cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Where Science Intersects Pop Culture: An Informal Science Education Outreach Program

Attracting a general audience to STEM topics can be a challenge, and developing engaging and interactive instruction is important for educators in all fields. While many chemical educators have successfully used pop-culture themes to introduce their students to scientific concepts, these encounters are largely limited to formal classroom environments. Inspired by the successes of community science programs such as Science Cafe and Nerd Nite, science educators from two Nebraska campuses sought to broaden the exposure of their pop-culture themed class lectures, and created the SciPop Talks! program. Now entering its fifth year, this informal educational outreach program has become a model of faculty/librarian partnerships and successful campus outreach. In this article, we discuss the program’s formation, outline its strengths and challenges, and stress the importance of using interactivity to engage with learners. We report on findings from a survey of our attendees, which revealed surprising differences a...
A Survey of Side-Channel Attacks on Caches and Countermeasures

With the increasing proliferation of Internet-of-Things (IoT) in our daily lives, security and trustworthiness are key considerations in designing computing devices. A vast majority of IoT devices use shared caches for improved performance. Unfortunately, the data sharing introduces the vulnerability in these systems. Side-channel attacks in shared caches have been explored for over a decade. Existing approaches utilize side-channel (non-functional) behaviors such as time, power, and electromagnetic radiation to attack encryption schemes. In this paper, we survey the widely used target encryption algorithms, the common attack techniques, and recent attacks that exploit the features of cache. In particular, we focus on the cache timing attacks against the cloud computing and embedded systems. We also survey existing countermeasures at different abstraction levels.
Developing Alternative Stories with Partners of Illicit Substance Users

ABSTRACTThe needs of partners of illicit substance users (ISU) in recovery have traditionally been left out of the treatment process. Dominant social discourses concerning partners’ behaviors typically constrain and marginalize the spectrum of their experiences beyond illicit substance use. This article discusses prevailing dominant discourses in the field that conceptualize society’s perception of partners of illicit substance users. Reaching beyond the scope of dominant approaches, Narrative Therapy Practices can help partners of illicit substance users in early recovery help create alternative stories, derive new meanings, and develop personal agency in addressing their problems. Considering the ideas expressed in this article, this article bridges the current treatment gap by opening space for reconfiguring understanding of partners’ experiences. In order to help bring counselors awareness and generate new conversations that will attend to the needs of partners in recovery. It will also promote a grea...
Facing the Rising Consumer Sophistication: Identifying the Factors that Influence Chinese Consumers’ Intention to Purchase Customized Apparel

Consumers’ desire for novelty and uniqueness drives consumers to consistently seek new products that differentiate them from others. New goods are purchased frequently and disposed of quickly by consumers, which provide a short-term experience of novelty and newness but increase landfill wastes. Apparel customization provides consumers with an option to create their own personalized clothing items, which can increase product longevity because it results in personal attachment from customized styles and well-fitted garments. The study investigated the influence of shopping motivations and perceived enjoyment on consumer intention to purchase customized apparel for Chinese consumers. By applying the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study considers that engaging in customization is not only from an individual’s values and self-interest, but also from social values. An online survey was conducted with 321 Chinese consumers. The SEM analysis results indicate the three shopping values (adventure shopping, idea shopping, and achievement shopping) significantly influence the intention to purchase customized apparel products in an indirect way, and the significant effect of perceived enjoyment on the intention toward apparel customization is also confirmed. Further, the mediating effects of TPB components were also confirmed among Chinese participants. This study highlights the role of shopping values and perceived enjoyment on the adoption of apparel customization and provides guidance for the retailers and marketers who provide apparel customization services in the Chinese market.
Renal Replacement Therapies and Other Extracorporeal Therapies

Renal replacement therapy is an important component in the care of children with acute kidney injury (AKI), inborn errors of metabolism, and certain intoxications that respond inadequately to conservative measures (Table 15-1). Advancements in the treatment of children with bone marrow and solid organ transplantation, congenital cardiac disease and critically ill neonates have lead to an increase in the prevalence of AKI. Peritoneal dialysis (PD) has historically been the most common renal replacement modality for the treatment of AKI in children due to its ease of implementation. However, due to developments in equipment and techniques for hemodialysis (HD) and continuous hemofiltration, the use of these modalities now surpasses the use of PD for AKI in children. The disadvantages and advantages of each modality, the goal of therapy, the clinical status of the patient, and the institutional resources influence the choice of renal replacement modality for a specific patient. Pediatric patients require special considerations due to the wide range of body sizes encountered and due to an increased prevalence of disease states that requires renal replacement therapy in the absence of severe renal dysfunction, such as inborn errors of metabolism.
Automatic acquisition of word meaning from context

This thesis presents an automatic, incremental lexical acquisition mechanism that uses the context of example sentences to guide inference of the meanings of unknown words. The goal of this line of research is to allow a Natural Language Processing (NLP) system to cope with words that it does not know--not just to gloss over them, but to try to infer what they mean. The environment within which this system operates is epitomized by the information extraction task: from virtually unconstrained text, elicit certain information that is deemed interesting. The knowledge acquisition bottleneck inherent in this task imposes constraints on the type of knowledge available for lexical inference. The main objective in this work is to infer as much information as possible about unknown words from context without requiring special-purpose knowledge. This was accomplished by extending the underlying NLP system to search its domain-specific concept representation for an appropriate concept to denote the meaning of the unknown word. The learning method is incremental, so every time the system encounters an example of an unfamiliar word, it adjusts its hypotheses. The basic system evolved through several different stages in order to improve its inferences. Then several variations to the basic system were made to capture especially difficult aspects of the acquisition task and to take advantage of discourse context. The approach was tested in two different domains. Target words were removed from the lexica and sentences containing them were processed by the system. The results were evaluated using measures taken from the field of Information Retrieval. When humans learn language, they are faced with a similar task: from a set of examples of a word's use, they must infer what that word means and how it is used. Not only is the task similar, but many of the behaviors and difficulties that the computational acquisition mechanism have encountered have also been described in the psycholinguistic literature. Although the system was not intended as a cognitive model, these parallels indicate strong constraints from the task itself, and therefore lend credence to viewing the system as a cognitive model.
Nonparametrics: Testing with Ordinal Data or Nonnormal Distributions

This chapter discusses nonparametric methods used for statistical testing. Nonparametric methods are statistical procedures for hypothesis testing that do not require a normal distribution (or any other particular shape of distribution) because they are based on counts or ranks instead of the actual data values. These methods require a random sample from the population to ensure that the data provide useful information. Because they are based on ranking and do not require computing sums of data values, many nonparametric methods work with ordinal data as well as with quantitative data. One way to measure, the effectiveness of different statistical tests is in terms of their efficiency. One test is more efficient than the other, if it makes better use of the information in the data. Thus, nonparametric methods are nearly as efficient as parametric ones when there is a normal distribution. This chapter discusses testing the median against a known reference value as well as testing to see if two unpaired samples are significantly different. The concepts of testing for differences in paired data are also explained in the chapter.
A new paradigm for breast cancer.

Adjuvant chemotherapy extends disease-free survival in breast cancer, but it is usually not curative. Naturally, one must ask why. The main reasons often cited for treatment failure are drug resistance and host toxicity. Much research is directed to understanding and combating these effects, which have been known for some years. Although complex strategies for overcoming these obstacles are being developed, the problems have thus far not been resolved. When there is lack of progress, all assumptions need to be questioned, including generally accepted characteristics of tumors. One must examine the current paradigm for breast cancer and consider the experimental and theoretical basis of the paradigm. Most current therapies are based upon the original animal model studies of Skipper and Schabel [31], the kinetic studies of Laird [13], and the theoretical studies of Goldie and Coldman [3]. Our research of the past 10 years has given us reason to seriously doubt the validity of this paradigm [17, 18, 22, 26, 29, 32].
Intimate Violence Between African-American Couples: Seeking Intimate Justice in the Midst of Social Injustice

Violence between African-American couples exists at the point where racism, social class conflict, and gender discrimination converge (Bograd, 1999). For example, reliable estimates indicate that about 26% of women and 8% of men in the United States are likely to be physically assaulted, raped, or stalked by an intimate partner during their lifetime (Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000). Examined superficially, these data suggest that African-American males are, in general, about 1.5 times more likely than whites to use violence against their partners (p. 25). More sophisticated analyses, however, reveal that when household income levels are controlled, rates of intimate violence are the same between whites and African Americans at all income levels, with remarkably high rates of violence for couples of any race who live below the threshold of poverty (Rennison & Planty, 2003). African Americans are more likely to be registered among perpetrators and victims of intimate violence because black households are almost twice as likely as white households to be poor (US Bureau of the Census, 2002).
Real-world effects of rear cross-traffic alert on police-reported backing crashes

Abstract Objective Several parking assistance systems are available to help drivers back up. Rear cross-traffic alert warns drivers when they are reversing and cross-traffic approaches the rear of their vehicle, as might happen when backing out of a perpendicular parking space in a lot. The goal of this study was to examine the effect of rear cross-traffic alert on backing crashes. Methods Negative binomial regression was used to compare police-reported backing crash rates in 25 U.S. states per insured vehicle year between General Motors and Mazda vehicles with rear cross-traffic alert and the same vehicle models without the optional system, controlling for the presence of other parking assistance systems and additional factors that may affect crash risk. Results Crash involvement rates in backing crashes overall were 22% lower among vehicles with rear cross-traffic alert than among vehicles without the system when averaged between the two manufacturers. Rates were 32% lower among vehicles with the system than without in two-vehicle backing crashes where the vehicles were traveling in perpendicular directions. Both reductions were statistically significant. Conclusions Rearview cameras and rear automatic braking, which are designed to help drivers detect and brake for obstacles directly behind the vehicle, have been shown in previous research to be effective in reducing backing crashes reported to the police. Rear cross-traffic alert can complement these systems by preventing potential backing crashes that other parking assistance systems are not designed to detect. Manufacturers should equip vehicles with rear cross-traffic alert, in addition to other parking assistance systems like rear automatic braking, to maximize the number of backing crashes prevented.
Interfacial plasticity governs strain delocalization in metallic nanoglasses

Intrinsic size effects in nanoglass plasticity have been connected to the structural length scales imposed by the interfacial network, and control over this behavior is critical to designing amorphous alloys with improved mechanical response. In this paper, atomistic simulations are employed to probe strain delocalization in nanoglasses with explicit correlation to the interfacial characteristics and length scales of the amorphous grain structure. We show that strength is independent of grain size under certain conditions, but scales with the excess free volume and degree of short-range ordering in the interfaces. Structural homogenization upon annealing of the nanoglasses increases their strength toward the value of the bulk metallic glass; however, continued partitioning of strain to the interfacial regions inhibits the formation of a primary shear band. Intrinsic size effects in nanoglass plasticity thus originate from biased plastic strain accumulation within the interfacial regions, which will ultimately govern strain delocalization and homogenous flow in nanoglasses.
Parental Involvement and Adolescents' Academic Achievement: Latent Profiles of Mother and Father Warmth as a Moderating Influence.

Parental involvement in their adolescents' education plays an important role in promoting their children's academic outcomes. Yet, more research is needed to examine the relationship between parenting practices and parental warmth as well as to consider the potential joint contribution of warmth from both fathers and mothers. Thus, the primary purpose of the current study is to examine the extent to which patterns of parental warmth across fathers and mothers moderate the association between parental involvement and adolescents' grade point average (GPA) and school engagement behaviors. Latent profile analysis was conducted to identify disparate profiles of fathers' and mothers' warmth within a nationally representative sample of 2,306 youths (51% male; mean age = 15.31 years, SD = 1.50; 77% non-Hispanic White) residing in opposite-sex, two-parent families from Wave I and II of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Latent-class enumeration processes support a five-profile solution characterized by differences in levels of parental warmth and congruency across parents: (a) Congruent High Warmth, (b) Congruent Moderate Warmth, (c) Congruent Low Warmth, (d) Incongruent High Mother/Low Father Warmth, and (e) Incongruent Low Father/Lower Mother Warmth. Subsequent multiple linear regression analyses reveal a moderating effect for Congruent Low Warmth on the relationship between parental involvement and adolescents' GPA. Ultimately, the results show that variation in parental warmth exists across fathers and mothers with differing impact on adolescents' outcomes. Excluding one parent without considering the joint effects of both parents will not produce an accurate and precise understanding of parenting in research or practice.
Results of Early Trials Using Murine Monoclonal Antibodies as Anticancer Therapy

Abstract We have administered murine monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) in doses of from 1-50 mg, for 1-10 treatments over a one day to four month time period, to 12 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL), colorectal carcinoma, and melanoma. In leukemias, a decrease in circulating malignant cells was a reproducible effect of therapy, although durable remissions were not seen. In CLL, the tumor associated antigen (TAA) did not modulate during a two hour infusion of antibody, and CLL cells were decreased as long as serum levels of immunoreactive antibody were detectable. On the other hand, in CTCL, modulation was seen, and a decrease in tumor cells was not sustained in the presence of antibody. Patients with both diseases have tolerated 5-10 courses of treatment over four months without significant complication. Endogenous anti-mouse antibodies are believed to have emerged in the patient with CTCL. Therapeutic and diagnostic efforts with an anti-carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) MoAb have been hampered by reactivity with mature granulocytes. In_ vivo , there was a decrease in circulating neutrophils associated with fever and chills in three patients, but this complication was transient. Immune complexes were formed in this setting as well. Two different anti-melanoma antibodies have been well tolerated, but clinical research with these agents will be greatly enhanced by using radioisotope-conjugated antibodies to assess distribution and clearance of the MoAb.
Queer Integrative Marginalization: LGBTQ Student Integration Strategies at an Elite University:

The author draws on the oral histories of 44 LGBTQ Princeton alumni who graduated from 1960 to 2011 to examine student strategies for negotiating marginal identities when integrating into an elite ...
A review of spatial statistical approaches to modeling water quality

We review different regression models related to water quality that incorporate spatial aspects in their model. Spatial aspects refer to the location of different sites and are usually characterize...
Organic photodetectors with frustrated charge transport for small-pitch image sensors

We demonstrate a frustrated organic photodetector (F-OPD) that utilizes frustrated charge-transport to quench forward-bias current and provide a low-current, light-independent OFF state. Photocurrent is collected efficiently with − 3 V reverse-bias recovering the sensitive OPD response with > 10-bit dynamic range. This intrinsic switching mechanism eliminates the need for thin-film transistors (TFTs) to provide readout control in high-resolution image sensors. Eliminating TFTs simplifies fabrication processing, improves fill-factor, and enables higher resolution image sensors on nonplanar, stretchable, or large-area substrates for a variety of imaging applications. We simulate image sensors and show that the performance is limited by the OFF state uniformity experimentally observed across 45 devices. We simulate performance in a 900-pixel array and show that the demonstrated F-OPDs can scale into megapixel arrays with a noise-equivalent power of 6-bits; better uniformity can substantially improve this performance for large arrays.We demonstrate a frustrated organic photodetector (F-OPD) that utilizes frustrated charge-transport to quench forward-bias current and provide a low-current, light-independent OFF state. Photocurrent is collected efficiently with − 3 V reverse-bias recovering the sensitive OPD response with > 10-bit dynamic range. This intrinsic switching mechanism eliminates the need for thin-film transistors (TFTs) to provide readout control in high-resolution image sensors. Eliminating TFTs simplifies fabrication processing, improves fill-factor, and enables higher resolution image sensors on nonplanar, stretchable, or large-area substrates for a variety of imaging applications. We simulate image sensors and show that the performance is limited by the OFF state uniformity experimentally observed across 45 devices. We simulate performance in a 900-pixel array and show that the demonstrated F-OPDs can scale into megapixel arrays with a noise-equivalent power of 6-bits; ...
Project RedDE: Cluster Randomized Trial to Reduce Missed or Delayed Abnormal Laboratory Value Actions.

Failure of timely abnormal laboratory result follow-up is relatively common and may lead to harm. This study hypothesized that a quality improvement collaborative (QIC) could reduce the frequency of missed or delayed action on abnormal laboratory values. Methods A national cohort of pediatric practices was cluster-randomized to sequentially receive a QIC intervention: video conferences, transparent data sharing, a "focus on failures," QI coaching, and tools to help reduce missed or delayed action on abnormal laboratory values. Practices recorded the percentage of patients with 5 specific abnormal laboratory values who received an appropriate provider action (control), and then, during an 8-month intervention phase, implemented QI strategies to reduce errors (intervention). Subsequently, practices collected data on laboratory errors while working to reduce unrelated second (sustain phase), and third (maintenance phase) errors. Generalized mixed-effects regression models compared the mean percentage of patients with appropriate actions. Results We randomized 43 practices, of which 31 were included in analyses. Control and intervention phases included 1,357 and 1,426 patients with abnormal laboratory values, respectively. The mean percentage of patients who received appropriate actions did not change comparing control and intervention phases [risk difference (RD) 1%; 95% CI -1%, 3%]. In post-hoc analyses, practices significantly improved comparing control to sustain (RD 3%; 95% CI 0.3%, 6%) and maintenance phases (RD 6%; 95% CI 3%, 9%). Conclusion Implementation of a QIC did not reduce the frequency of abnormal laboratory errors in the initial 8-month intervention phase. A significant reduction was appreciated comparing sustain and maintenance phases (months 9-24) to the control phase.
Über- und Unterdiagnose von Autoimmun-Enzephalitiden

Die Autoimmun-Enzephalitiden mit Antikorpern gegen Oberflachenantigene sind eine Erfolgsgeschichte der Neurologie. In spezialisierten Laboratorien ist die Serum- und Liquor-Diagnostik hinsichtlich der neuralen Antikorper inzwischen verlasslich etabliert. Die Kombination charakteristischer Syndrome und gut definierter neuraler Antikorper erlaubt belastbare Diagnosen und Prognoseabschatzungen. Durch Immuntherapien bessern sich viele Patienten oder werden sogar symptomfrei. Die Herausforderung heute liegt einerseits in der Auswahl der auf Antikorper zu testenden Patienten, andererseits in der angemessenen Interpretation positiver Antikorperbefunde. Noch kommen Falle von unzureichender oder zu spater Diagnostik neben solchen mit einer Uberinterpretation irrelevanter Befunde vor. Die hier prasentierten Fallbeispiele sollen dazu beitragen, dass solche Irrtumer in der Zukunft immer seltener geschehen.
Synthesizing Program Execution Time Discrepancies in Julia Used for Scientific Software

Scientific software is defined as software that is used to analyze data to investigate unanswered research questions in the scientific community. Developers use programming languages such as Julia to build scientific software. When programming with Julia, developers experience program execution time discrepancy i.e. not obtaining desired program execution time, which hinders them to efficiently complete their tasks. The goal of this paper is to help developers in achieving desired program execution time for Julia by identifying the causes of why program execution time discrepancies happen with an empirical study of Stack Overflow posts. We conduct an empirical study with 263 Julia-related posts collected from Stack Overflow, and apply qualitative analysis on the collected 263 posts. We identify 9 categories of program execution time discrepancies for Julia, which include discrepancies related to data structures usage such as, arrays and dictionaries. We also identify 10 causes that explain why the program execution time discrepancies happen. For example, we identify program execution time discrepancy to happen when developers unnecessarily allocate memory by using array comprehension.
Inhibitory Interactions and Columnar Inputs to an Object Motion Detector in Drosophila

Summary The direction-selective T4/T5 cells innervate optic-flow processing projection neurons in the lobula plate of the fly that mediate the visual control of locomotion. In the lobula, visual projection neurons coordinate complex behavioral responses to visual features, however, the input circuitry and computations that bestow their feature-detecting properties are less clear. Here, we study a highly specialized small object motion detector, LC11, and demonstrate that its responses are suppressed by local background motion. We show that LC11 expresses GABA-A receptors that serve to sculpt responses to small objects but are not responsible for the rejection of background motion. Instead, LC11 is innervated by columnar T2 and T3 neurons that are themselves highly sensitive to small static or moving objects, insensitive to wide-field motion and, unlike T4/T5, respond to both ON and OFF luminance steps.
Perimenopausal transdermal estradiol replacement reduces serum HDL cholesterol efflux capacity but improves cardiovascular risk factors.

Background The cardiovascular (CV) safety of estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) in perimenopausal women remains uncertain. Although exogenous estrogens increase HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), estrogen-mediated effects on alternative metrics of HDL that may better predict CV risk are unknown. Objective To determine the effects of transdermal ERT on HDL composition and cholesterol efflux capacity (CEC), as well as the relationships between these metrics and CV risk factors. Methods Fasting plasma samples were analyzed from 101 healthy, perimenopausal women randomized to receive either transdermal placebo or transdermal estradiol (100 μg/24 h) with intermittent micronized progesterone. At baseline and after 6 months of treatment, serum HDL CEC, HDL particle concentration, HDL protein composition, insulin resistance and brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) were measured. Results No difference between groups was found for change in plasma HDL-C (p = 0.69). Between-group differences were found for changes in serum HDL total CEC [median change from baseline −5.4 (−17.3,+8.4)% ERT group versus +5.8 (−6.3,+16.9)% placebo group, p = 0.01] and ABCA1-specific CEC [median change from baseline −5.3 (−10.7,+6.7)% ERT group versus +7.4 (−1.5,+18.1)% placebo group, p = 0.0002]. Relative to placebo, transdermal ERT led to reductions in LDL-C (p Conclusions Natural menopause leads to an increase in serum HDL CEC, an effect that is abrogated by transdermal ERT. However, transdermal ERT leads to favorable changes in major CV risk factors.
Community Newspaper Editors’ Perspectives on News Collaboration: Participatory Opportunities and Ethical Considerations Toward Citizen News Engagement

This study examines how the United States community newspapers engage community members and how editors view challenges of citizen participatory and collaboration practices with particular focus on...
Gradient flows and proximal splitting methods: A unified view on accelerated and stochastic optimization.

Optimization is at the heart of machine learning, statistics, and many applied scientific disciplines. It also has a long history in physics, ranging from the minimal action principle to finding ground states of disordered systems such as spin glasses. Proximal algorithms form a class of methods that are broadly applicable and are particularly well-suited to nonsmooth, constrained, large-scale, and distributed optimization problems. There are essentially five proximal algorithms currently known, each proposed in seminal work: Forward-backward splitting, Tseng splitting, Douglas-Rachford, alternating direction method of multipliers, and the more recent Davis-Yin. These methods sit on a higher level of abstraction compared to gradient-based ones, with deep roots in nonlinear functional analysis. In this paper we show that all of these methods are actually different discretizations of a single differential equation, namely, the simple gradient flow which dates back to Cauchy (1847). An important aspect behind many of the success stories in machine learning relies on ``accelerating'' the convergence of first-order methods. However, accelerated methods are notoriously difficult to analyze, counterintuitive, and without an underlying guiding principle. We show that similar discretization schemes applied to Newton's equation with an additional dissipative force, which we refer to as accelerated gradient flow, allow us to obtain accelerated variants of all these proximal algorithms---the majority of which are new although some recover known cases in the literature. Furthermore, we extend these methods to stochastic settings, allowing us to make connections with Langevin and Fokker-Planck equations. Similar ideas apply to gradient descent, heavy ball, and Nesterov's method which are simpler. Our results therefore provide a unified framework from which several important optimization methods are nothing but simulations of classical dissipative systems.
Financial Crises and the Transmission of Monetary Policy to Consumer Credit Markets

How does the health of creditors affect the pass-through of monetary policy to households? In a financial crisis, asset losses among creditors can either dampen or amplify the effects of monetary policy on lending, depending on how these losses and policies interact with financial frictions. Frictions such as leverage constraints my hinder creditor responses, however easing may instead alleviate frictions that would otherwise constrain lending. Using data on the universe of US credit unions, I document that asset losses increase the sensitivity of consumer credit to monetary policy. Identification exploits plausibly exogenous variation in asset losses and high frequency identification of monetary policy shocks. I find that a one standard deviation asset loss increases the response of credit union lending to a 10 basis point fall in the two-year Treasury rate from a 0.86 to 1.15 percentage point increase. The estimates imply that constraints on monetary policy become more costly in a financial crisis characterized by creditor asset losses and that an additional benefit of monetary easing is that it weakens the causal, contractionary effect of asset losses.
Adipophilin induction, lipid accumulation, and anti-proliferation through PPAR-gamma activation in malignant melanoma

Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 47, 2006 1356 Advanced malignant melanoma (MM) is an aggressive malignancy with poor 5-year survival for advanced stage disease. Therapies in addition to surgery and radiation have principally focused on vaccine therapies, because of the immune stimulatory potential of this malignancy. Differentiation therapies have not been intensely investigated as an option for this malignancy. PPAR-gamma activation is one potential path for promoting tumor cell differentiation. Presently, we examined the effects of the PPAR-gamma activators ETYA, PGJ-2, and Pioglitizone in A375 and A2058 melanoma cell lines. MTT assays and cell counts were used to assess proliferation. Lipid differentiation was studied using Oil Red O (ORO) staining and adipophilin induction. We observed dose dependent reductions of >50 % in cell counts and >50 % in MTT assay. Each PPAR-gamma agonist caused lipid droplet formation which was accompanied by was induction of Adipophilin staining on fluorescence IHC. In summary, this treatment demonstrates antiproliferative and transdifferentiation events in MM, in vitro. Induction of adipophilin, a highly specific marker of lipid droplet formation, in malignant melanoma as a result of PPAR-gamma agonism is a novel finding and supports a powerful differentiation effect. The potential of non-toxic small-molecule therapy against MM as an active treatment or chemoprevention role is implied and warrants further study. We conclude that PPAR-gamma activation has antiproliferative effects in MM cell lines. Lipid differentiation occurs with PPAR-gamma agonists and adipophilin induction occurs, suggesting transdifferentiation and anticancer potential.
Parts of Animals

Aristotle’s views on abstraction explain how he can hold that parts of animals are both secondary substances and relata . The wing of a bird, qua being a part, is a relatum ; that wing, per se, is a secondary substance. Aristotle’s views on motion and change make clear his position on parts of animals. Motion and change are relations. Strictly speaking then, motion and change hold between relata . Such relata are accidents of subjects: their ultimate subjects are the substances; yet their proximate subjects may be its accidents taken as subjects in their own right, like surfaces and numbers. When the subjects themselves are in the category of relation , the change is instantaneous; otherwise it can be gradual. As parts of animals can undergo gradual change, they are not relata ; rather they are substances. Still these substances qua parts are relata . For a part of a woman like a hand to be a part of her, it must function as a hand. When it does not function it is a hand in name only. A non-functioning hand is still a substance with a history of its own but is not a fully actualized part of the substance the human being. Aristotle also allows for parts that are not actual but potential in various degrees.
Legacies of Transitions: Institutionalization, the Military, and Democracy in South America

Editor's Note: This Forum represents a departure from previous formats. Instead of focusing on different authors' perspectives on a particular topic, it involves the application of a specific framework to a set of five countries and explores how well the factors embedded in the framework facilitate understanding what is happening today in civil-military affairs in one part of the world. At issue is how does knowledge about the military's role in the democratization process help to explain civil-military relations in five Latin American countries whose turn to democracy was preceded by military-authoritarian rule. As with all Forums, the editor welcomes others' considered reactions to the arguments presented here.
Low-Energy Strong Interactions

Because the strong-interaction coupling constants are so large, a perturbation theory of lowest-order strong-interaction Feynman diagrams does not always make sense. Yet if interpreted in the right manner (i.e., at low energies), such graphs reveal a great deal about the qualitative and sometimes quantitative nature of hadron (strong-interaction) physics. They are also the beginnings of the dynamical scheme of strong-interaction dispersion theory, a theory that we will pursue in greater detail in Chapter 15. Here we begin by investigating the basic pion-exchange, short-range Yukawa force. Next we develop the concept of isospin, isospin conservation, and isospin projection operators, which we fold into the Feynman rules. Then we use simple Feynman graphs to explain the essential features of the long-range part of the nucleon—nucleon force, and low-energy scattering. Feynman graphs are also used to explain low-energy pion—nucleon scattering and the dynamical effect of the 33 resonance, 0(1232). Finally, we search for conserved and approximately conserved currents for hadronic interactions. Conserved isotopic vector currents are investigated in the context of the vector-meson dominance model, and partially conserved, isotopic axial-vector currents are probed in the context of pion pole dominance.
Post-radiation dedifferentiation of meningioma into osteosarcoma.

A number of osteoblastic meningiomas, primary osteosarcomas of the meninges, and post-radiation osteosarcomas of the head have been reported. However, postradiation dedifferentiation of meningioma into osteosarcoma has not been reported previously. In 1987 a caucasian man, then 38 years old, presented with a pituitary macroadenoma. He underwent a subtotal resection of the tumor and did well until 1990 when a recurrent tumor was diagnosed. This was treated with subtotal resection of the tumor, followed by radiation therapy for six weeks to a total of 54 Gy. He was considered "disease-free" for nearly ten years. However, most recently in July 2000, he presented with a visual field deficit due to a second recurrence of his pituitary macroadenoma, now with suprasellar extension. At this time, as an incidental finding, a mass attached to the dura was noted in the left parietal hemisphere. This dura–based mass had grown rapidly by January 2001 and was excised. It showed histological, immunohistochemical, and electron microscopic features of malignant meningioma and osteosarcoma with a sharp demarcation between the two components. We report a rare case of a radiation induced dedifferentiation of meningioma into osteosarcoma, which has not been reported previously.
High-resolution surveys along the hot spot–affected Gálapagos Spreading Center: 3. Black smoker discoveries and the implications for geological controls on hydrothermal activity

[1] To explore effects of hot spots on mid-ocean ridge hydrothermal systems, we conducted nested sonar, hydrothermal plume, and near-bottom photographic surveys along the portion of the Galapagos Spreading Center (GSC) influenced by the Galapagos hot spot, from longitude 95°–89.5°W. We report the first active high-temperature black smokers to be found on the GSC, at longitudes 94°4.5′W and 91°56.2′–54.3′W; describe two areas of recently inactive smokers, at longitudes 91°23.4′–23.7′W and 91°13.8′W; and document an older inactive site, at longitude 90°33.4′W. All imaged vents issue either from dike-induced fissures along linear axial volcanic ridges and collapses or from a caldera. Magmatic control of hydrothermal systems also is revealed by spatial clustering of plumes within the topographically elevated middles of volcanic ridge segments with inferred centralized melt supply. In searched areas, smokers are more typical than diffuse flow vents, but total GSC plume incidence is half of that expected from the spreading rate. Why? Dike-fed fissures provide permeable pathways for efficient hydrothermal extraction of magmatic heat, but cones without calderas do not. Among many point-source cones surveyed, only the two with calderas had detectable plumes. Possibly, dominance of point-source over linear-source melt delivery on the GSC decreases plume incidence. Also, similar maturities of observed vents and their host lava flows indicate that hydrothermally active volcanic segments along the western GSC are contemporaneously in a waning phase of volcanic-hydrothermal activity. Perhaps ridge/hot spot interaction produces melt pulses that drive near-synchronous volcanic-hydrothermal activity on the volcanic segments spanning the hot spot. During active periods, hydrothermally active dike-fed fissures and calderas may be more abundant than we currently observe.
Translational, Rotational, and Vibrational States of Atoms and Molecules

Atoms have only translational and electronic energy, but molecules have rotational and vibrational energy in addition to translational and electronic energy. The Born-Oppenheimer approximation is used to separate the electronic motion from the rotational and vibrational motion of molecules. To a good approximation, translational, rotational, and vibrational motions make separate contributions to the molecular energy of a diatomic molecule. To a first approximation, the vibrational energy of a diatomic molecule is that of a harmonic oscillator, and the rotation is that of a rigid rotor. The equilibrium populations of rotational, vibrational, and electronic states of molecules are described by the Boltzmann probability distribution. The rotational and vibrational energies of polyatomic molecules can be discussed in the Born-Oppenheimer approximation.
Kleine gramnegative Stäbchen

Brucella bildet kleine, aerobe, gramnegative Coccobacillen. Sie sind unbeweglich, bilden keine Sporen und haben einen relativ geringen Stoffwechsel. Sie sind obligate Parasiten fur Menschen und Tiere. Charakteristisch ist ihre intracellulare Lagerung. Typisch fur Br. melitensis ist die Infektion von Ziegen, fur Br. suis die Infektion von Schweinen, fur Br. abortus die Infektion von Kuhen und fur B. canis die Infektion von Hunden. Die menschliche Erkrankung, die Brucellose (Febris undulans, Malta-Fieber), ist durch eine akute septicamische Phase charakterisiert, auf die ein chronisches Stadium folgt, das sich uber mehrere Jahre erstrecken kann. Viele Gewebe sind beteiligt.
Human inosine triphosphatase: catalytic properties and population studies.

Abstract Using a reliable 2-step colorimetric assay, some catalytic properties of human erythrocyte ITPase (inosine triphosphate pyrophosphohydrolase) (EC 3.6.1.19) were determined. The enzyme hydrolyses ITP, dITP (deoxyinosine triphosphate) and XTP (xanthine triphosphate) but not other nucleotides. IDP is a competitive inhibitor. Subcellular fractionation of cultured lymphoid-line cells showed ITPase activity to be in the cytosol. ATP and GTP hydrolysing activities were not enriched in the cytosol fraction. The range of activity was investigated in erythrocytes, peripheral leukocytes, amniotic fluid cells, skin fibroblasts, long term lymphoid lines and bone marrow fibroblasts. The mean ITPase activity was found to vary in different cell types from 4.9 to 294 units per mg protein. Fractionation of red blood cells by age revealed that the enzyme decays exponentially with erythrocyte age with a half-life of 35 days. The enzyme had a wide range of specific activity in erythrocytes from 150 normal randomly selected individuals (15–722 pmol/h/g Hb). Within the low range of erythrocyte specific activities (from 15 to 200) a correlation was found between an individual's erythrocyte activity and the activity in peripheral leukocytes. This correlation was not found at higher erythrocyte ITPase activities. Two individuals were detected who had erythrocyte ITPase activities which were close to the lower limits of sensitivity of the assay. Leukocytes from these individuals had the lowest ITPase activities of all samples tested. Thus, low or absent ITPase activity is an individual characteristic which may be expressed both in erythrocytes and in other cell types.
Selective and sustained pulmonary vasodilation with inhalational nitric oxide therapy in a child with idiopathic pulmonary hypertension

Low doses of inhaled nitric oxide caused selective and sustained pulmonary vasodilation in an infant with pulmonary hypertension without causing systemic hypotension, despite the failure of treatment with other vasodilators.
Development of the mixed conifer forest in northern New Mexico and its relationship to Holocene environmental change

Chihuahuenos Bog (2925 m) in the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico contains one of the few records of late-glacial and postglacial development of the mixed conifer forest in southwestern North America. The Chihuahuenos Bog record extends to over 15,000 cal yr BP. An Artemisia steppe, then an open Picea woodland grew around a small pond until ca. 11,700 cal yr BP when Pinus ponderosa became established. C/N ratios, δ13C and δ15N values indicate both terrestrial and aquatic organic matter was incorporated into the sediment. Higher percentages of aquatic algae and elevated C/N ratios indicate higher lake levels at the opening of the Holocene, but a wetland developed subsequently as climate warmed. From ca. 8500 to 6400 cal yr BP the pond desiccated in what must have been the driest period of the Holocene there. C/N ratios declined to their lowest Holocene levels, indicating intense decomposition in the sediment. Wetter conditions returned after 6400 cal yr BP, with conversion of the site to a sedge bog as groundwater levels rose. Higher charcoal influx rates after 6400 cal yr BP probably result from greater biomass production rates. Only minor shifts in the overstory species occurred during the Holocene, suggesting that mixed conifer forest dominated throughout the record.
Fuzzy controller: further limit theorems for linear control rules

Abstract We consider a fuzzy controller attempting to control a process, with multiple outputs and inputs, towards some set points. We show that, for fuzzy controller employing linear control rules, as the number of rules grow, the defuzzified outputs become linear functions of the inputs to the fuzzy controller. This is a type of central limit theorem for fuzzy controllers.
Film circuit panel for space guidance computers

Abstract By use of evaporated film resistors, insulators and connectors and compact multi-element semiconductor blocks, an extremely high component density has been realized in a two-sided 2 1 2 × 3 1 2 in. modular panel for a space guidance computer. The arithmetic section of the computer employs diode and -diode or -transistor inverter logic. The circuit diagrams and the logic diagrams of both panel sides are discussed in detail. Since about 1400 components are contained in a total volume of 2·7 in.3, the panel represents a component density of 0·9 million ft3. This extremely high packaging density presents problems in achieving a commensurate accuracy in the deposition pattern. Solutions to these problems are discussed.
Surgical-orthodontic management of an unerupted maxillary incisor

Surgical, periodontal, and orthodontic procedures precluded the necessity for a fixed prosthetic device. Surgical, periodontal, and orthodontic principles were used to attain eruption of an impacted maxillary incisor. Integrity of the dental arch was restored and a physiologic, functional, and esthetic result was achieved.
Using forest inventory data and geographic information systems to support forest management decision-making

Natural resources decision-making increasingly relies on analyses of spatial data in map-based formats. Although a variety of supporting map layers are becoming available, user-friendly tools to assist decision-makers in the analysis of the maps generally are not available. The spatial resources support system (SpaRSS) is a geographic information system (GlS)-based system designed to support decision-making via the analysis of spatial natural resources data in map-based formats. The focus of support is in three areas: (1) assembly of relevant biophysical and human dimension digital data layers and maps; (2) analyses based on the integration of spatial data; and (3) comparison of results arising from different approaches to integrating spatial data and from different decision alternatives. A real-world example involving the allocation of funding for forest wildfire mitigation purposes illustrates how SpaRSS may be used to support forest management decision-making.