cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A practical method for quickly determining electrode positions in high-density EEG studies

This report describes a simple and practical method for determining electrode positions in high-density EEG studies. This method reduces the number of electrodes for which accurate three-dimensional location must be measured, thus minimizing experimental set-up time and the possibility of digitization error. For each electrode cap, a reference data set is first established by placing the cap on a reference head and digitizing the 3-D position of each channel. A set of control channels are pre-selected that should be adequately distributed over the cap. A simple choice could be the standard 19 channels of the International 10-20 system or their closest substitutes. In a real experiment, only the 3-D positions of these control channels need to be measured and the position of each of the remaining channels are calculated from the position data of the same channels in the reference data set using a local transformation determined by the nearest three or four pairs of control channels. Six BioSemi ActiveTwo caps of different size and channel numbers were used to evaluate the method. Results show that the mean prediction error is about 2mm and is comparable with the residual uncertainty in direct position measurement using a Polhemus digitizer.
Structure of the intertropical convergence zone over the GATE area

The meridional structure of wind, temperature, and moisture of the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) over the GATE observational area is presented. The structure is obtained by compositing rawinsonde observations with respect to the surface wind confluence line. The most important characteristic of the structure is the absence of any significant temperature maximum at any level in the central core of the ITCZ. This absence indicates that condensational heating and, hence, CISK is only a secondary mechanism in the development and maintenance of the GATE ITCZ. The primary mechanism may be either barotropic instability or pressure energy flux from temperate latitudes. DOI: 10.1111/j.2153-3490.1978.tb00817.x
Antibiotic-associated pseudomembranous colitis: an epidemiologic investigation of a cluster of cases.

Ten cases of antibiotic-associated colitis (AAC) were identified at a hospital in Washington, D.C., from March 17 to May 9, 1979. No geographic clustering of cases was found, nor was an association with increased use of antibiotics demonstrated. Exposure to aminoglycosides, cephalosporins, and clindamycin was associated with AAC, as was a history of enemas in the seven days before the onset of illness (P=0.045). This association was strengthened when gastrointestinal procedures-defined as (1) three or more enemas per week, (2) the insertion of a nasogastric tube for two or more days, or (3) gastrointestinal surgery-were performed within seven days of the onset of illness (P=0.007). Clostridium difficile was not isolated from the hospital environments, nursing personnel, or family members of the patients. C. difficile was isolated from stool specimens of five (36%) of 14 patients who served as controls.
Processing and compressive response of functionally graded composites

Use of hollow particles in composite materials provides a unique possibility of creating functionally graded composites (FGCs) where the gradient is present in the particle wall thickness. The present work is focused on developing a processing method for creating such FGCs using hollow particles. The processing method is based on co-curing slurries of various compositions to obtain the desired final composition and configuration of FGCs. The fabricated composites are characterized for compressive properties. In addition, the same types of particles are used to create FGCs containing volume fraction gradient. The compressive properties of both types of composites are compared and some distinct advantages are observed in the wall thickness variation approach, which include better possibilities of tailoring their physical and mechanical properties.
Child Underreporting, Fertility, and Sex Ratio Imbalance in China

Child underreporting is often neglected in studies of fertility and sex ratio imbalance in China. To improve estimates of these measures, I use intercensal comparisons to identify a rise in underreporting, which followed the increased enforcement and penalization under the birth planning system in 1991. A new triangulation of evidence indicates that about 19% of children at ages 0-4 were unreported in the 2000 census, more than double that of the 1990 census. This evidence contradicts assumptions underlying the fertility estimates of most recent studies. Yet, the analysis also suggests that China's fertility in the late 1990s (and perhaps beyond) was below officially adjusted levels. I then conduct a similar intercensal analysis of sex ratios of births and children, which are the world's highest primarily because of prenatal sex selection. However, given excess underreporting of young daughters, especially pronounced just after 1990, estimated ratios are lower than reported ratios. Sex ratios in areas with a "1.5-child" policy are especially distorted because of excess daughter underreporting, as well as sex-linked stopping rules and other factors, although it is unclear whether such policies increase use of prenatal sex selection. China's sex ratio at birth, once it is standardized by birth order, fell between 2000 and 2005 and showed a continuing excess in urban China, not rural China.
Suspended Graphene Nanoribbon Ion-Sensitive Field-Effect Transistors Formed by Shrink Lithography for pH/Cancer Biomarker Sensing

Low-cost and facile shrink lithography is utilized to form suspended graphene nanoribbon (GNR) for an ion-sensitive field-effect transistor (ISFET) with pH/cancer marker sensing applications. By combining shrink thermoplastic film with hot embossing process, GNR patterns 50 nm wide are achieved in a low-cost and simple way. Ambipolar characteristics of a suspended GNR ISFET after annealing presents an enhanced ambipolar effect. Different pH solutions are introduced to characterize the performance of GNR ISFET. For cancer biomarker sensing, the suspended GNR functionalized with specific anti-PSA antibodies as bio-receptor are capable of detecting prostate specific antigen down to 0.4 pg/mL. In comparison, the unsuspended GNR and microscale graphene sheet based ISFETs through the same design and fabrication are characterized under the same measurement conditions, showing that suspended GNR ISFET is superior in sensitivity and detection limit.
Made in the USA?: Immigrants' imported ideology and political engagement

This study explores both the extent to which immigrants' pre-migration ideological predispositions might serve as a heuristic, by which these individuals anchor and adjust their ideological predispositions in the new polity, and the extent to which imported ideology enhances the likelihood of immigrants' political engagement once in their new home. Empirical tests take advantage of two unique survey datasets of Mexican immigrants residing in the United States; one of which incorporates a survey embedded experiment. Results show that immigrants' ideological predispositions in the country of origin do anchor these individuals' ideological predispositions in the new host country in terms of intensity and directionality. Most importantly, imported ideology does heighten the prospects of immigrants' electoral participation in the United States.
T cells and dendritic cells in glomerular disease: the new glomerulotubular feedback loop

A newly described glomerulotubular feedback loop may explain the relationship between glomerular damage, epitope spreading, tubulointerstitial nephritis, proteinuria as a progression factor, and the importance of the local milieu in kidney damage. It also opens the horizons for exciting innovative approaches to therapy of both acute and chronic kidney diseases.
Using computer simulations to investigate individual differences: a look at an addition retrieval model

Abstract In this article the use of computer simulations as a research tool to investigate individual differences in performance will be discussed and illustrated. A computer simulation of the retrieval of addition facts is presented. The goal of this presentation is to illustrate the level of specificity of describing assumptions that goes into constructing a simulation model and the implications and understanding of individual differences in performance that can be derived from such simulation attempts.
Some results for generalized neo-Hookean elastic materials

Abstract Several deformations of non-linear elastic materials are used to study the implications of the strain energy density function being dependent only on the first strain invariant. Two kinds of results are obtained, those that compare responses with and without dependence on the second invariant, and those specific to materials whose strain energy functions depend only on the first strain invariant. The deformations are (i) homogenous biaxial extension, (ii) shear superposed on triaxial extension, (iii) inflation of a circular membrane, (iv) circular shear superimposed on a press fit cylinder, (v) torsion of a circular cylinder.
The T lymphocyte glycoprotein CD2 binds the cell surface ligand LFA-3

CD2 (known also as T11 (ref. 1), LFA-2 (ref. 2) and the erythrocyte rosette receptor (ref. 3)) is a functionally important T lymphocyte surface glycoprotein of relative molecular mass 50,000 to 58,0004 (Mr 50–58 K) which appears early in thymocyte ontogeny and is present on all mature T cells5. Monoclonal antibodies to CD2 inhibit cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL)-mediated killing by binding to the T lymphocyte and blocking adhesion to the target cell2–4,6. Such antibodies also inhibit T helper cell responses including antigen-stimulated proliferation, interleukin-2 (IL-2) secretion, and IL-2 receptor expression2–4,7–9. Certain combinations of monoclonal antibodies to CD2 epitopes trigger proliferation of peripheral blood T lymphocytes1, cytotoxic effector function10 and expression of IL-2 receptors by thymocytes, resulting in thymocyte proliferation in the presence of exogenous IL-2 (ref. 11). These findings suggest that CD2 can function in signalling as well as being an adhesion molecule. To understand the role of CD2 in T-cell adhesion and activation, it is essential to define its natural ligand. Our previous observation that purified CD2 inhibits resetting of T lymphocytes with sheep erythrocytes and can be absorbed by sheep erythrocytes12 suggested it also might bind with detectable affinity to human cells. We now report that CD2 binds to a cell-surface antigen known as lymphocyte function-associated anti-gen-3 (LFA-3) with high affinity, and can mediate adhesion of lymphoid cells via interaction with LFA-3.
Growths of ultra high density InGaN-based quantum dots on self-assembled diblock copolymer nanopatterns

Selective area growths of highly-uniform InGaN quantum dots (QDs) on dielectric nanopatterns defined by self-assembled diblock copolymer were demonstrated with ultra-high QDs density of 8×1010cm−2, which represents the highest QDs density reported for nitride-based QDs.
The Impact of Data Uncertainty in Determining Safety Integrity Level

With the approval of ISA/ANSI S84.01, more and more efforts are necessary to meet desired safety targets. Statistical data are used to calculate the overall system availability or SIL. Failure rates depend on many factors, including the function of the equipment in the system and the definition of failure, the process environment and the maintenance practices, and the type of equipment and its manufacturer. In the process industry, the operating conditions and environments can change dramatically for the same equipment, and the range of failure rates observed can be quite wide. Borrowing data from laboratory and generic data sources introduces an element of uncertainty. Using point values may result in misleading evaluation of safety integrity level (SIL) of a safety instrumented system (SIS). The impact of data uncertainty on the calculation of SIL is discussed in this paper, and procedures to deal with data uncertainty in determining SIL for an SIS is proposed.
Approximate solutions for nonlinear diffusion—reaction equations using the maximum principle: a case involving multiple solutions

Abstract A method for obtaining good approximate solutions for nonlinear diffusion—reaction boundary value problems, based on use of the Maximum Principle, is presented. It is applied to the case of a nonisothermal Langmuir—Hinshelwood reaction occuring in a slab catalyst, following the lumped thermal model, where there is concentration gradient within the pellet but the temperature is uniform. This problem admits multiple solutions, and it is shown that excellent estimates and rigorous error bounds for each of the multiple solutions can be obtained with ease using this method. In problems of this type involving multiple solutions, alternative methods for obtaining approximate solutions either cannot be applied or do not yield information about the error bounds.
A raman study of the interaction of Mg2+, Ca2+, and Ba2+ ions with an acidic model membrane

Abstract The interaction of dipalmitoylphosphatidylgly cerol DPPG) liposomes with divalent ions of magnesium, calcium and barium has been investigated with laser-Raman spectroscopy over the temperature range of 0–60°C. The effect of Ca 2+ ions was also investigated as a function of concentration. At a Ca 2+ /DPPG molar ratio of 0.1, the number of trans carbon to carbon bonds in the hydrocarbon domain of the phospholipid and the lateral order of the hydrocarbon chains was increased both below and above the gel to liquid crystal transition. At higher Ca 2+ concentrations the number of trans bonds and the lateral order is further increased over the entire temperature range studied, while the transition disappears. Magnesium and barium ions have a much smaller ordering effect on the side-chain packing of DPPG liposomes. At a molar ratio of 0.3, the gel to liquid crystal transition is still discernible for DPPG liposomes in the presence of Ba 2+ ions, but not in the presence of Mg 2+ ions.
Conglomerates as clues to the sedimentary and tectonic evolution of a suspect terrane: Wallowa Mountains, Oregon

Upper Triassic and Jurassic sedimentary rocks from the Wallowa terrane of northeastern Oregon and western Idaho provide a unique insight into the depositional and tectonic history of this "suspect" terrane. Within the upper 3 km of the Wallowa sedimentary section, five distinctive conglomerate intervals are interpreted to record critical stages in the evolution of the terrane. Epiclastic conglomerates of the upper Doyle Creek Formation (upper Seven Devils Group) contain abundant clasts of coarse-grained plutonic rocks which were derived from the intrusive roots of the magmatic arc during a prolonged period of volcanic quiescence in the late Karnian and early Norian. Soon thereafter, a regionally extensive carbonate platform which was rimmed by lime sand shoals built out into the Wallowa forearc basin, as indicated by carbonate conglomerates within the Martin Bridge Limestone. Two distinctive conglomerates (Excelsior Gulch and Deadman Lake units) in the conformably overlying Hurwal Formation represent discrete sedimentary responses to Late Triassic tectonism within the Wallowa terrane. Clasts in the Excelsior Gulch conglomerate establish a provenance linkage with rocks of the Baker terrane in the early Norian, and they may be directly related to movement along shear zones which developed in the fore-arc as a response to oblique plate convergence. The coeval Deadman Lake breccia is an olistostromal megabreccia generated by tectonically induced slumping of Martin Bridge and Hurwal sediments along the shelf edge of the Wallowa fore-arc basin. The Oxfordian Coon Hollow Formation contains the youngest sedimentary rocks in the Wallowa terrane. Chert-pebble conglomerates in this unit were locally derived from an uplifted accretionary prism and deposited in a trench or lower trench-slope basin during the initial stages of terrane accretion in the early Late Jurassic. The sedimentological data presented here establish constraints on models for the tectonic evolution and accretionary history of the Wallowa terrane and provide a unique basis for comparison and correlation with other terranes, both in eastern Oregon and elsewhere in the Cordillera. These correlations, however, must consider the stratigraphic and structural complexity of modern terranes in an accretionary tectonic setting, such as the Indonesian region. Tectonic and sedimentary processes in the Solomon Islands and Sumatra fore-arc provide modern analogues for those of the Wallowa terrane.
Differential Effects of IL12 and IL2 on Expression and Function of Cellular Adhesion Molecules on Purified Human Natural Killer Cells

Abstract Accessory functions of cellular adhesion molecules (CAM) in activation, adhesion, migration, and cytotoxicity of natural killer (NK) cells are partly dependent on activation by cytokines. We studied effects of interleukin 12 (IL12) on expression and function of adhesion molecules on human NK cells and compared them to the effects mediated by IL2. Target binding of NK cells was significantly increased by IL12, leading to an increased level of conjugate formation with K562 target cells as well as enhanced binding to tumor monolayers. IL12 also induced significant levels of cytotoxicity against fresh tumor cell targets in purified human NK cells. IL12 significantly enhanced adhesion and subsequent migration of NK cells through 3-μm-pore-size polycarbonate filters. However, IL2 was a more potent activator of these functions, which have been shown to be partly mediated by CD2, CD58, β 2 integrins, and ICAM-1. As assessed by flow cytometry, IL12 also induced significant up-regulation in the proportion or mean fluorescence intensity of NK cells positive for the following activation markers and adhesion molecules: CD25, HLA-DR, CD69, CD71, CD56, CD2, and CD54. Among the β 2 integrins, IL12 selectively increased expression of CD11a on NK cells, although to a significantly lower level than that induced by IL2. IL12 had different in vitro effects than IL2 on expression and function of the β 1 integrins. Whereas IL2 induced marked up-regulation in expression of the β 1 integrins, CD49b, -c, -d, and -e, IL12 had no demonstrable effect over a wide range of concentrations. In addition, while IL2-activated NK cells showed significantly increased integrin-dependent adhesion to fibronectin- or laminin-coated plates, IL12-activated cells were less adherent to fibronectin and were unchanged in their adherence to laminin. Our data demonstrate that IL12 is involved in interactions of NK cells with fresh or cultured tumor cell targets, biologic substrates, or extracellular matrix molecules. Although the magnitude of its in vitro effects on adhesion-dependent functions of NK cells was significantly smaller than that of IL2, lower doses of IL12 were required to up-regulate functions of CAM, and this may be an attractive feature of IL12 as a potential therapeutic cytokine.
Voice onset time and fundamental frequency as cues to the /zi/-/si/ distinction

The present series of experiments used factorial designs to evaluate which acoustic features are primarily responsible for the voicing distinction in the syllables /zi/ and /si/. Increases in frication duration tend to make the syllable more voiceless only if vocal cord vibration is absent or at a very low level during the frication period. Increasing the period between the onset of frication and the onset of vocal cord vibration changes the syllable from a pre-dominantly voiced to a predominantly voiceless sound. This period, called voice onset time, can account for the change in perception regardless of simultaneous changes in the total frication duration or the relative duration of the frication period that contains vocal cord vibration. Changes in fundamental frequency had a large influence on the voicing judgments. With low fundamental frequencies, the judgments were predominantly voiced, whereas with high fundamental frequencies, voiceless judgments were predominant. The quantitative judgments of individual observers were described by a ratio-rule model that assumes a multiplicative combination of the independent cues, voice onset time and fundamental frequency. The model also provided a good description of previous studies of the acoustic cues used in the perception of voicing of fricatives.
Role of glucocorticoids in the molecular regulation of muscle wasting.

Objective: To review glucocorticoid-regulated molecular mechanisms of muscle wasting. Design: Review of recent literature describing the role of glucocorticoids in the regulation of proteolytic mechanisms, transcription factors, and nuclear cofactors in skeletal muscle during various catabolic conditions. Main Results: Catabolic doses of glucocorticoids induce muscle atrophy both in vivo and in vitro by stimulating protein breakdown and inhibiting protein synthesis. Signaling pathways that regulate muscle protein synthesis at the translational level are inhibited by glucocorticoids. Glucocorticoids increase the expression and activity of the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, a major proteolytic mechanism of muscle atrophy. The expression and activity of muscle wasting-related transcription factors, including C/EBPβ and δ and Forkhead box 0 1, 3, and 4, as well as the nuclear cofactor p300, are up-regulated by glucocorticoid excess. Conclusions: Muscle wasting in various catabolic conditions is, at least in part, regulated by glucocorticoids. The role of glucocorticoids in muscle wasting is complex and reflects regulation at the molecular level of multiple mechanisms influencing both synthesis and degradation of muscle proteins.
Studies on a fluorescent insect growth regulator metabolite complex with house-fly microsomal cytochrome P-450☆

Abstract The fluorescent insect growth regulator 5[[[5-(dimethylamino)-1-naphthalenyl]amino]-1,3-benzodioxole (DNSAB) forms a metabolite complex with house-fly microsomal cytochrome P -450. Formation of the metabolite complex is dependent on the presence of NADPH and O 2 ; NADH supports the reaction at a reduced rate. The presence of antibodies to house-fly cytochrome c ( P -450) reductase in reaction mixtures inhibits the complex formation, indicating that the reductase is necessary for transfer of electrons from NADPH to cytochrome P -450 to complete the reaction. In the oxidized form, the metabolite complex has a single absorbance maximum at 431 nm, whereas the reduced form has two absorbance maxima at 426 (major) and 455 nm (minor). The pH of the media affects the extinction of the 426- and 455-nm Soret bands; increased pH decreases the extinction of the 426-nm band and increases the extinction of 455-nm band. Formation of the DNSAB metabolite-cytochrome P -450 complex decreases the amount of CO-reactive cytochrome P -450 by 24%. The metabolite complex is not dissociable by treatment with ferricyanide or by using centrifugation techniques. Dissociation is accomplished by addition of DNSAB to the oxidized metabolite complex. Kinetic analysis of the complex formation gives apparent K m and V max values at 2.55 ± 1.0 μ M and 1.1 ± 0.4 × 10 −2 Δ A min −1 nmol −1 cytochrome P -450, respectively. Addition of juvenile hormone [ (E,E)-cis -methyl-10,11-epoxy-7-ethyl-3,11-dimethyl-2,6-tridecadienoate; JH] to the reaction medium competitively inhibits the formation of the metabolite complex giving an inhibition constant of 16 μ M . DNSAB synergized the lethal effects of JH against Aedes aegypti larvae threefold; however, JH did not synergize DNSAB. These data suggest that DNSAB may acquire its hormonal qualities by complexing a species of cytochrome P -450 that metabolizes JH, thereby prolonging the in vivo lifetime of this hormone.
Perimount® Bovine Pericardial Valve to Restore Pulmonary Valve Competence Late after Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Repair

Objective. No ideal option exists for restoring pulmonary valve competence late after repair of the congenitally abnormal right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT). This has driven a continued search for new alternatives. Texas Children’s Hospital has recently used the Carpentier-Edwards Perimount RSR Pericardial Aortic Prosthesis (Edwards Lifesciences, Irvine, Calif, USA) for this indication and reports the initial experience. Design. Retrospective chart review. Setting. Academically affiliated tertiary-care pediatric hospital. Patients. Twenty-six patients who underwent pulmonary valve replacement with the Perimount® valve late after RVOT reconstruction between June 2002 and November 2005. Interventions. No prospective interventions. Outcomes Measures. Hospital morbidity and mortality. Valve function assessed by follow-up visits and echocardiograms. Results. Mean age and weight of the patients were 20.3 ± 9.8 years (range 7.0–45.1 years) and 56.2 ± 18.1 kg (range 35.8–109 kg). Twenty-two patients (85%) had severe pulmonary insufficiency (PI), 23 (89%) had symptomatic right heart failure, and 14 (54%) had moderate to severe right ventricular dysfunction. Average prosthetic valve size was 23 mm (range 19–27 mm). Twenty-one (88%) patients were extubated within 24 hours. There was no hospital mortality. Median length of stay for all patients from day of surgery was 6 days (range 3–56 days). Median length of last echocardiography follow-up was 12.4 months (range 0.1–37.6 months). At that time, 16 of the 26 (62%) patients had improved right ventricular function, no patient demonstrated significant RVOT obstruction, and 24 patients (92%) have no PI or mild PI. Freedom from death, reintervention, or reoperation on the pulmonary valve is 100% at 2.5 years. Conclusion. Initial results with the Perimount® bovine pericardial tissue prosthesis for pulmonary valve replacement are encouraging. Further follow-up is required to define long-term function and durability.
Blockade of ATP-sensitive potassium channels prevents myocardial preconditioning in dogs.

Single or multiple brief periods of ischemia (preconditioning) have been shown to protect the myocardium from infarction after a subsequent more prolonged ischemic insult. To test the hypothesis that preconditioning is the result of opening ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels, a selective KATP channel antagonist, glibenclamide, was administered before or immediately after preconditioning in barbital-anesthetized open-chest dogs subjected to 60 minutes of left circumflex coronary artery (LCX) occlusion followed by 5 hours of reperfusion. Preconditioning was elicited by 5 minutes of LCX occlusion followed by 10 minutes of reperfusion before the 60-minute occlusion period. Glibenclamide (0.3 mg/kg i.v.) or vehicle was given 10 minutes before the initial ischemic insult in each of four groups. In a fifth group, glibenclamide was administered immediately after preconditioning. In a final series (group 6), a selective potassium channel opener, RP 52891 (10 micrograms/kg bolus and 0.1 micrograms/mg/min i.v.) was started 10 minutes before occlusion and continued throughout reperfusion. Transmural myocardial blood flow was measured at 30 minutes of occlusion, and infarct size was determined by triphenyltetrazolium staining and expressed as a percent of the area at risk. There were no significant differences in hemodynamics, collateral blood flow, or area at risk between groups. The ratio of infarct size to area at risk in the control group (28 +/- 6%) was not different from the group pretreated with glibenclamide in the absence of preconditioning (31 +/- 6%). Preconditioning produced a marked reduction (p less than 0.002) in infarct size (28 +/- 6% to 6 +/- 2%), whereas glibenclamide administered before or immediately after preconditioning completely abolished the protective effect (28 +/- 6% and 30 +/- 8%, respectively). RP 52891 also produced a significant (p less than 0.03) reduction (28 +/- 6% to 13 +/- 3%) in infarct size. These results suggest that myocardial preconditioning in the canine heart is mediated by activation of KATP channels and that these channels may serve an endogenous myocardial protective role.
Plasmonic Resonances in Nanostructured Transparent Conducting Oxide Films

Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are emerging as possible alternative constituent materials to replace noble metals such as silver and gold for low-loss plasmonic and metamaterial (MM) applications in the near infrared regime (NIR). The optical characteristics of TCOs have been studied to evaluate the functionalities and potential of these materials as metal substitutes in plasmonic and MM devices, even apart from their usual use as electrode materials. However, patterning TCOs at the nanoscale, which is necessary for plasmonic and MM devices, is not well studied. This paper investigates nanopatterning processes for TCOs, especially the liftoff technique with electron-beam lithography, and the realization of plasmonic nanostructures with TCOs. By employing the developed nanopatterning process, we fabricate 2-D-periodic arrays of TCO nanodisks and characterize the material's plasmonic properties to evaluate the performance of TCOs as metal substitutes. Light-induced collective oscillations of the free electrons in the TCOs (bulk plasmons) and localized surface plasmon resonances are observed in the wavelength range from 1.6 to 2.1 μm. Well-defined resonance peaks are observed, which can be dramatically tuned by varying the amount of dopant and by thermally annealing the TCO nanodisks in nitrogen gas ambient while maintaining the low-loss properties.
An analytic hierarchy process model for evaluating and comparing website usability

User acceptance of websites is a critical success factor for e-commerce firms. Usability has long been recognised as a major factor in the acceptance of websites but has been problematic in terms of formal analysis. This paper presents a usability analysis model based on the Microsoft usability guidelines MUG. The model employs the analytic hierarchy process AHP, a decision-making methodology that allows importance ranking to be determined and alternatives compared based on a set of multi-level criteria. AHP decomposes complex decisions into a hierarchy consisting of increasingly more detailed but easily comprehended sub-problems. The MUG provides a conceptualisation of usability based on five high-level criteria that are then broken down into 14 sub-criteria. It is proposed that the MUG naturally presents a hierarchy for system evaluation that can be structured and analysed using the AHP. This paper presents a model and demonstrates its use by comparing three financial information portals.
A test of the survival processing advantage in implicit and explicit memory tests.

The present study was designed to investigate the survival processing effect (Nairne, Thompson, & Pandeirada, Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 33, 263–273, 2007) in cued implicit and explicit memory tests. The survival effect has been well established in explicit free recall and recognition tests, but has not been evident in implicit memory tests or in cued explicit tests. In Experiment 1 of the present study, we tested implicit and explicit memory for words studied in survival, moving, or pleasantness contexts in stem completion tests. In Experiment 2, we further tested these effects in implicit and explicit category production tests. Across the two experiments, with four separate memory tasks that included a total of 525 subjects, no survival processing advantage was found, replicating the results from implicit tests reported by Tse and Altarriba (Memory & Cognition, 38, 1110–1121, 2010). Thus, although the survival effect appears to be quite robust in free recall and recognition tests, it has not been replicated in cued implicit and explicit memory tests. The similar results found for the implicit and explicit tests in the present study do not support encoding elaboration explanations of the survival processing effect.
Taking French Teachers to France: Organizing a Summer Immersion Program Supported by Grants.

This article describes the various steps that were taken to organize and implement a five-week French summer institute for secondary teachers of French, involving a three-week stay in France and funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the French Cultural Services. After outlining the reasons that led to the conception of the project, the author explains the objectives behind the program, the course content, and the administration of the Institute. Also described are budget considerations, participants' progress, the evaluation process, the video project developed by the participants, and the follow-up to the Institute. The article refers to obstacles encountered along the way and includes recommendations for similar projects. It should prove useful to anyone interested in organizing a summer institute abroad.
Scanning electron microscopy of the lens and zonular fibers.

Application of scanning electron micro­ scope techniques offers startling photographs of surface features of biological materials. Due to the great depth of field, several hun­ dred times greater than by transmission elec­ tron microscopy and optical microscopy, a three-dimension-like picture is obtained. Resolution of surface features is limited only by fixation techniques of the specimen and electron beam damage to the surface at higher magnifications. Structures, which previously could be surmised by serial section transmission microscopy, can now be viewed directly. This technique was recently ap­ plied in the examination of the trabecular meshwork by Spencer and Anderson. Classically, the lens capsule is described as a clear membrane surrounding the lens, composed of a capsule proper or cuticular layer, and the zonular lamella, or superficial layer. The zonular fibers insert into the zo­ nular lamella of the lens, each point of at­ tachment producing a tent-like elevation of the lamella. No direct connections between zonular fibers and the cuticular layer is noted.
The Micropolitics of Justice: Language, Sense and Space

This article treats the micropolitics of justice. Whereas the macropolitics of justice involves the way states administer the law, an analysis of the “micropolitics” of justice focuses on the way individuals and collectives are affected by legality/illegalities, such that they participate in a culture of feelings or sensibilities and subsequently engage in discursive encounters about what is just. Because much of my concern is with the tension between formal legal justice and embodied senses of justice, I turn to philosophical approaches to space, language, and embodiment that help me to derive insights from artistic texts that stage discursive encounters between persons who embody incommensurate senses of justice. In approaching such encounters, I conceptualize and illustrate with examples, interrelationships among law, space and cultures of feeling, especially in terms of the way justice-related encounters articulate the spatial bases – boundaries and cultural enclosures – separating alternative loci of...
'Defensive programming' in the rapid development of a parallel scientific program

A set of programming techniques which can reduce the time required to develop scientific programs is presented. Subroutines are designed to allow every execution path to be tested independently. Checksums are used to compress arrays and groups of variables without losing meaningful debugging information. Invariance assertions on checksums are used to detect incorrect behavior of a program at a place near the source of the error. Traces of checksums of groups of variables are used to monitor the time evolution of intermediate results. By comparing the checksums produced in tracing the program and the checksums produced in tracing a reference copy of the program, errors can be rapidly localized when a program is modified, ported, put in parallel, or optimized for a particular machine. >
ADVISOR: A SYSTEMS ANALYSIS TOOL FOR ADVANCED VEHICLE MODELING

This paper provides an overview of Advanced Vehicle Simulator (ADVISOR)—the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) ADVISOR written in the MATLAB/Simulink environment and developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. ADVISOR provides the vehicle engineering community with an easy-to-use, flexible, yet robust and supported analysis package for advanced vehicle modeling. It is primarily used to quantify the fuel economy, the performance, and the emissions of vehicles that use alternative technologies including fuel cells, batteries, electric motors, and internal combustion engines in hybrid (i.e. multiple power sources) configurations. It excels at quantifying the relative change that can be expected due to the implementation of technology compared to a baseline scenario. ADVISOR’s capabilities and limitations are presented and the power source models that are included in ADVISOR are discussed. Finally, several applications of the tool are presented to highlight ADVISOR’s functionality. The content of this paper is based on a presentation made at the ‘Development of Advanced Battery Engineering Models’ workshop held in Crystal City, Virginia in August 2001. # 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Personalized Medicine and Cancer Supportive Care: Appropriate Use of Colony-Stimulating Factor Support of Chemotherapy

Myelosuppression and neutropenic complications remain major dose-limiting toxicities of cancer chemotherapy resulting in increased morbidity, mortality, and costs (1,2). The major factors that are associated with the risk of mortality from febrile neutropenia (FN) include older age, cancer type and stage, documented infection, bacteremia, sepsis, venous thromboembolism, and the number of serious comorbid conditions (2–6). The risk for neutropenic complications, including FN, is greatest during the first cycle of chemotherapy when most patients are still receiving the full dose and schedule (7,8). When subsequent full-dose chemotherapy is continued on schedule without colony-stimulating factor (CSF) prophylaxis despite a previous neutropenic event, the risk of FN remains high throughout the period of chemotherapy treatment (9). Initiation of the CSFs early in the first cycle of chemotherapy and continuation through all cycles of a chemotherapy regimen (primary prophylaxis) has been shown to substantially reduce the risk of FN as well as infection-related and early all-cause mortality, while decreasing the need for chemotherapy dose reductions and delays (10,11). Furthermore, most of the pivotal trials of primary prophylaxis with CSFs permitted secondary prophylaxis after a neutropenic event in the control arms, providing reasonable evidence that primary prophylaxis is superior to secondary prophylaxis (10). There are also increasing data from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of patients with solid tumors and lymphoma on the potential value of CSF support of chemotherapy to improve overall survival (12).
Methadone Antinociception Is Dependent on Peripheral Opioid Receptors

Abstract Morphine and methadone are both high-affinity, potent μ-opioid peptide (MOP) receptor analgesics. In this report, we compared the antinociceptive potencies of these 2 drugs when administered subcutaneously (s.c.), intrathecally (i.t.), or intracerebroventricularly (i.c.v.) in both rat and mouse, using the tail-flick assay. We found that both morphine and methadone were potently antinociceptive when the drugs were administered s.c., showing comparable AD50 values in both species. However, the antinociception produced by methadone, when it was administered centrally, was much weaker than that produced by centrally administered morphine. Specifically, the AD50 value for methadone antinociception was more than 30-fold higher at both the i.t. and i.c.v. sites in mouse and not measurable in rat. Naloxone methiodide (NLX-M), a peripherally restricted antagonist, was used to further examine the relative contribution of central versus peripheral sites to morphine and methadone antinociception. NLX-M, when administered s.c., blocked the antinociceptive effect of either systemically or centrally administered methadone but had little effect on the antinociception produced by centrally administered morphine. Furthermore, centrally administered NLX-M significantly blocked antinociception produced by centrally administered morphine but not that produced by centrally administered methadone. Together, these results suggest that methadone antinociception is significantly dependent on an action of the drug at peripheral sites and could provide novel insight into the neural mechanisms that distinguish morphine versus methadone antinociception. Perspective Methadone is often used as an alternative for pain management. The present study shows that a peripheral action plays a crucial role in methadone antinociception. This finding could have significant clinical relevance for the use of methadone versus morphine for the treatment of certain types of pain.
CHEMICAL INVESTIGATIONS ON THE ACTIVE PRINCIPLES OF THE PHENOMENON OF LOCAL SKIN REACTIVITY TO BACTERIAL FILTRATES : I. PURIFICATION BY DIALYSIS, AND ATTEMPTS AT FRACTIONAL PRECIPITATION.

A quantitative biological assay of the products obtained from the dialysis of B. typhosus, meningococcus, and B. coli culture filtrates has been undertaken. It was found that the active principles of the phenomenon of local skin reactivity to bacterial filtrates were retained by cellophane membranes. An appreciable purification was thus effected, amounting, on the average, to about a threefold increase in reacting potency per milligram of dry weight and of nitrogen. Attempts to purify bacterial filtrates by the fractional precipitation of their concentrates with dilute alkali, acid, and alcohol were unsuccessful.
An efficient approximation for the real-time implementation of the Mixture of Trajectory Models decoder

The mixture of trajectory models (MTM) decoder has been used to reconstruct arm trajectories from neural activity. While it produces reasonable results, the computational demands of previously published versions may be too high for many real-time systems. We have developed a novel method of approximating the MTM state posteriors that does not require the use of Newtonpsilas method. We show that this method results in only a small decrease in decoding performance yet reduces computational cost by 56.4%. Additionally, an MTM algorithm using this method of approximating the state posteriors produces more accurate decoded trajectories when using small bin sizes than an MTM algorithm using a Gaussian observation model. The more efficient formulation of the MTM algorithm presented here provides an alternative approximation of this algorithm for use on resource constrained embedded systems.
Pediatric and adolescent HIV disease

Objective To review the current literature and guidelines for pediatric and adolescent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) diagnosis and treatment. Data Sources MEDLINE and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web sites were searched to obtain relevant articles. Study Selection The expert opinions of the authors were used to design cases that highlight the studies and guidelines reviewed. Results There have been numerous advances in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of pediatric and adolescent HIV disease in the past decade. Now, HIV is a chronic illness managed with medication, when appropriate. The HIV transmission rate from mother to child is very low (approximately 1%) in industrialized countries because antiretroviral agents are now available to pregnant women. The pill burden for children and adults with HIV has plummeted from 8 to 10 pills 3 times daily to 3 to 5 pills once daily in the best-case scenarios. A shift has occurred in HIV care from treating opportunistic illnesses to promoting adherence and avoiding drug resistance while monitoring medication adverse effects. Conclusions Diagnosis and treatment of HIV is a rapidly changing field with frequently changing guidelines. The coming years may bring already available technology to the rest of the world and advances toward the prevention and cure of HIV.
Prognostic significance of surface marker analysis in childhood non‐hodgkin's lymphoproliferative malignancies

Blast cell surface markers for T- and B-lymphocyte characteristics were studied at diagnosis in 73 children with non-Hodgkin's lymphoproliferative malignancies. Three distinctive groups of patients were identified on the basis of the analysis of blast cells for surface immunoglobulin (SIg), sheep erythrocyte (sE) rosette formation, and complement receptors, The seven group I patients had monoclonal IgM on their blast cells, morphologic features of Burkitt's lymphoma, abdominal masses, and very short survival. The 13 group II patients had receptors for sE, complement, or both on their blast cells, mediastinal or nodal masses, and short survival. The distinction between leukemia and lymphoma based on the presence of bone marrow involvement at diagnosis is not prognostically useful in this group of patients. The blast cells of group II patients could not be morphologically distinguished from those of the group III patients. The 53 groups III patients had SIG, sE, and complement negative blast cells and could be further subdivided on the basis of while blood cell count. The nine group IIIA patients (greater than 100.0 X 10(9)/liter) had in general short survival, while most of the 44 group IIIB patients (less than than 100.0 X 10(9)/liter) have remained in complete remission. Positive surface markers, mass lesions, male sex, and age of diagnosis less than 2 years of greater than or equal to 10 years appear to be interrelated factors indicating poor prognosis. Elevated while blood cell count is a prognostic indicator independent of surface marker analysis or presence of mass lesions.
Regulation of uterine nucleolar RNA synthesis by estrogens.

Administration of estradiol to ovariectomized mature rats results in a biphasic early (4 h) and late (24 h) increase in transcriptional activity of isolated uterine nucleoli. The increased rate of nucleolar RNA synthesis is dependent upon the dose of estradiol over the range of 0.1 to 1 �ig/anima!, and exhibits hormone specificity. Administration of cycloheximide, an inhibitor of protein synthesis, prior to the administration of hormone or during the early phase of estrogen action ( 8 h) of estrogen action is without effect on the estrogen-induced increase in transcriptional activity of isolated uterine nucleoli. This suggests that the longer term maintenance of the hormone-stimulated increase in nucleolar RNA synthesis is independent of continuous protein synthesis. Results indicate that the estrogen-induced accumulation and subsequent decline in uterine nuclear estradiol receptor levels is unaffected by cycloheximide treatment. Together, these results indicate the presence of the receptor-hormone complex in the nucleus is not solely responsible for the increased transcriptional activity of uterine nucleoli following in vivo hormone treatment. The early activation of uterine nucleolar RNA synthesis by estrogen seems to result from the synthesis of a short-lived protein(s) that modified RNA polymerase I and/or the nucleolar chromatin template.
Retinal Arterial Obstruction in Children and Young Adults

The records of 27 patients who developed retinal arterial obstruction (RAO) prior to the age of 30 years were studied to ascertain associated systemic and ocular findings as possible etiologic factors. A history of migraine was found in approximately one third of the patients, and coagulation abnormalities wer also common. Trauma, sickle cell hemoglobinopathies, cardiac disorders, use of oral contraceptives, pregnancy, systemic lupus erythematosus and intravenous drug abuse were less frequently encountered. Ocular abnormalities included increased intraocular pressure, subtle buried drusen of the optic nerve head and a congenital prepapillary arterial loop. In contrast to older patients with RAO, there was no clinical evidence of atheromatous disease. In most patients, one or more systemic or ocular etiologic factors could be discerned. Whereas etiologic relationships may be multifactorial and generally differ from those commonly found in older patients with RAO, the visual prognosis in younger and older patients appears to be similar.