cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Recent literature on bryophytes—112(1)

Adkinson, A. & E. Humphreys. 2008. [Abstract] Moisture control on Sphagnum productivity and net ecosystem exchange of CO2 at Mer Bleue bog, Ontario, Canada. Page 5. In B. Shaw & K. Golinski (eds.), Alaska 2008: 4 International Meeting on the Biology of Sphagnum. Symposium Schedule, Abstracts, and List of Participants. The group, Juneau, Anchorage, and Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. Afonina, O. M. 2007 [2008]. New records: New moss records from Zabaikalsky Territory. 1. Arctoa 16: 197–199. ——— & E. A. Ignatova. 2007 [2008]. A new species of Didymodon (Pottiaceae, Musci) from Asian Russia. Arctoa 16: 133–138. [New: D. zanderi sp. nov.] ——— & ———. 2007 [2008]. East Asian species of genus Stereodon (Brid.) Mitt. (Pylaisiaceae, Musci) in Russia. Arctoa 16: 7–20. ———, H. Tsubota & E. A. Ignatova. 2007 [2008]. The genus Pylaisiadelpha (Pylaisiadelphaceae, Musci) in Russia. Arctoa 16: 127–132. [New: P. tristoviridis (Broth.) comb. nov] Allen, B. 2008. Fontinalaceae Exsiccatae. 6. [24] pp. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, Missouri. [Final issue of this exsiccata; scheda includes list that verifies or corrects the names for all previously published numbers in the exsiccata.] Andi, M. A. M., S. Budi & S. Dodi. 2006. Preliminary report of the thalloid liverworts from Gunnung Halimun-Salak National Park, Bogor, Indonesia. Sepilok Bullietin 4: 41–47. ——— & M. Suleiman. 2005. Preliminary list of mosses from Meliau Range, Ulu Tungud Forest Reserve, Sabah. Sepilok Bullietin 3: 57–64. Anishchenko, L. N. 2007 [2008]. On the bryoflora of the ‘‘Bryansky Les’’ Reserve (Nerusso-Desnyanskoye Polessye, European Russia). Arctoa 16: 175–180. Anonymous. 2007 [2008]. New records. Arctoa 16: 181–213. [Compilation of 22 entries by 20 authors of bryophyte records for regions throughout the world; listed separately by author.] ———. 2007. [Review] Genus Plagiochila in Eastern Himalaya. K. K. Rawat & S. C. Srivastava. 2007. Indian Journal of Forestry 30: 528. ———. 2008. XXII. Bibliography. Bryophytes. Flora Malesiana Bulletin 14: 206–212. Anterola, A. 2008. [Abstract] Evolution of gibberellin biosynthesis and function: lessons learned from Physcomitrella patens. American Bryological and Lichenological Society Abstracts of Contributed Papers 2008: 3. Bakalin, V. A. 2007 [2008]. Alobiellopsis R. M. Schust. (Hepaticae)—a genus new for Russia, discovered in the Kuril Islands (north-west Pacific). Arctoa 16: 21–24. ———. 2007 [2008]. New records: New liverwort records from Primorsky Territory. 1. Arctoa 16: 199–200. ———. 2007 [2008]. New records: New liverwort records from Sakhalin Province. 2. Southern Kuril Islands. Arctoa 16: 202–209.
Energy Budget Management for Energy Harvesting Embedded Systems

In battery-powered embedded systems, the limit of battery charge creates a challenge in scheduling tasks to meet both their deadlines and Quality of Service (QoS) requirements. Harvesting energy from the surrounding environment continuously eliminates the concern of limited battery charge. However, the uncertainty in availability of energy brings challenges in embedded systems. In this paper, we propose an energy management technique to maximize QoS of the system. Our technique is composed of two steps: an offline step and an online step. In the offline step we use frame-based energy harvesting prediction in one harvesting period, in order to find the best QoS level for the tasks and maximize the energy utilization. The information provided from the offline step guides the online scheduler to decide about job scheduling at run-time to minimize the QoS violation. We compared our scheduler with other approaches and on average we reduce the violation count by 22%.
Novel circular polarized antenna array substrates for 60GHz-band

Circular polarized antenna array using ceramics has been developed for ultra high-speed wireless LAN of 60GHz-band. The antenna has achieved wideband width by three major technologies: original antenna element, laminated waveguide and design method to adjust axial ratio of circular polarization. The antenna element has laminated resonator structure formed by filled via-holes and conductive pattern, which generates wide bandwidth characteristics. Measurement results of 6/spl times/8 array shows wide bandwidth of over 4GHz. Sidelobe level is less than -15dB. Gain variation is less than 1dB and axial ratio is less than 3dB.
Water storage compromises walking endurance in an active forager: evidence of a trade-off between osmoregulation and locomotor performance

Trade-offs between locomotor performance and load-carrying in animals are well-established and often result from requisite life processes including reproduction and feeding. Osmoregulation, another necessary process, may involve storage of fluid in the urinary bladder of some species. The purpose of this study was to determine whether storage of urine in the urinary bladder reduces walking endurance in an actively foraging lizard. The results of our paired-design study indicate that the volume of fluid stored in the urinary bladder (36.5 ± 1.6 ml) contributed a significant load (9.2% of body mass) to the lizards. This load resulted in a disproportionate 24.5 ± 2.8% decrement in walking endurance. Specifically, Gila monsters walked at a fixed pace for a significantly shorter duration when the urinary bladder contained fluid (26 ± 2.0 min) compared to when the bladder was empty (34.3 ± 2.3 min). Since fluid stored in the bladder contributes to osmoregulation in this species, our results indicate the presence of a trade-off between osmoregulation and endurance in Gila monsters. Bearing other loads (e.g., a clutch or meal) influences the evolution of life-history traits and foraging strategy; thus the negative effect of fluid storage on endurance may also have evolutionary implications.
Distances between interval-valued fuzzy sets

In this paper, some researches on distances of interval-valued fuzzy sets are made and some properties of metric space with respect to these distances are discussed.
Kinetics of hydrogen chemisorption on supported molybdenum disulphide

Chemisorption of H2 on MoS2-Al2O3 catalyst was studied at different temperatures and initial pressures. The results when analysed according to the Elovich equation revealed multiple kinetic stages. Assigning two sets of boundary conditions to the equation, a statistical procedure employing least square analysis has been applied for the evaluation of the Elovich parameters a and α and their temperature dependence has also been followed. A comparison is made with the parameters derived by the graphical method. The role of initial surface saturation q0 on the sequence of the multiple kinetic stages is discussed. Excepting for descriptive purposes, the kinetic stage connotation is not strictly followed. On the other hand, all the first straight line portions of the Elovich plots for a given initial pressure including the single stage plots have been grouped together and the corresponding a and α were calculated. The merits of deriving the apparent activation energies from the initial rates rather than from α are discussed.
Ventricular Remodeling Does Not Accompany the Development of Heart Failure in Diabetic Patients After Myocardial Infarction

Background— Diabetic patients are at increased risk for heart failure (HF) and other adverse events after myocardial infarction (MI). Left ventricular (LV) enlargement after MI is also associated with the same increased risk. We used data from the Survival and Ventricular Enlargement (SAVE) echocardiographic substudy to test the hypothesis that diabetes was associated with increased LV enlargement after MI. Methods and Results— Four hundred twelve nondiabetic and 100 diabetic patients underwent echocardiographic assessment at baseline and 3 months, 1 year, and 2 years after MI. HF developed in 30% of diabetic and 17% of nondiabetic patients during follow-up (P<0.001). Baseline LV diastolic size, ejection fraction, and infarct segment length were similar between diabetic and nondiabetic patients. Diabetic patients demonstrated less LV enlargement between baseline and 2 years than nondiabetic patients (0.9±11.1 cm2 versus 3.8±10.9 cm2, P=0.047). In patients who developed HF, LV diastolic dilatation (10.0±12...
The Politics of Mourning and the Crisis of Poland’s Symbolic Language after April 10

This article analyzes the deep political and cultural impact of the plane crash on April 10, 2010. The tragedy that cost the life of a president, Lech Kaczynski, his wife, and a group of leading parliamentarians across political divides took place near the traumatically laden site of the Katyn forest and has led to a crisis of communal symbolic language. The crisis has been apparent in the radical polarization of Polish society over the rhetoric of the main political parties and their interpretations of the crash. However, the crisis transcends the political arena and indicates that Polish society no longer shares a unifying meta-narrative to form its sense of national identity. The author analyzes this process of societal polarization by looking at the stages of mourning—shock of the symbolic absurd, communitas, and the Wawel controversy—and the utilization of the communal affect in the presidential campaign led by the president’s twin brother, Jaroslaw Kaczynski. The campaign is characterized by the app...
A Probabilistic Theory for Balance Dynamics

Balance dynamics are proposed in a probabilistic framework, assuming that the state variables and the master, or control, variables are random variables described by continuous probability density functions. Balance inversion, defined as recovering the state variables from the control variables, is achieved through Bayes’ theorem. Balance dynamics are defined by the propagation of the joint probability of the state and control variables through the Liouville equation. Assuming Gaussian statistics, balance inversion reduces to linear regression of the state variables onto the control variables, and assuming linear dynamics, balance dynamics reduces to a Kalman filter subject to perfect observations given by the control variables. Example solutions are given for an elliptical vortex in shallow water having unity Rossby and Froude numbers, which produce an outward-propagating pulse of inertia–gravity wave activity. Applying balance inversion to the potential vorticity reveals that, because potential vorticity and divergence share welldefined patterns of covariability, the inertia–gravity wave field is recovered in addition to the vortical field. Solutions for a probabilistic balance dynamics model applied to the elliptical vortex reveal smaller errors (“imbalance”) for height control compared to potential vorticity control. Important attributes of the probabilistic balance theory include quantification of the concept of balance manifold “fuzziness,” and clear state-independent definitions of balance and imbalance in terms of the range of the probabilistic inversion operators. Moreover, the theory provides a generalization of the notion of balance that may prove useful for problems involving moist physics, chemistry, and tropical circulations.
Pressure Politics in France

FRENCH POLITICAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL THEORY is generally hostile to the existence of pressure groups. The characteristic French view is that contact between citizen and state must be direct and intimate, since membership in subsidiary groups would foster factionalism and distort the will of the whole people. With the exception of the developing Socialist and Communist movements, politics under the Third Republic was mainly a matter of personalities. Individual deputies did what they thought best, and defended themselves before their electors in the rather small arrondissements. Indeed, until 1910, the presiding officer of the Chamber of Deputies would not permit a speaker to declare the policy of a "group"; he could only inform the Chamber that he spoke for himself and some "friends." This was the logical fulfillment of Revolutionary philosophy: the existence of factions or groups between the individual citizen and the sovereign Parliament falsifies and corrupts the "general will," and should therefore be discouraged.' In practice, however, the very self-sufficiency of the individual deputy fostered the development and proliferation of pressure groups. Within each arrondissement people in similar occupations (winegrowers, beetgrowers, workers, shopkeepers, manufacturers, and so on) found it profitable to exert their political influence as a bloc. Increasingly, deputies found it necessary to cater to important combinations of voters within their districts; their constituional independence all too frequently was transformed into practical subservience.2
On the Convergence Behavior of the Affine Projection Algorithm for Adaptive Filters

The affine projection class of algorithms (APA) provides faster convergence than LMS-based adaptive filters. Its convergence analysis is not as extensively studied as Normalized LMS (NLMS), and remains an active area of research. For tractability, most works on APA make many assumptions on the statistics of the input, as well as correlation between signals. Here we consider the effect of the correlation between filter coefficients and past measurement noise on MSE error. The effect of this correlation was found to be dependent on step-size mu, increasing or decreasing the predicted MSE depending on whether mu is less than or greater than 1, irrespective of the input statistics. Simulations are used to verify the analysis results presented.
«Cuidadoso descuido»: los pícaros, la mentira y el teatro en la narrativa picaresca

This article analyzes the use of the phrase «cuidadoso descuido» in seduction scenes of some picaresque narratives. The origin of this phrase is dual: «descuido» is the Spanish translation of sprezzatura , a key concept in Renaissance courtly manuals; and «cuidadoso descuido» is a concept that expresses the naturalness of a performance in theater. The picaresque narratives subvert that courtly and theatrical origin and employ «cuidadoso descuido» as a problematic euphemism to talk about a crime that includes lying and dissimulation.
Turning the Horns: Cultural Metaphors, Material Conditions, and the Peasant Language of Resistance in Ionian Islands (Greece) during the Nineteenth Century

The bells tolled early on the morning of the 28th of January 1867, summoning the peasants from Agro and the surrounding areas on the island of Kerkyra. The bailiffs employed by the local landlords and the constables ordered to protect them were to arrive that day to collect the current year's rent. Most peasants in the area around Agro were sharecroppers cultivating the land of absentee landlords and bound to these plantation owners both by contracts and forms of quasi-feudal obligations. The annual collection of the rents was always a tense affair because under Ionian law and custom, if a sharecropper failed to pay his rent, he was subject to summary seizure and detention in prison until someone settled the debt. And from this law, there was no right of appeal.
Swyer-James syndrome diagnosed in a trauma patient.

Abstract Background: Swyer-James syndrome is a relatively rare pulmonary manifestation of prior childhood lung infection that results in hypoplastic lung with small-caliber bronchi and pulmonary vasculature. It appears as increased opacity on chest X-ray study and can be confused for other thoracic disease processes. Case Report/Objectives: We present the confusing case of Swyer-James syndrome presenting in a trauma patient after a fall from 12 feet. The literature will be reviewed in regards to incidence, diagnosis, and management. Conclusions: Swyer-James syndrome occurs in
Implementing ITIL-Based CMDB in the Organizations to Minimize or Remove Service Quality Gaps

"Gap" is a fundamental problem in every organization and there are some models and methods to "identify" and remove or minimize those gaps in the organizations . This paper tries to use an ITIL based solution to remove or abate those "key discrepancies" in the organizations based on using Model of Service Quality Gaps(S. Q. G) as a most known model to identify gaps in the organizations in perspective of service quality. In this study the following questions were answered: Which gap or gaps are in the organizations based on S.Q.G model? ; Which method is better to make such ITIL- based repository? ; And how CMDB can be used within S. Q. G model in order to remove or abate known gaps?
Polyurethanes preparation using proteins obtained from microalgae

It is widely believed that the biofuels can be sustainably produced using microalgae that are known to convert CO2 from the atmosphere to lipids, in the presence of nutrient and accumulate them as their body mass. However, when algal biofuels are produced using thermochemical route, ~30–65 % of proteins present in algae are lost due to decomposition and some of the nitrogen from amino acids is incorporated into the biofuels. The algal protein is a valuable resource that can bring additional revenue to the biorefinery by converting this co-product to high-value polyurethanes. In this work, we have demonstrated a one-step removal of proteins from algae through hydrolysis of the proteins to smaller peptides and amino acids using environment friendly flash hydrolysis (FH) process. Subcritical water was used as a reactant and as a reaction media for hydrolyzing the algae proteins via FH. Scenedesmus spp., slurry in water (3.8 %), was used as the algal feed stock during the FH process which was run at 280 °C for a residence time of 10 s. The soluble amino acids and peptides were separated from the other insoluble algal biomass components (cell wall and lipids) by filtration followed by freeze-drying. The product was then characterized by ion chromatography and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry to determine its composition. The freeze-dried peptide and amino acids were then reacted with diamine and ethylene carbonate to produce polyols that were further processed to produce polyurethane. The relatively high hydroxyl value of these amino acid-based polyols and their compatibility with other commercially available polyols made them particularly suitable for producing rigid polyurethane foams. Due to the presence of amines and secondary amines in these polyols, the polymerization process was self-catalytic and the resulting foams are less flammable than conventional rigid polyurethane foams. The conversion of algal proteins to high-value industrial products by a relatively simple process greatly improves the value of proteins extracted from algae.
Discovery and biological characterization of capromorelin analogues with extended half-lives.

Abstract New tert -butyl, picolyl and fluorinated analogues of capromorelin ( 3 ), a short-acting growth hormone secretagogue (GHS), were prepared as part of a program to identify long-acting GHSs that increase 24-h plasma IGF-1 levels. Compounds 4c and 4d (ACD LogD values ≥2.9) displayed extended plasma elimination half-lives in dogs, primarily due to high volumes of distribution, but showed weak GH secretagogue activities in rats (ED 50 s>10 mg/kg). A less lipophilic derivative 4 (ACD LogD=1.6) exhibited a shorter canine half-life, but stimulated GH secretion in two animal species. Repeat oral dosing of 4 in dogs for 29 days (6 mg/kg) resulted in a significant down-regulation of the post dose GH response and a 60 and 40% increase in IGF-1 levels relative to pre-dose levels at the 8- and 24-h post dose time points. Compound 4 (CP-464709-18) has been selected as a development candidate for the treatment of frailty.
Treatment of the Post-Myocardial Infarction Patient: A Concise Review

• Objective: To review secondary prevention strategies for patients with acute coronary syndrome. • Methods: Review of the literature. • Results: Patients with acute myocardial infarction represent an important high-risk cohort in which secondary vascular disease prevention is likely to be particulary effective and cost-effective. Lifestyle modification such as regular exercise, weight management, and smoking cessation should be encouraged. Tight glucose control in diabetics and optimal blood pressure control are important goals. Effective pharmacologic therapies include statins, antiplatelet agents, β blockers, and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors. Attention to disease management opportunities may improve quality of care for acute myocardial infarction patients. • Conclusion: Aggressive risk factor and lifestyle modification and pharmacologic therapies improve patient survival, reduce recurrent events, and improve quality of life in post‐myocardial infarction patients.
The Cryptographic Coroner’s Report on Ohio v. Roberts

For more than twenty years, the Supreme Court's holding in Ohio v. Roberts (1980) established the controlling legal standard governing the constitutional limits on the admission of hearsay evidence against a criminal defendant, and the circumstances under which the exclusion of such evidence might be required by the Sixth Amendment right of the accused to be confronted with the witnesses against him.Those constitutional limits were completely overturned in somewhat piecemeal fashion, however, in a pair of decisions that were handed down by the Supreme Court in 2004 and 2006, both of them written by Justice Antonin Scalia. As it happens, Justice Scalia's opinions overturned the Roberts decision with such unusual subtlety and indirection that a great number of state and federal courts were unaware that the Court had done so, even after examining the same cases in which the Court had laid that earlier precedent to rest.This article includes a precise explanation as to how the Court's decision to finally overturn Roberts was announced with such unusual indirection that the decision was missed not merely by a number of lower appellate courts but even the official Reporter of Decisions at the Supreme Court, and why the Roberts decision was in fact ultimately laid to rest in "the legal equivalent of a covert operation."
Sleep Disorders in Patients with Traumatic Brain Injury: A Review

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a global problem and causes long-term disability in millions of individuals. This is a major problem for both military and civilian-related populations. The prevalence of sleep disorders in individuals with TBI is very high, yet mostly unrecognized. Approximately 46% of all chronic TBI patients have sleep disorders, which require nocturnal polysomnography and the Multiple Sleep Latency Test for diagnosis. These disorders include sleep apnoea (23% of all TBI patients), post-traumatic hypersomnia (11%), narcolepsy (6%) and periodic limb movements (7%). Over half of all TBI patients will have insomnia complaints, most often with less severe injury and after personal assault, and half of these may be related to a circadian rhythm disorder. Hypothalamic injury with decreased levels of wake-promoting neurotransmitters such as hypocretin (orexin) and histamine may be involved in the pathophysiology of excessive sleepiness associated with TBI. These sleep disorders result in additional neurocognitive deficits and functional impairment, which might be attributed to the original brain injury itself and thus be left without specific treatment.
The pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis

The pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS) involves both genetic-susceptibility and, at least, three sequential environmental-events. The first environmental-event is a maternal-factor, which acts near birth. The second acts subsequently but prior to approximately age 15 years and the third acts long after these first two events have already taken place. Two environmental-events strongly implicated in MS-pathogenesis are vitamin D deficiency and Epstein-Barr viral (EBV) infection. These factors seem well-suited to the first two environmental-events in this causal chain. If this notion is correct, it is likely that interrupting either of these factors (e.g. the timely supplementation of Vitamin D or the development of an EBV vaccine might be simple and effective methods for achieving primary disease prevention. In addition to these environmental-events, genetic factors are both crucial and complex. More than 110 genomic-regions have now been associated with MS-susceptibility and only a very small fraction of the population is genetically-susceptible. However, the actual genes involved are much more poorly defined than is often thought. For example, it turns out that the well-established association with the DRB1*1501 allele on chromosome 6, is, likely, not due to this allele itself but, rather, to something else that resides on the SNP-haplotype, which usually harbors this allele. Also, despite women being the large majority of MS patients, men are more likely to be genetically-susceptible. Nevertheless, women are more responsive to the changing environmental-exposures, which have occurred recently; thereby accounting for the changes in sex-ratio and MS-prevalence in women, which have been found in many regions.
Influence of Temperature, Salinity, and Weight on the Oxygen Consumption of a Laboratory Population of Americamysis Bahia (Mysidacea)

ABSTRACT Although Americamysis bahia is specified by the Environmental Protection Agency as a bioassay test species, some of its fundamental biology is not known. This species is available commercially, and is common in coastal waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Its oxygen consumption was measured with a Gilson Differential Respirometer at 18°C. 20°C, 22°C, and 24°C and 18, 22, and 26%c salinity. Lowest oxygen consumption occurred at the salinitytemperature (S-T) combination used to culture the aquarium population, 20°C and 22%c S. Oxygen consumption rates increased at other S―T combinations. Data suggest that salinity has a negligible influence on oxygen consumption at the S-T combinations tested.
Subjectivity and the Unity of the World

Comparaison entre le realisme interne de Putnam et l'idealisme transcendantal de Kant concernant l'explication du monde. L'A. montre qu'il n'y a pas d'incompatibilite entre l'unite de l'experience decrite par Kant et l'incompletude de la mecanique quantique et de la semantique observee par Putnam
Comparison of the feeding habits of migratory and non-migratory Stenobrachius leucopsarus (Myctophidae)

Stenobrachius leucopsarus, the most abundant species of myctophid fishes off Oregon, USA, has a bimodal distribution at night, with a peak of abundance in the upper 100 m composed of diel vertical migrants, and another peak at 300 to 500 m composed of fish that did not migrate the night they were caught. We compared the feeding habits of these two groups of fish in an attempt to learn if deep fish migrated to surface waters. Low similarity of diets, differences in the rank order of common prey, and similar states of stomach fullness and digestion of prey suggest that fish captured in deep water at night probably did not feed exclusively in shallow water on previous nights. They probably fed in deep water. The similarity in food habits between deep and shallow fish is most readily explained by daytime feeding by fish in deep water and by broad vertical distributions of prey.
The Case for Black Inferiority? What Must Be True If Professor Sander is Right: A Response to a Systemic Analysis of Affirmative Action in American Law Schools

In A Systemic Analysis of Affirmative Action in American Law Schools, Professor Richard Sander asserts that affirmative action hurts blacks both as a group and as individuals. Professor Sander finds that qualified black students are adversely affected by affirmative action because they are admitted to schools above their capacity where they are matched against more qualified whites. According to Professor Sander, because these minimally qualified blacks are unable to compete with their more qualified peers, they fare poorly in the classroom and on the bar examination. Moreover, unqualified black students are hurt because they are admitted to law schools where they waste valuable time and money discovering that they are unable to graduate or pass the bar. In turn, black people as a whole are harmed by affirmative action because the admission of unqualified blacks and the competition faced by minimally qualified blacks result in black law students suffering from higher dropout and bar failure rates than their white peers. According to Professor Sander, under a race-neutral system, unqualified blacks would never enter law school and qualified blacks would matriculate at the lower tier schools where they belong. The result would be more black law school graduates and higher black bar passage rates, leading to more black lawyers. In other words, affirmative action is responsible for creating fewer black lawyers than a race-neutral system would produce.
Clinical Observation of Combination of Chinese Traditional and Western Medicine on Chronic Brucella Infection

[Objective]To explore the effectiveness of acupuncture,physiotherapy,medicated bath and drugs integrated technology in treatment of Chronic Brucella infection.[Methods]A total of 90 patients with chronic Brucella infection were randomly divided into treatment group and control group (Pure drug group),each for 45 cases. The integrated treatment group was treated with routine medication,acupuncture,physiotherapy,and medicated bath. Follow-up observation for more than half a year,the effectiveness was judged by national standard. The control group received just routine medication.[Results]Basic cure rate and effective rate of integrated treatment group (77.78%,100.00% respectively)were higher than that of control group ( 40.00%,82.22% respectively),the differences were significant (χ2 value was 13.26,8.78 respectively,all P 0. 01).[Conclusion]The effect of combination of acupuncture,physiotherapy,medicated bath and drugs was better than the effect of single medication on chronic Brucella infection,especially the leading domestic medicated bath is worth popularizing
Can Contractualism Be Saved

In his 1998 book, What We Owe To Each Other, T.M. Scanlon laid out a “contractualist” theory of our moral duties to others. The distinctive contribution of Scanlon’s contractualism to substantive morality is the Greater Burden Principle, which dictates that we choose among competing complaints by a maximin rule: those who stand to suffer the most under a candidate choice may reasonably reject that choice, provided there is an alternative with a less-bad worst outcome. In Scanlon’s original version (‘ex post’ contractualism), the relative complaints of representative individuals were weighted by the actual harm each would suffer ex post. Over the past few years, most contractualists have concluded that ex post contractualism is unworkable, and have proposed an ex ante version in its place: the maximin rule is still used to decide between complaints of potentially affected individuals, but complaints are measured by the expected harm each individual faces as of the moment a choice must be made. I argue that ex ante contractualism cannot save the contractualist project. While it eliminates two of the most serious problems facing ex post contractualism, it introduces others that are, in my view, equally fatal to contractualism’s aspiration to be a moral theory of general application. As a result, its domain is limited to a small set of stylized cases that populate the philosophical laboratory but are rarely encountered outside of it.
Lipidomic profiling of high-fat diet-induced obesity in mice: Importance of cytochrome P450-derived fatty acid epoxides.

Objective Enzymatic metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids leads to formation of bioactive lipid metabolites (LMs). Previous studies have shown that obesity leads to deregulation of LMs in adipose tissues. However, most previous studies have focused on a single or limited number of LMs, and few systematical analyses have been carried out. Methods A LC-MS/MS-based lipidomics approach was used, which can analyze >100 LMs produced by cyclooxygenase, lipoxygenase, and cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, to analyze the profile of LMs in high-fat diet-induced obesity in mice. Results LC-MS/MS showed that high-fat feeding significantly modulated profiles of LMs in adipose tissues. Among the three major polyunsaturated fatty acid metabolizing pathways (cyclooxygenase, lipoxygenase, and CYP), CYP-derived fatty acid epoxides were the most dramatically altered LMs. Almost all types of fatty acid epoxides were reduced by 70% to 90% in adipose tissues of high-fat diet-fed mice. Consistent with the reduced levels of fatty acid epoxides, the gene expression of several CYP epoxygenases, including Cyp2j5, Cyp2j6, and Cyp2c44, was significantly reduced in adipose tissues of high-fat diet-fed mice. Conclusions Results show that CYP-derived fatty acid epoxides are the most responsive LMs in high-fat diet-induced obesity, suggesting that these LMs could play critical roles in obesity.
Prenatal Counseling of Fetal Congenital Heart Disease.

The field of fetal cardiology has advanced greatly over the last two decades and congenital heart defects can now be identified in utero with a high level of accuracy. Prenatal counseling of parents given the news of a fetal cardiac defect is an important role of the fetal cardiologist. Prenatal counseling is a complex task that requires skill to perform and interpret fetal echocardiograms, an understanding of fetal and postnatal cardiovascular physiology, knowledge of therapeutic and surgical options, and of long-term outcomes including quality of life. Just as important is the manner in which the information is conveyed and the support offered to the parents as these affect parental understanding, influence decision-making, and may impact the parents’ emotional and psychological coping.
Rate and microstructure influence on the fracture behavior of cemented carbides WC-Co and WC-Ni

Tungsten carbide has both industrial and military applications, from high strength end mill dies and geological drilling, to kinetic energy penetrators. In these extreme environments, an understanding of the dynamic fracture properties and the potential influence of grade microstructure is necessary. The present work investigates fracture behavior of cobalt and nickel cemented tungsten carbide with varying grain size and binder content. Notched hardmetal WC-Co and WC-Ni samples are impacted under mode-I (opening) fracture conditions, and the dynamic stress intensity factor is determined from digital image correlation using ultra high-speed imaging, and compared with quasi-static values. In both grain size and binder content variants examined, the dynamic fracture toughness increased from the quasi-static by a factor of 1.51–2.44. In addition, a 7% increase in cobalt binder content (while maintaining nominally identical average grain size) resulted in a 20% increase in quasi-static fracture toughness, from 8.62 to 10.38 MPa $$\sqrt{\text {m}}$$ ; while the same binder increase resulted in a 34% decrease in critical SIF from 21.07 to 15.72 MPa $$\sqrt{\text {m}}$$ . The 6% nickel binder WC was found to have a 4.5% higher quasi-static fracture toughness than the 6% cobalt binder WC of the same grain size, but a statistically insignificant difference under dynamic loading. Overall, there is a 28% increase in the quasi-static fracture toughness of tungsten carbide samples with an increase of average grain size from 1 to 3 $$\upmu $$ m, and under dynamic loading the larger grain WC shows a nominally identical increase in fracture toughness. These findings are discussed within the theory of classical dynamic fracture mechanics, the implications of the experimental configurations pursued, and the microstructural features are examined using fractography.
71 – Nutrition and Cancers of the Breast, Endometrium, and Ovary

This chapter reviews and summarizes evidence on the relationships between nutritional factors as well as breast, endometrial and ovarian cancers. The emphasis in the chapter is on clinical and epidemiologic studies, with the goal of identifying clinically useful strategies for prevention and patient management as well as describing future directions for research. Carcinomas of the breast, endometrium, and ovary are hormone-related cancers that have biologic similarities. Over the past several decades, there has been a considerable amount of research exploring the possible relationships between various nutritional factors and breast cancer. Laboratory animal studies quite consistently demonstrate that except for a specific tumor-promoting effect of linoleic acid, the effects of dietary fat on tumor growth is attributable to the high-energy content of a high-fat diet, rather than the content of fat. Given that a reduction in fat intake has been hypothesized to influence breast cancer risk by reducing serum estrogen concentrations, various feeding studies and small diet intervention trials have examined the effect of dietary fat reduction on serum estrogen levels. Alcohol intake has been consistently and positively associated with risk for breast cancer in epidemiologic studies.
Reply to Bruggeman: Learning is robust to noise in decentralized networks.

Our study (1) presents a theoretical model and experimental test of how social influence affects the wisdom of crowds. Our theoretical simulations (SI appendix of ref. 1) show that the accuracy of the group mean can improve in decentralized networks when the weight that individuals place on their own estimates is positively correlated with their accuracy. Empirically, our findings confirm this prediction, showing that a correlation between individual accuracy and self-weight can explain how social influence improves the mean of the group estimate. Bruggeman (2) raises the insightful concern that noise in the relationship between accuracy and self-weight might undermine the collective learning process. Bruggeman … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: dcentola{at}asc.upenn.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Polymer mechanochemistry: Up another rung.

The use of mechanical force to break and build chemical bonds in polymers can enable transformations that cannot be conducted using stimuli such as light and heat. Now, an insulating polymer has been mechanically unzipped to create a semiconducting polymer with extended regions of conjugation.
Numerical Study of Physical Processes Controlling Summer Precipitation over the Western Ghats Region

AbstractSummer precipitation over the Western Ghats and its adjacent Arabian Sea is an important component of the Indian monsoon. To advance understanding of the physical processes controlling this...
CATECHOLAMINES AND RAT CAROTID BODY FUNCTION

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses catecholamines and rat carotid body function. The study described in the chapter showed that transection of the carotid sinus nerve and removal of the superior cervical ganglion modify the noradrenaline content, whereas the dopamine content remains unchanged after sensory and sympathetic denervation of the carotid body. In the study, various types of denervation were performed 7 days before killing the rats. The catecholamine content was measured mass-fragmentographically. Transection of the carotid sinus nerve 7 days prior to the experiment increases the noradrenaline content in the carotid body, whereas decentralization of the ganglia by transecting the preganglionic sympathetic nerve fails to change the noradrenaline content of the carotid body. The removal of the superior cervical ganglion 7 days before the experiment decreases the noradrenaline content of the carotid body by approximately 50% without altering the dopamine content. The simultaneous transection of the carotid sinus nerve and ganglionectomy results in a decrease of the carotid body noradrenaline content by about 50%.
Semi-virtual Embodied Learning-Real World STEM Assessment

This chapter presents several results from a multiyear research endeavor on embodiment in gaming and learning. A trans-disciplinary group at Arizona State University has designed an innovative learning environment that allows the learner’s body to move freely in space while interacting with dynamic visual and sonic media. This semi-virtual interface/environment is called SMALLab (Situated Multimedia Arts Learning Laboratory). The environment relies on 3D object tracking, real time graphics, and surround-sound to enhance embodied learning. Our hypothesis is that optimal learning and retention will occur when learning is embodied and multiple modalities are incorporated during the act of learning. In addition, we have created game-like scenarios that are collaborative and, where appropriate, incorporate the constructs of competition and low-stakes formative, stealth assessment to increase engagement, knowledge construction, and metrics on student learning.
A Physiologic Basis for the Transfusion Trigger

Allogeneic blood for transfusion is now rigorously tested and the risk of contamination with pathogens is extremely low. The decision to transfuse a given patient should be based on the need for transfusion, not just on an estimation of the risks. Transfusion requirements need to be understood on physiological grounds, but there is no clear-cut “transfusion trigger” that emerges from this understanding. Rather, the clinician must combine physiologic parameters such as \(P\bar{v}{{O}_{2}}, S\bar{v}{{O}_{2}}\), O2 extraction ratio and \(\dot{V}{{O}_{2}}\) (when available) with clinical signs and symptoms to provide a rationale for transfusion of individual patients.
Legislatures: United States

Legislatures, the lawmaking institutions of the American political system, exist at the national, state, and local levels. State legislatures are provided for in state constitutions, organized on a bicameral basis (except in one state), and range in size and partisan composition. Legislatures perform three general functions in the political systems of their states: they represent constituencies and constituents; they make laws, including those that appropriate funds and raise revenues; and they balance the power of the executive branch. The ways in which legislatures perform these functions vary over time and according to legislative structures, capacity, partisanship, and the quality of their leadership and membership.
Prophylactic anterior vitrectomy during cataract surgery in eyes at increased risk for aqueous misdirection.

Abstract Purpose Patients with chronic narrow angle glaucoma (CNAG) are at increased risk of developing aqueous misdirection (AM) following intraocular surgery. We present a retrospective case series on the use of posterior capsulorrhexis with core vitrectomy by an anterior approach (CAV) at the time of cataract extraction with or without glaucoma surgery as a prophylactic measure for the prevention of AM in CNAG. Methods Retrospective case series of six phakic eyes in four patients with CNAG and other risk factors for AM who underwent posterior capsulorrhexis and CAV at the time of cataract surgery with or without glaucoma surgery. The main outcome measures were best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), and post-operative complications. Results Six eyes in four subjects underwent posterior capsulorrhexis with CAV at the time of cataract surgery. The case was combined with incisional glaucoma surgery in the five eyes with advanced visual field loss. The mean logMAR BCVA and IOP improved from 0.554 ± 0.398 and 25.2 ± 13 mmHg, respectively, at the pre-operative visit to 0.257 ± 0.218 and 12.2 ± 1.7 mmHg, respectively, at final follow-up. Both eyes with nanophthalmos developed non-appositional serous choroidals that resolved with atropine, but the left eye required additional treatment with synechiolysis, intraocular lens repositioning, limited AV and endocyclophotocoagulation. There were no permanent, vision-threatening complications. Conclusions and importance CAV can be safely combined with cataract surgery and glaucoma surgery, and it may be an effective intervention in eyes with CNAG and other risk factors for AM as a prophylactic measure against the development of AM.
A parametric model for solid oxide fuel cells based on measurements made on cell materials and components

Abstract A parametric equation describing polarization in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) in terms of experimentally measurable parameters is presented. The equation explicitly describes activation and concentration polarizations at the two electrodes and the ohmic loss as functions of current density. Using known values of parameters measured on cell materials and components, various polarizations are estimated as functions of current density and the possible performance characteristics are assessed. The calculated performance curves using measurements made on cell materials and components are in good agreement with actual fuel cell tests. Using the model, prospects for ultra-high power density SOFC at intermediate temperatures (
Developmental Neurobiology: It Takes Nrg to Separate Dendrites.

The development of sensory receptive fields requires the coordinated spatial patterning of neurites from multiple sensory neuron subtypes. A new study identifies a role for neuron–skin cell interactions in preventing the bundling of dendritic arbors from distinct neurons.
Myasthenia gravis: Historical achievements and the "golden age" of clinical trials.

Abstract Since the death of Chief Opechankanough >350 years ago, the myasthenia gravis (MG) community has gained extensive knowledge about MG and how to treat it. This review highlights key milestones in the history of treatment and discusses the current “golden age” of clinical trials. Although originally thought by many clinicians to be a disorder of hysteria and fluctuating weakness without observable cause, MG is one the most understood autoimmune neurologic disorders. However, studying it in clinical trials has been challenging due to the fluctuating nature of the medical condition which impacts MG clinical outcomes. Clinical trials must also account for the possibility of a placebo effect. Because MG is a rare incurable autoimmune disorder, it limits the number of potential patients available to participate in clinical trials. In the last 15 years, however, significant progress has been made with MG randomized clinical trials, resulting in a new drug (eculizumab) for physicians' treatment repertoire and an old technique (thymectomy) confirmed effective for MG. Some of the therapies (eg, thymectomy, corticosteroids, plasma exchange, and intravenous immunoglobulin [IVIg]) have survived the test of time. Others (eg, eculizumab and neonatal Fc receptor inhibitor) are novel and hold promise.
Provenance, evolution, and transition of personal selling and sales management to strategic marketing channel management

AbstractPersonal selling and sales management issues have been the focus of tremendous attention by research scholars, thus expanding our extant knowledge of the field of marketing. However, studie...