolic end products. A series of orienting experiments were carried out in a semi-quantitative fashion where the counting errors were large.
TH-E-BRB-07: Treatment Planning Performance of High Intensity Flattening-Filter- Free Beams for Head-And-Neck Cancer: IMRT versus VMAT

Purpose: To evaluate the performance of high‐intensity flattening‐filter‐free (FFF) beams in terms of planning efficiency and dosimetric merits for head‐ and‐neck cancers treated with IMRT and VMAT techniques. Methods: Ten patients with Stage III–IV squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck were planned with fixed‐field IMRT and VMAT using 6MV flattened, 6MV FFF and 10MV FFF beams. Seven equi‐spaced fields and two axial arcs were used for IMRT and RapidArc, respectively. Prescription doses to the primary and nodal targets were, respectively, 70 and 54 Gy over 35 fractions. Identical dose constraints are used for IMRT and RapidArc plans. Planning times and plan qualities were assessed for IMRT versus RapidArc with flattened and FFF beams. Results: Target doses showed moderately better uniformity and conformity in IMRT plans than in RapidArc plans. While IMRT plans also exhibited some superiority in OAR sparing compared to RapidArc, the improvement is not clinically significant for most patients. The mean time for a single planning iteration was 15.7 minutes for IMRT and 55.0 minutes for RapidArc using an Eclipse workstation with 2.27 GHz Dual Quad‐Core CPUs. The average MU is 682 for RapidArc and 2636 for IMRT. The average MUs for IMRT plans varied greatly among 6MV flattened, 6MV FFF and 10 MV FFF beams requiring 1513, 2580 and 3816 MU, respectively. In RapidArc plans, however, this variation is less than 20% for the three beams. Conclusions: Both IMRT and RapidArc produced clinically acceptable treatment plans with flattened and FFF beams for head‐and‐neck cancers. Fixed‐field IMRT plans showed moderate dosimetric advantage over RapidArc plans but required almost four times the MU. Among IMRT plans, FFF beams required 2–3 times the MU of flattened beams.
Blocking viral entry: a complementary strategy for HIV therapy

Applications of current antiretroviral drugs, including reverse transcriptase and protease inhibitors, have significantly increased life expectancy for HIV-infected individuals. However, increasing numbers of HIV-infected patients fail to respond to these drugs owing to emergence of drug resistance and adverse effects. Much progress has been made in recent years in development of novel anti-HIV drugs to block HIV entry into target cells. These HIV entry inhibitors can be used as a complementary strategy for HIV therapy.
Isolation of bioactive constituents from Vaccinium myrtillus (bilberry) fruits and cell cultures

Tissues from bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) fruits and callus cultures were extracted and fractionated to investigate phytochemical bioactivity. Major fractions containing flavonoids (proanthocyanidins and anthocyanin pigments) and a hexane extract containing largely chlorophylls, carotenoids, sterols and lipids were isolated, and further screened for anticancer activity by in vitro testing of their ability to induce the phase II xenobiotic detoxification enzyme quinone reductase (QR) in murine hepatoma cells. Although flavonoid fractions were inactive in the assay, a clear, significant induction of QR activity resulted from testing the hexane extract. The concentration of the extract required to double QR specific activity was 9 μg/150 μl per well, which indicates that one or more components possess substantial QR-inducing capacity, comparable to known QR inducers such as furanone and catechol. β-Sitosterol and the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin were identified as components of the active hexane extract, which also exhibited a growth suppressing effect against two human breast cancer cell lines MCF-7 and BT-20.
Narrow (0.1 um to 0.5 um) copper lines for ultra-large-scale integration technology

Copper has been studied for Ultra-Large-Scale-Integration (ULSI) interconnect technology. A copper metalization system is proposed which includes both conducting and insulating barrier metals. Copper lines with minimum dimension of 100 nm were fabricated by electroless copper deposition. An alkaline-free deposition solution has been studied in addition to the conventional NaOH based solution. Two techniques have been developed to produce copper nanolines. The first method produced smooth non-planar copper lines with vertical sidewalls. Aspect ratios (height/width) as high as 3:1 have been obtained. The second fabrication technique formed a planar topography in which the copper is fully buried in an interlevel dielectric. Copper lines fabricated by both methods have been characterized by SEM. Problems unique to selective copper deposition are presented and discussed.
Biodiversity and reduced extinction risks in spatially isolated rodent populations

Ecologists have rarely explored the potential influence of local (alpha) biodiversity on the stability and local extinction of spatially isolated populations. Twenty years of annual counts of a small, grazing rodent (Utah prairie dogs, Cynomys parvidens) from 20 different isolated local populations (colonies) in southern Utah, U.S.A. were analysed. These prairie dogs exhibited large fluctuations and repeated extinctions at individual colonies during the census period. Frequency of extinction at a colony declined dramatically as the number of locally occurring plant species increased. This pattern was not explained by differences among colonies in plant productivity, plant species composition, colony size, or variability in annual counts. Thus, lower extinction risk of consumer populations may be associated with greater resource diversity, and maintaining high local plant diversity may help sustain spatially isolated herbivore populations in fragmented habitats.
Optimum Production-Distribution and Transportation Planning in Three-Stage Supply Chains

We develop an integrated mixed-integer linear programming model for production-distribution andtransportation planning in three-stage supply chains (SCs). The model has two versions, the fully optimizedversion (FOV) and the less fully optimized (LFOV). Each of the versions determines the optimal quantity ofeach product to be produced at each plant in each period, kept in inventory at each plant in each period,transported to each distribution centre (DC) from each plant in each period, subcontracted at each DC, kept ininventory at each DC, and transported from each DC to each retailer in each period. It also determines theoptimal amount of extensions needed at each DC in each period. Examples given to test and compare the twoversions of the model show that they work very well. In all the examples, the optimal objective-function valuesproduced by the FOV are greater than those produced by the LFOV. The examples also show that using a singlemodel to integrate and optimize all the stages and key components of a SC simultaneous can greatly enhance anorganization’s operational efficiency and financial performance.
Student Perceptions of Hybrid Courses: Measuring and Interpreting Quality

One popular teaching approach is a hybrid format balancing traditional face-to-face classroom instruction with online components. The authors used strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats methodology to examine if hybrid formats meet student expectations and the M. T. Miller and D. E. Husmann (1996) classification system to identify elements affecting the perception of quality. Results indicated that hybrid classes continued to exhibit the same weaknesses of the online format, and the addition of face-to-face interaction did not minimize weaknesses. The authors present a rationale for the variability of student responses, the same element as a strength and weakness. The authors discuss (a) opportunities for and threats to academic institutions and (b) areas for future research.
Counting Descents and Ascents Relative to Equivalence Classes mod k

Given a permutation τ of length j, we say that a permutation σ has a τ-match starting at position i, if the elements in position i, i + 1, ... , i + j − 1 in σ have the same relative order as the elements of τ. If \(\Upsilon\) is the set of permutations of length j, then we say that a permutation σ has a τ-match starting at position j if it has a τ-match at position j for some \(\tau \in \Upsilon\). A number of recent papers have studied the distribution of τ-matches and \(\Upsilon\)-matches in permutations. In this paper, we consider a more refined pattern matching condition where we take into account conditions involving the equivalence classes of the elements mod k for some integer k ≥ 2. In this paper, we prove explicit formulas for the number of permutations of n which have s τ-equivalence mod k matches when τ is of length 2. We also show that similar formulas hold for \(\Upsilon\) -equivalence mod k matches for certain subsets of permutations of length 2.