cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Deep compressive offloading: speeding up neural network inference by trading edge computation for network latency

With recent advances, neural networks have become a crucial building block in intelligent IoT systems and sensing applications. However, the excessive computational demand remains a serious impediment to their deployments on low-end IoT devices. With the emergence of edge computing, offloading grows into a promising technique to circumvent end-device limitations. However, transferring data between local and edge devices takes up a large proportion of time in existing offloading frameworks, creating a bottleneck for low-latency intelligent services. In this work, we propose a general framework, called deep compressive offloading. By integrating compressive sensing theory and deep learning, our framework can encode data for offloading into tiny sizes with negligible overhead on local devices and decode the data on the edge server, while offering theoretical guarantees on perfect reconstruction and lossless inference. By trading edge computing resources for data transmission time, our design can significantly reduce offloading latency with almost no accuracy loss. We build a deep compressive offloading system to serve state-of-the-art computer vision and speech recognition services. With comprehensive evaluations, our system can consistently reduce end-to-end latency by 2X to 4X with 1% accuracy loss, compared to state-of-the-art neural network offloading systems. In conditions of limited network bandwidth or intensive background traffic, our system can further speed up the neural network inference by up to 35X 1.
Failure Investigation of Polymer Mechanical Micromponents

This paper reports typical failure modes of polymer microstructures. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microstructures were fabricated using replication-based methods. The mechanical collapses of these structures were observed using scanning electron microscopy. In this work, we classified the mechanical collapses based on their individual geometries and discussed the mechanism of each failure mode. We also worked on solutions to recover these failed PDMS structures. This work helps to better understand the collapsing mechanism and to facilitate the development of control strategies to enhance the mechanical reliability of polymer microdevices.
Peptide-tiling screens of cancer drivers reveal oncogenic protein domains and associated peptide inhibitors.

Summary Gene fragments derived from structural domains mediating physical interactions can modulate biological functions. Utilizing this, we developed lentiviral overexpression libraries of peptides comprehensively tiling high-confidence cancer driver genes. Toward inhibiting cancer growth, we assayed ~66,000 peptides, tiling 65 cancer drivers and 579 mutant alleles. Pooled fitness screens in two breast cancer cell lines revealed peptides, which selectively reduced cellular proliferation, implicating oncogenic protein domains important for cell fitness. Coupling of cell-penetrating motifs to these peptides enabled drug-like function, with peptides derived from EGFR and RAF1 inhibiting cell growth at IC50s of 27–63 μM. We anticipate that this peptide-tiling (PepTile) approach will enable rapid de novo mapping of bioactive protein domains and associated interfering peptides.
Drug Induced Liver Injury

Hepatotoxicity is toxic damage to the liver that includes the nature of the hepatotoxic agent, the type and mechanism of liver injury, the circumstances of the exposure, and the medical and social context in which it occurs.
The mating reaction in yeast. II. Spontaneous occurrence of omni-mating types.

Meiosis in diploids of Saccharomyces cerevisiae either homozygous or heterozygous for the dmt gene result, in about 5% of the meiotic products, in spores which have undergone an interconversion at the mating-type locus. Some of these interconversions appear to result in the generation of spontaneous omni-mating strains. This phenomenon has now been quantitated and the distribution of mating-type loci in these “natural”, omni-mating types determined.
Satisficing control for multi-agent formation maneuvers

In this paper, robustly satisficing controls based on control Lyapunov functions are applied to multiagent formation problems. We show that under certain conditions a group of satisficing control laws chosen from the robustly satisficing set can guarantee bounded formation keeping error, finite completion time, and reasonable formation velocity as well as inverse optimality and desirable stability margins. This technique is applied to a group of nonholonomic robots in simulation as a proof of concept.
Antigens of Bordetella pertussis IV. Effect of Heat, Merthiolate, and Formaldehyde on Histamine-Sensitizing Factor and Protective Activity of Soluble Extracts from Bordetella pertussis

Abstract Munoz, J. (Rocky Mountain Laboratory, Hamilton, Mont.), and B. M. Hestekin. Antigens of Bordetella pertussis. IV. Effect of heat, Merthiolate, and formaldehyde on histamine-sensitizing factor and protective activity of soluble extracts from Bordetella pertussis. J. Bacteriol. 91:2175–2179. 1966.—Both histamine-sensitizing and protective activities of soluble preparations from Bordetella pertussis cells are destroyed by heating at 80 C for 0.5 hr. The histamine-sensitizing activity appeared to be more susceptible to inactivation by heat than the protective activity. Formaldehyde in a final concentration of 0.5% rapidly diminished the histamine-sensitizing ability of saline extract (SE) held at 37 C. The protective activity was clearly more resistant to inactivation by formaldehyde at similar temperature. The inactivating action of formaldehyde was slower when the concentration of SE was increased or when the mixture was kept at 2 to 5 C. Merthiolate in a final concentration of 1:10,000 had no demonstrable deleterious effects on either protective or histamine-sensitizing activity of SE.
Setting, Patient:, and Doctor Effects on Drug Response in Neurotic Patients

Diazepam was compared to placebo and phenobarbital sodium in a double-blind study with 472 anxious psychoneurotic patients. Patients were treated in 3 settings — medical clinic, general practice, and private psychiatric practice. The treatment setting was found to be at least as important as the medication in producing a treatment response. Drug effects were pronounced. Compared to phenobarbital patients, diazepam patients more often completed the study, followed prescribed dosage, and reported fewer side reactions. Diazepam patients did not differ from placebo patients in dosage intake or side effects, only in higher completion rate. Population effects indicated clinic patients to drop out and deviate from dosage more than private patients. General practice patients reported the most and private psychiatric patients reported the least side effects. These differences are explained in terms of patient background and behavioral patterns and of a medical as opposed to a psychiatric orientation toward treatment.
Field tests on managing resistance to Bt-engineered plants.

Several important crops have been engineered to express toxins of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) for insect control. In 1999, US farmers planted nearly 8 million hectares (nearly 20 million acres) of transgenic Bt crops approved by the EPA. Bt-transgenic plants can greatly reduce the use of broader spectrum insecticides, but insect resistance may hinder this technology. Present resistance management strategies rely on a “refuge” composed of non-Bt plants to conserve susceptible alleles. We have used Bt-transgenic broccoli plants and the diamondback moth as a model system to examine resistance management strategies. The higher number of larvae on refuge plants in our field tests indicate that a “separate refuge” will be more effective at conserving susceptible larvae than a “mixed refuge” and would thereby reduce the number of homozygous resistant (RR) offspring. Our field tests also examined the strategy of spraying the refuge to prevent economic loss to the crop while maintaining susceptible alleles in the population. Results indicate that great care must be taken to ensure that refuges, particularly those sprayed with efficacious insecticides, produce adequate numbers of susceptible alleles. Each insect/Bt crop system may have unique management requirements because of the biology of the insect, but our studies validate the need for a refuge. As we learn more about how to refine our present resistance management strategies, it is important to also develop the next generation of technology and implementation strategies.
Divine Authority and Mass Violence: Economies of Aggression in the Emergence of Religions

From a social science perspective, a major purpose of religion is to organize the behavior of the community of believers in order to maximize its success as a collective. The underlying premise of this lecture is that religious authority will sanction violence and aggression when they are assessed to be an effective means of realizing the goals of the collective. Conversely, when violence and aggression become unhelpful or counter- productive for realizing community goals they are forbidden. This phenomenology of religion and violence is applied to the history of Judaism, Christianity and Islam to demonstrate that none of these religions is inherently more or less apt to engage in violence. Their use of belligerent and irenic behaviors are more profoundly influenced by historical context and social needs than by theology.
Secrets, codes and decoders

Cryptography, in its narrow meaning the art of secret communication, has always been the stuff of intrigue, of military campaigns and assassinations that succeed or fail depending on whether encrypted messages survive the scrutiny of eavesdroppers. Simon Singh's The Code Book, a popular history in the tradition of David Kahn's classic, The Codebreakers (Simon & Schuster, 1997), covers the subject from Julius Caesar through medieval Arab cryptanalysis, European military and diplomatic ciphers of the past few centuries, the Second World War's Enigma and Navajo Code-Talkers, to today's struggles over encryption on the Internet.
The Third and Fourth Moments of the Local Stellar Velocity Distribution

The velocity moments through the fourth order were calculated for a subset of 870 astrophysically selected stars from Gliese’s catalog. An essential part of this program was the determination of the covariances of estimates of the moments; both sampling and observational error contributions were taken into account in evaluating the total covariance matrix. In applications to the study of galactic structure, the Gliese stars are regarded as tracers of the galactic potential. The moments found are consistent with conventional assumptions about symmetries of the Galaxy. Certain galactic parameters, such as the curvature in the law of rotation and the asymmetric drift, were studied with the help of the values obtained for the moments.
Radiologic and clinical spectrum of occipital condyle fractures: retrospective review of 107 consecutive fractures in 95 patients.

OBJECTIVE. We proposed to characterize the radiologic spectrum of occipital condyle fractures in a large series of patients and to correlate fracture pathology with neurosurgical treatment and patient outcome.MATERIALS AND METHODS. We conducted a retrospective review of the findings on conventional radiography, CT, and MR imaging in 95 patients with 107 occipital condyle fractures. We described fracture patterns according to two previously published classification systems. Clinical findings, neurosurgical management, and patient outcome were obtained from the medical records.RESULTS. Inferomedial avulsions (Anderson and Montesano type III) were the most common type of occipital condyle fracture, constituting 80 (75%) of 107 overall fractures. Unilateral occipital condyle fractures were found in 73 (77%) of 95 patients, and 58 patients were treated nonoperatively; occipitocervical fusion was required in nine patients for complex C1-C2 injuries, and six patients died. Bilateral occipital condyle fractures o...
Higher-Order Modeling of Water Waves Generated by Submerged Moving Disturbances

In this paper, a recently derived (Zhou, 2008) fully nonlinear and higher-order dispersive Boussinesq-type model for wave generation and propagation is presented. This new model is an extension of the wave propagation model by Gobbi and Kirby (1999) and Gobbi et al. (2000) to include the time-varying seabed bathymetry. The resulting new version retains the 4th-order approximation of the dispersion relation and the velocity distribution in the vertical direction, and extends the application to both water wave propagation and wave generation by seabed disturbances such as submarine landslides. The model equations are solved numerically through a higher-order finite difference scheme. To examine the validity of the new model and the improvement due to the higher-order extensions, numerical simulations of two wave generation cases are carried out based on the new 4th order model and an existing lower order Boussinesq model. The results show that the higher order model provides the more accurate prediction for the generated waves, especially those in the trailing region of shorter wavelengths where the traditional lower order Boussinesq model becomes much less accurate.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Evaluation of the impact of body mass index on outcome among renal mass patients treated with hand-assisted laparoscopic radical nephrectomy.

Purpose: Although there are empiric data to show that obesity is not a contraindication for laparoscopic radical nephrectomy, similar data are lacking for the use of hand-assisted laparoscopic radical nephrectomy (HALRN) in obese patients. We evaluate whether obese patients undergoing HALRN to manage a renal mass are more likely than nonobese patients to experience poor intraoperative and perioperative outcomes. Patients and Methods: Between June 1, 1999, and May 31, 2006, 150 patients underwent HALRN for the management of a solid renal mass at our institution. We abstracted detailed demographic, clinical, and follow-up data on all patients in this cohort. As our primary analysis, we evaluated associations between body mass index (BMI) and estimated blood loss, operative time, length of stay, and complications using linear and logistic regression models. Results: There was no evidence that obese patients experienced a statistically significant or clinically relevant increase in blood loss (P = 0.97), oper...
Nuclear Charge Distribution in Fission: Rb 92 and Rb 93 Independent Yields

The fractional independent yields of ${\mathrm{Rb}}^{92}$ and ${\mathrm{Rb}}^{93}$ from thermal-neutron fission of ${\mathrm{U}}^{235}$ have been determined to be 0.62\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.16 and 0.59\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.08, respectively. These values agree with those predicted from Gaussian representations of nuclear charge dispersion for $A=92$ and $A=93$. Newly determined half-life values are 4.1\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3 sec for ${\mathrm{Rb}}^{92}$ and 5.1\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3 sec for ${\mathrm{Rb}}^{93}$. The experimental method involved rapid separation of rubidium and strontium fission products by adsorption of strontium on solid strontium carbonate and subsequent radiochemical determination of yttrium descendants.
The Contextual Effects of Community Social Capital on Academic Performance

Abstract Although previous research has underscored the importance of family social capital in serving educational purposes, few studies have examined the relationship between social capital accumulated in a local community and the academic performance of all students living in the community. The current study has applied an explicit multilevel model to study this relationship. Hierarchical linear model analyses of a nationally representative sample of 8th-grade students have demonstrated that most measures of community social capital are consistently associated with performance, even after controlling for measures of family social capital and demographic factors. Further, the socioeconomic characteristics of a community and the process component of community social capital explain a large portion of the associations between community structure and academic performance. In addition, the contextual effects of a high concentration of nontraditional and large families vary according to the level of process social capital. Finally, most of the contextual effects examined are approximately linear. In summary, this study has underscored the importance of community-based social capital in studying academic performance.
REINVIGORATING CORPORATE PROFITABILITY

There are many opportunities for corporations to reinvigorate their profitability through a refocusing of their strategies, reorganization of their managerial and supervisory structures, or divestiture. This article discusses how to assess the need for such restructurings and how to determine the best course of action for increasing future corporate profitability.
The Use of Heparinization to Prevent Arterial Thrombosis after Percutaneous Cardiac Catheterization In Children

Thrombosis at the site of arterial puncture is a common and serious complication of percutaneous cardiac catheterization in children. A double-blind study was therefore designed to test the efficacy of heparin administered during catheterization in reducing this complication. One hundred and sixty-one unselected children over one year of age were studied. Prior to catheterization, the pulse amplitudes were measured in both legs using a Pulse Volume Recorder (a standardized oscillometer). Immediately after arterial cannulation, heparin, 1 mg/kg, or a placebo was administered. On the morning following catheterization, the pulse amplitude in both legs was remeasured and a pulse volume index calculated using the uncatheterized leg as a control. Patients in whom the catheterized leg was cold, with poor capillary filling and absent arterial pulses four hours after the completion of catheterization, were started on intravenous infusion of heparin. If no improvement occurred within 48 hours, embolectomy was perfo...
Pulse oximetry screening for critical congenital heart disease in neonatal intensive care units

Pulse oximetry screening for critical congenital heart disease in neonatal intensive care units
Mechanism of the protective action of cysteine and penicillamine against acetaldehyde-induced mitochondrial injury.

Abstract The inhibition of several mitochondrial functions by acetaldehyde, a metabolite of ethanol oxidation, was previously shown to be almost completely relieved by cysteine. To study the mechanism of this protective effect, several derivatives of cysteine were also tested. Free sulfhydryl and amino groups appear to be required for maximal protection against the inhibition by acetaldehyde since no protective effect was found with N-acetylcysteine or S-methylcysteine. Cysteine interacts readily with acetaldehyde whereas N-acetylcysteine and S-methylcysteine do not. Penicillamine (β,β-dimethylcysteine) also relieved the inhibition by acetaldehyde, but prior incubation of penicillamine with acetaldehyde was required. Penicillamine was not as effective as cysteine, a finding which correlates with the weaker interaction of penicillamine with acetaldehyde. The greater stability of penicillamine compared to cysteine may be an advantage in studies of the effects of sulfhydryl amino acids on acute and chronic effects of ethanol and acetaldehyde.
Development of a Standard for Verification and Validation of Software Used to Calculate Nuclear System Thermal Fluids Behavior

With the resurgence of nuclear power and increased interest in advanced nuclear reactors as an option to supply abundant energy without the associated greenhouse gas emissions of the more conventional fossil fuel energy sources, there is a need to establish internationally recognized standards for the verification and validation (VV (a) applicable NRC and other regulatory requirements for defining the operational and accident domain of a nuclear system that must be considered if the system is to be licensed, (b) the corresponding calculation domain of the software that should encompass the nuclear operational and accident domain to be used to study the system behavior for licensing purposes, (c) the definition of the scaled experimental data set required to provide the basis for validating the software, (d) the ensemble of experimental data sets required to populate the validation matrix for the software in question, and (e) the practices and procedures to be used when applying a validation standard. Although this initial effort will focus on software for licensing of High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactors, it is anticipated that the practices and procedures developed for this Standard can eventually be extended to other nuclear and non-nuclear applications.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
AN ERROR ANALYSIS OF THE SPOKEN ENGLISH OF MEXICAN‐AMERICAN PUPILS IN A BILINGUAL SCHOOL AND A MONOLINGUAL SCHOOL1

Speech samples were obtained from Mexican-American children who attended a monolingual school (N = 67) and Mexican-American children who attended a bilingual school (N = 59) in the same school district. The children were asked to tell the story of a silent movie they had watched immediately before being interviewed. Their answers were recorded on tape and transcribed. Deviations from standard English were counted and categorized. The main findings of the study were (a) that the causes of deviations from standard English appeared to include the expected interference of Spanish as well as the improper application of standard English rules and the influence of nonstandard English dialects, and (b) that children in the bilingual school did not differ significantly from those in the monolingual school with respect to frequency of deviations from standard English.
Phase space theory for atom—atom collisions: Application to the reaction Na+ + K → Na + K+

Abstract Phase space theory expressions for the reaction cross section and rate constant of atomic reactants going to atomic products are derived. These results are applied to the reaction Na + + K•→K + + Na• (Δe = 0.8 eV), K + + K•→K• + K + (Δe = 0.0 eV) and the results compared with the recently published thermal energy data of Riggin and Bloom.
American Evangelicalism In The Post-Civil Rights Era: A Racial Formation Theory Analysis

This article attempts to demonstrate that Omi and Winant's racial formation theory can be useful to sociologists studying racial discourses and practices in religious communities by providing a racial formation theory analysis of two major phenomena in American Evangelicalism. The article first explores evangelical racial reconciliation theology, explaining its emergence in the late 1 960s, its transformation into a conservative racial project in the 1990s, and its recent popularity among white evangelicals. The article then explores the influx of Asian Americans into evangelical campus ministries, linking this phenomenon to popular racial images of Asian Americans and the racial ideologies of white evangelical leaders. The article concludes with a critique of the analysis of race in American evangelicalism that Emerson and Smith offer in their book Divided by Faith.
A model for two-electron mixed valence in metal-metal bonded dirhodium compounds.

We propose that two-electron mixed valency in bimetallic complexes possessing three bridging ligands results from a second-order Jahn–Teller instability of the redox-symmetric state.
Lipase-mediated resolutions of SPAC reaction products

Abstract γ-Hydroxy-α,β-unsaturated compounds ( 3 ) (SPAC creation products) are resolved via irreversible biocatalytic acylations; this process can be used in series with asymmetric SPAC reactions to improve optical purities.
CD4 downregulation by memory CD4+ T cells in vivo renders African green monkeys resistant to progressive SIVagm infection.

Natural hosts of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)—such as African green monkeys—have evolved to tolerate SIV infection without developing immune deficiency. Jason Brenchley and his colleagues provide a mechanism. They show that CD4+ T cells from these animals downregulate the CD4 receptor upon entering the memory pool. Immune functions normally attributed to CD4+ T cells are preserved, but the cells become resistant to SIV infection. African green monkeys (genus Chlorocebus) can be infected with species-specific simian immunodeficiency virus (SIVagm) but do not develop AIDS. These natural hosts of SIV, like sooty mangabeys, maintain high levels of SIV replication but have evolved to avoid immunodeficiency. Elucidating the mechanisms that allow natural hosts to coexist with SIV without overt disease may provide crucial information for understanding AIDS pathogenesis. Here we show that many CD4+ T cells from African green monkeys downregulate CD4 in vivo as they enter the memory pool; that downregulation of CD4 by memory T cells is independent of SIV infection; that the CD4− memory T cells maintain functions that are normally attributed to CD4+ T cells, including production of interleukin-2 (IL-2), production of IL-17, expression of forkhead box P3 and expression of CD40 ligand; that loss of CD4 expression protects these T cells from infection by SIVagm in vivo; and that these CD4− T cells can maintain major histocompatibility complex class II restriction. These data show that the absence of SIV-induced disease progression in natural host species may be partially explained by preservation of a subset of T cells that maintain CD4+ T cell function while being resistant to SIV infection in vivo.
Young Americans' Indifference to Media Coverage of Public Affairs

Although young Americans are normally less engaged in politics than their elders (Converse with Niemi 1971), today's youth are more withdrawn from public affairs than earlier birth cohorts were when they were young (Bennett 1997). One indicator of youthful disregard for politics is their avoidance of exposure to mass media coverage of public affairs (Pew Center 1996, 1997; Times Mirror Center 1990). Polls conducted during the 1990s indicate that adults under 30 are considerably less likely than those over 30 to read newspapers and to watch TV news-casts, and slightly less inclined to listen to the news on radio. The Pew Research Center's April 1996 poll, for example, found that 31% of persons under 30 claimed to have read a newspaper the day before they were interviewed (compared with 76% of individuals over 30), 45% of young people said they had watched a TV news show yesterday (as did 86% of persons over 30), and 37% of the young had listened to the news on radio yesterday (versus 56% of people over 30).The young are also less likely than older persons to have dispositions that motivate them to use the news media. The Pew Center's February 1997 poll shows, for example, that individuals under 30 are less likely than those over 30 to say they look forward to reading a daily newspaper (12% vs. 32%) and to report enjoying TV newscasts (14% vs. 30%).This is a study of young adults' disconnection from mass media coverage of public affairs.
William James: The First Peace Psychologist

William James, the first peace psychologist, would have felt at home in the Psychologists for Social Responsibility as well as the Division of Peace Psychology. He was a most distinguished scholar and also an insistent public voice on issues of war and peace. He was deeply opposed to imperialism and the “war fever” with which it was associated. It was the political issue on which he spent most thought and effort.
Workload in Human-Robot Interaction: A Review of Manipulations and Outcomes:

The current study reviews the relationship between manipulations of teleoperator workload and task outcomes, using multiple resource theory as the underlying framework. Results indicated that controlling more than two platforms is detrimental to many performance indices (reaction time, error rate), but overall productivity improves. For studies that manipulated workload for a single robot task, visual demands were a limiting factor, and interventions which reduced visual demands improved performance. The review concludes with guiding principles for managing workload and improving teleoperator performance.
American Diplomats in Russia: Case Studies in Orphan Diplomacy, 1916-1919

The Setting The Ambassador The Embassy Counselor The Consul General at Moscow The Next Consul General Our Man in Archangel Orphan Diplomats Notes Bibliography
Replenishment planning in discrete-time, capacitated, non-stationary, stochastic inventory systems

In this paper, we examine a single-product, discrete-time, non-stationary, inventory replenishment problem with both supply and demand uncertainty, capacity limits on replenishment quantities, and service level requirements. A scenario-based stochastic program for the static, finite-horizon problem is presented to determine replenishment orders over the horizon. We propose a heuristic that is based on the first two moments of the random variables and a normal approximation, whose solution is compared with the optimal from a simulation-based optimization method. Computational experiments show that the heuristic performs very well (within 0.25% of optimal, on average) even when the uncertainty is non-normal or when there are periods without any supply. We also present insights obtained from sensitivity analyses on the effects of supply parameters, shortage penalty costs, capacity limits, and demand variance. A rolling-horizon implementation is illustrated.
Evaluating computer games for language learning

The success of games in second language teaching and the success of computers as game machines have led to the increasing use of computer games in foreign language classes. For teachers and software developers interested in this application, two crucial questions arise for a given program: How do we determine whether students will consider it a game? How do we determine whether it helps students learn language? These questions are explored and some recommendations for answering them are provided.
An examination of regenerative organic Rankine cycles using dry fluids

Abstract This paper presents an analysis of regenerative organic Rankine cycles “ORC” using dry organic fluids, to convert waste energy to power from low-grade heat sources. The dry organic working fluids selected for this investigation are R113, R245ca, R123, and isobutane, with boiling points ranging from −12 °C to 48 °C. Regenerative ORC is analyzed and compared with the basic ORC in order to determine the configuration that presents the best thermal efficiency with minimum irreversibility. The evaluation for both configurations will be performed using a combined first and second law analysis by varying certain system operating parameters at various reference temperatures and pressures. Results from these analyses show that regenerative ORC produces higher efficiency compared with the basic ORC while also reducing the amount of waste heat required to produce the same power with a lower irreversibility.
Acinar Cell Carcinoma of the Pancreas: An Institutional Series of Resected Patients and Review of the Current Literature

Acinar cell carcinoma (ACC) is a rare, malignant neoplasm with a generally poor prognosis. We report our institutional series of 14 patients with ACC to determine current guidelines for their evaluation and treatment. The Johns Hopkins pathology prospective database was reviewed from 1988 to 2006 to identify patients with pancreatic neoplasms possessing features of acinar cell differentiation. Retrospective review and follow-up was performed for each patient. Fourteen patients with ACC were identified with a median age of 57 years. All patients presented with abdominal pain or discomfort with none showing evidence of lipase hypersecretion syndrome. Each patient underwent surgical resection, including nine pancreaticoduodenectomies and five distal pancreatectomies. Median tumor size was 3.9 cm with 12 patients found to have stage IIB disease or worse. Four patients underwent neoadjuvant chemoradiation. Eight of the fourteen patients developed recurrent disease. Overall median survival and disease-free survival were 33 and 25 months, respectively, as compared to a median survival of 18 months for pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Acinar cell carcinomas are rare, aggressive neoplasms that are difficult to diagnose and treat. Operative resection represents the best first-line treatment. These lesions have a better prognosis than the more common pancreatic adenocarcinomas.
Kupffer's vesicle in Fundulus heteroclitus: A scanning and transmission electron microscope study

Kupffer's vesicle, a transitory organ peculiar to teleost embryos, was investigated in embryos of Fundulus heteroclitus by scanning electron microscopy. The roof of the vesicle is constructed to rather large columnar cells which are in continuity wiht hypoblast cells. Each of the roof cells is adorned with a single long cilium which emerges from a depression in the center of the surface and extends into the cavity of the vesicle. Studies with a transmission electron microscope confirm and extent these observations. The surface of the roof of the vesicle variously exhibits the presence of droplets and viscous and/or filamentous material. The exposed surface, however, sometimes appears clean and somtimes appears to have undergon partial destruction. The periblast floor of the vesicle is characterized by the presence of numerous folds and/or microvillus projections into the cavity of the vesicle. A filamentous precipitate is sometimes present. These observations are discussed in terms of the possible functional significance of this unique evanescent organ of the teleost embryo.
The Response of Newborn Sheep to TRH with and without Somatostatin

Hormone responses to a bolus injection of thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH) were studied in 8 newborn lambs between 6 and 19 hours of age. The effect of a bolus injection and 45 min infusion of somatostatin (SRIF) on these responses was studied in 2 other animals. Serial measurements of serum TSH, prolactin, triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) were conducted) for 2 to 6 h in all animals. Mean baseline T4 and T3 concentrations were 12.6 μg/dl and 221 ng/dl, respectively, both significantly higher than values in fetal or adult animals. These high values were due to the events of parturition. In spite of the high baseline T4 and T3 levels, there were rapid and significant increases in both TSH and prolactin concentrations in response to TRH alone. The TSH response evoked further increments in serum T3 and T4 concentrations observed at 30 min and 60 min, respectively, both subsequently increasing progressively through 6 h. During the 45 min period of SRIF infusion, the TSH, T4 and T3 responses to the z...
Characterization of a commercially produced Al–Cu–Fe–Cr quasicrystalline coating

A commercially produced Al–Cu–Fe–Cr thermal spray cookware coating was characterized. Gas-atomized powders with a nominal composition of Al71Cu10Fe8.5Cr10.5 were apparently used to form the coatings. The coating is very uniform and contains a quasicrystalline icosahedral phase along with a second phase that is either a quasicrystalline decagonal phase or its nearly identical crystalline approximant. The phases show evidence of structural imperfection and appear to be in a highly transitional state, which is likely caused by the rapid cooling during thermal spraying. A large fraction of unmelted particles and microcracks were observed throughout the coating.
CAVU (A salute to those graduating from college)

During the last war the term CAVU was born. The first letter of each word in the phrase "Ceiling and Visibility Unlimited" is used, forming the combination CAVU. The first time one hears it, he finds nothing unusual in the word; but if memory is given its freedom, he recalls a multitude of happenings from the last war, with the anguish and heartbreaks accompanying these events; and then suddenly the significance of CAVU flashes across the sky of one's imagination. Out of the darkness, discouragement, and despair, there comes the promise of unlimited visibility and a ceiling without limitation. When one is in the thick of the storm, the flash which brings the word is most welcome. There is more than the dramatic in such an experience; there is a renewal of purpose and unexpressed gratitude for another chance. As the aviator assigns an important place to the term CAVU, so all of us who walk the earth in pursuit of the ordinary, not the spectacular, need also to recognize the significance of the term. Each year colleges and universities all over the world graduate thousands of young men and young women who are equipped with tools with which they are supposed to do at least three things: -first, cut out, construct, reconstruct, and thereby create a better world; second, earn the equivalent of a decent and adequate living; and, third, discover the secrets and repossess the knowns of life in such a manner as to find beauty, truth, and righteousness. This is a large assignment, and many there are who start out bravely and enthusiastically, but who fall by the wayside when the conditions of travel become extremely difficult and frequently almost intolerable. To these CAVU gives new hope and new life, for the knowledge that the present darkness will soon give way to light helps to strengthen stumbling and faltering feet. In developing visibility unlimited, I propose four points, all of them fitting properly into our phrase. First: "And", or life's dimension of height. The "ands" of life are the altimeters which measure the height to which we climb. It seems peculiar that we must forever remind ourselves that our progress is a composite of "ands". As the aviator climbs to amazing heights because of a series of "ands", so we rise in life, not alone but with and by the help of others.
Optical Interferometric Biosensor with PMMA as Functional Layer

Silica-on-silicon label-free biosensor with PMMA (Poly(methyl methacrylate), as the functional layer was designed, fabricated, and tested. The sensor is based on Fabry Perot (FP) interferometry. Specific binding was tested with Human IgG and anti-Human IgG. Non-specific binding was tested with Human IgG and Mouse IgG. The testing results show that the sensor has a nearly six-fold greater response upon specific binding than upon non specific binding. Thermal and long term stability experiments show that the sensor is insensitive to the environment fluctuation. The fabrication process is simple without special surface treatment. In addition, this biosensor is inexpensive and easy to use.
The case for over-the-counter statins.

t fi a y n May 2004, the British government announced that it was moving forward in developing a program to rovide over-the-counter (OTC) access to a small dose f the 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl coenzyme A reuctase inhibitor simvastatin.1 This major initiative ould be 1 of the first to move a prescription drug ntended for disease prevention than for symptom ontrol to OTC status and has met with arguments in avor and against such a conversion.2,3 The British aneuver has created a significant level of discussion bout whether OTC statins would be appropriate in he American population. If so, a number of questions ust be answered first: Who should qualify for such herapy? Would it be of benefit? Is it safe? Addressing hese questions may illuminate the place of small-dose TC statins in the United States. European and United States guidelines endorse ggressive modification of risk factors in patients at ighest risk for coronary heart disease (CHD), i.e., hose with previous CHD, other cardiovascular disase, or diabetes.4,5 Therefore, no argument can be ade for self-medication or management without a hysician’s supervision in this group. However, the uidelines of Adult Treatment Panel III of the Naional Cholesterol Education Program identified a roup of patients who require primary prevention and ualify for intervention because of their intermediate isk for near-term CHD, defined as those with multiple 2) risk factors and a 10-year CHD risk 20%, with goal of achieving a level of low-density lipoprotein LDL) cholesterol of 130 mg/dl (3.36 mmol/L). In hese patients, clinical decision making is more neblous. Although therapeutic lifestyle changes, includng diet, weight management, and physical activity, re critical recommendations for patients at intermeiate risk, undertreatment of coronary risk through herapeutic lifestyle changes alone is frequently enountered.5,6 As a complement to therapeutic lifestyle hanges in this intermediate-risk group, small-dose TC statins may be a viable approach to decrease risk ased on clinical trial data. Patients ideally suited for uch an OTC approach to statin therapy should be
First Records of the Night Smelt, Spirinchus starksi, in the Salish Sea, Washington

Ten species of smelts (Osmeridae), including 1 introduced species, have been found in the eastern North Pacific (Love and others 2005). Of these 10 species, 5 have been recorded from the inland marine waters of the Salish Sea, including Puget Sound and the Straits of Juan de Fuca and Georgia (Hart 1973): Whitebait Smelt (Allosmerus elongatus), Surf Smelt (Hypomesus pretiosus), Capelin (Mallotus villosus), Longfin Smelt (Spirinchus thaleichthys), and Eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus). Results from a study using molecular markers to distinguish smelt remains found in the stomach contents of fishes (Paquin and others 2014) indicated that a specimen collected from Discovery Bay, Washington, an embayment at the eastern terminus of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, was misidentified as S. thaleichthys in the online Barcode of Life Database (BOLD; Ratnasingham and Hebert 2007). Subsequent examination of the preserved specimen has confirmed its identity as Night Smelt (Spirinchus starksi) and constitutes a new record for this species in the Salish Sea. Since this discovery, additional specimens of S. starksi have been collected in the area for inclusion in this study. To confirm the identification of the Discovery Bay specimen, both morphological and nucleotide sequence data from S. starksi were compared with data from the closely related species S. thaleichthys. Whole specimens and tissue samples (frozen or preserved in ethanol) from 11 S. starksi and 5 S. thaleichthys were obtained from the Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC) and the University of Washington Fish Collection (UW). Specimens of S. starksi were collected from Discovery Bay, Washington (n 5 1), Green Point, Washington (n 5 5), and north of Monterey Bay off the California coast (n 5 5). Specimens of S. thaleichthys were collected from the Gulf of Alaska (n 5 1), San Juan Islands (n 5 1), and Puget Sound (n 5 3) (Table 1). DNA extractions were performed on fin clips using a QIAGEN DNeasy kit (QIAGEN, Valencia, CA) and the manufacturer’s animal tissue protocol. A 750 base-pair region of the mitochondrial genome, cytochrome c oxidase I (COI), was amplified using PCR with universal fish primer cocktail C_FishF1t1-C_FishR1t1 (Ivanova and others 2007). The COI gene region has been used as the barcode for biodiversity to distinguish among species, whether they are distantly related species such as mammals and insects, or closely related congenerics (Ward and others 2005, 2009; Holloway 2006; Ward and others 2009). Nucleotide sequence data were collected for 16 samples (including the misidentified specimen of S. starksi from Discovery Bay) in both forward and reverse directions with Big Dye chemistry using EXOSAP purified PCR products. Sequences were read using an ABI 3730 automated sequencer
Echocardiography in cystic fibrosis: A proposed scoring system.

An echocardiographic scoring system was developed on the basis of an observed sequence of echo abnormalities, beginning with RV hypertrophy, through RV dilatation, to abnormal RV systolic time intervals, noted to be associated with the progressive pulmonary disease of cystic fibrosis. This score correlated significantly with both the Shwachman-Kulczycki (r=0.87, P P P
An accurate radiative heating and cooling algorithm for use in a dynamical model of the middle atmosphere

The circulation of the middle atmosphere of the earth (15-90 km) is driven by the unequal distribution of net radiative heating. Calculations have shown that local radiative heating is nearly balanced by radiative cooling throughout parts of the stratosphere and mesosphere. The 15 micrometer band of CO2 is the dominant component of the infrared cooling. The present investigation is concerned with an algorithm regarding the involved cooling process. The algorithm was designed for the semispectral primitive equation model of the stratosphere and mesosphere described by Holton and Wehrbein (1980). The model consists of 16 layers, each nominally 5 km thick, between the base of the stratosphere at 100 mb (approximately 16 km) and the base of the thermosphere (approximately 96 km). The considered algorithm provides a convenient means of incorporating cooling due to CO2 into dynamical models of the middle atmosphere.
Crumpling a Thin Sheet

Crumpled sheets have a surprisingly large resistance to further compression. We have studied the crumpling of thin sheets of Mylar under different loading conditions. When placed under a fixed compressive force, the size of a crumpled material decreases logarithmically in time for periods up to three weeks. We also find hysteretic behavior when measuring the compression as a function of applied force. By using a pretreating protocol, we control this hysteresis and find reproducible scaling behavior for the size of the crumpled material as a function of the applied force.
Role of Conformation in the Electronic Properties of Chemisorbed Pyridine on Cu(110): An STM/STS Study

Pyridine was chemisorbed on Cu(110) at 10 K and observed using STM at 5 K as dosed and after annealing to temperatures between 20 and 300 K. At very low coverage, two molecular species with different apparent heights are observed to coexist. The higher species is assigned to a pyridine molecule bonded with its symmetry axis perpendicular to the surface plane, while the lower species is assigned to a pyridine molecule that is tilted down toward the surface plane. At low coverage, the tilted pyridine species predominates on the surface, but as the total surface coverage of pyridine increases, the molecules stand up until the upright geometry becomes favored. Measurements of the STS of the two species show different molecular resonances derived from the lowest unoccupied pyridine π* orbitals. The tilted pyridine species has a peak in the unoccupied local density of states at 2.6 ± 0.1 eV, whereas the upright pyridine species has a peak at 2.3 ± 0.1 eV.
Compositional Performance Verification of Network-on-Chip Designs

This paper presents a compositional approach to formally verify quality-of-service properties of network-on-chip designs. A major challenge to scalability is the need to verify worst-case latency bounds for hundreds to thousands of cycles, which are beyond the capacity of state-of-the-art model checkers. The scalability challenge is addressed using a compositional model checking approach. The overall latency bound problem is divided into a number of smaller sub-problems, termed latency lemmas. The sub-problems imply the overall latency bound, but are easier to prove on account of being inductive. A method is presented for computing these lemmas based on the topology of the network and a subset of relevant state, and the latency lemmas are verified using k-induction. The effectiveness of this compositional technique is demonstrated on illustrative examples and an industrial ring interconnection network. In the ring network, a latency bound that cannot be verified in 10 000 s without lemmas is proved inductively in just 75 s when the lemmas are used. © 1982-2012 IEEE.