cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Plastic energy dissipation during compressive deformation of individual polymer pellets and polymer particulate assemblies

Plastic energy dissipation (PED) of individual polymer pellets as well as of densified polymer particulate assemblies may be the dominant heating/melting mechanisms in intermeshing corotating twin-screw extruders (Co-TSEs). In the present paper, the amount of PED is evaluated by conducting the uniaxial unconfined compression experiments on both molded cylindrical polymer samples and polymer particulate assemblies. The compression experiments were extended to a much higher deformation (strain) range. The results of this work clearly demonstrate the significant contribution to melting from even a single deformation of individual pellets. One severe deformation of PP pellets can provide almost one sixth of the energy required for their melting. For PS pellets, one severe deformation alone can provide sufficient energy to heat up the pellets to above their glass-transition temperature. On the other hand, the mechanical energy input during the compressive deformation of particulate assemblies is much lower than that of solid polymer samples, depending, to a great extent, on the degree of the particulate densification/void ratio of the particulate system. There are two types of PED in the melting section of Co-TSEs, localized PED of individual pellets in the partially filled kneading section and global PED of consolidated particulate assemblies in the fully filled section. The mandatory deformation of solid particulates, caused by the interaction of kneading paddle pairs, and the associated PED for both individual pellets and consolidated particulate assemblies, provides very efficient heating/melting of polymer feedstock in Co-TSEs. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Adv Polym Techn 21: 287–298, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/adv.10033
Discernment of non-Newtonian behavior in liquids by acoustic means

An experiment was conducted with the use of a „sonic viscometer” to demonstrate that a change in the constitutive nature of a fluid will alter the overtones that occur from the nonlinearity of the propagation of a sine wave through the fluid. Pure sine waves ranging octave-wise from 500 to 8000Hz were introduced into distilled water, and FFT analyses of the signals received were compared with those resulting from transmission of the same set of sine waves through a 1% solution of polyethylene oxide in distilled water. Differences in the FFT spectra which occur as the result of introducing the polymeric solute indicate that the device could prove viable in indicating small changes in viscous properties.
Magnetic annealing of ni–fe films that possess a stable structure. II. The relation between anistropy and dispersion

The uniaxial anistrophy and magnetization dispersion have been measured during isothermal magnetic annealing of a large number of Ni–Fe thin films. The temperatures used varied from 350 to 414 °C, and the compositions studied ranged from 50 to 86% Ni. In order to produce a stable metallurgical structure, the films were recrystallized prior to the magnetic annealing. It was observed that both the anisotropy and dispersion were reversible. The dispersion proved to be proportional to the inverse square of the anisotropy field. Die einachsige Anisotropie und die Magnetisierungsstreuung wurden wahrend isothermer Temperungen im Magnetfeld an einer grosen Anzahl von Ni–Fe-Aufdampfschichten gemessen. Die Temperaturen lagen zwischen 350 und 414 °C, und die Zusammensetzungen der untersuchten Proben ersteckten sich von 50 bis 86% Ni. Vor den magnetischen Temperungen wurden die Proben gegluht, so das sich eine Gleichgewichtsstruktur bilden konnte. Die Anderungen der Anisotropie und Streuung stellten sich als umkehrbare Vorgange heraus. Es wurde festgestellt, das die Streuung umgekehrt proportional zum Quadrat des Anisotropiefeldes ist.
Modelling temperature effects on growth–respiration relations of maize

The temperature dependence of plant growth rate is related to the temperature dependence of respiratory metabolism. To determine how the effects of temperature on respiration rate and efficiency are transmitted to growth, this study measured the dark metabolic heat rate (q) and CO 2 production rate (R CO2 ) in excised shoots of seedlings of 14 maize cultivars (Zea mays L.) at several temperatures. The temperature coefficients of q and R CO2 differ within a given cultivar and also differ among the cultivars. Both q and R CO2 exhibit an isokinetic temperature of 20 ± 3 °C. The measured temperature dependences of q and R CO2 were used to model the temperature dependences of both growth and substrate carbon conversion efficiency. This procedure may be useful in determining the suitability of cultivars for growth in a given climate and in understanding metabolic adaptation to climate.
Not all interactive engagement is the same: Variations in physics professors' implementation of Peer Instruction

While educational reforms in introductory physics are becoming more widespread, how these reforms are implemented is less well understood. This paper examines the variation in faculty practices surrounding the implementation of educational reform in introductory physics courses. Through observations of classroom practice, we find that professors' actual practices differ strikingly. We present a framework for describing and capturing instructional choices and resulting variations in enacted practices for faculty who are implementing Peer Instruction. Based on our observations, there are a variety of scientific practices that are supported and modeled in the use of Peer Instruction. In all of the classrooms studied, students were found trying out and applying new physical concepts and discussing physics with their peers. However, there were large discrepancies in students' opportunities to engage in formulating and asking questions, evaluating the correctness and completeness of problem solutions, interacting with physicists, identifying themselves as sources of solutions, explanations, or answers, and communicating scientific ideas in a public arena. Case studies of six professors demonstrate how these variations in classroom practices, in aggregate, create different classroom norms, such as the relative emphasis on student sense-making vs answer-making during Peer Instruction.
DC-field-assisted grating formation and nonlinear diffractions in methyl-red dye-doped blue phase liquid crystals

We report the observation of enhanced nonlinear optical responses of methyl-red-doped blue-phase liquid crystals by application of a DC field. We have observed strong multi-order nonlinear grating diffractions characterized by a nonlinear index coefficient n2∼0.5 cm2/W using unfocused CW laser power of ∼1 mW and a DC field of a few V/μm. The underlying mechanisms are crystalline lattice and director axis reorientations by torques exerted by the DC field and photo-excited dye molecules.
INFLUENCE OF HOST FACTORS ON NEUROINVASIVENESS OF VESICULAR STOMATITIS VIRUS : II. EFFECT OF AGE ON THE INVASION OF THE PERIPHERAL AND CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEMS BY VIRUS INJECTED INTO THE LEG MUSCLES OR THE EYE.

1. Injection of vesicular stomatitis virus into the leg muscles of young mice gives rise to flaccid paralysis of the inoculated extremity as the first clinical sign of a disease which is invariably fatal; old mice similarly injected with the largest doses of virus survive without exhibiting any signs of illness. 2. In young mice the virus was shown to multiply at the site of inoculation and to invade the sciatic nerve and spinal cord; there was no evidence of multiplication of virus in the blood or viscera. 3. In old mice, after intramuscular injection of as much as 10 million M.C.L.D., there was no evidence of either local or systemic multiplication; in spite of the persistence of thousands of M.C.L.D. of virus at the site of inoculation for at least 4 days, there was no detectable invasion of the sciatic nerve or the central nervous system. 4. Injection of the virus directly into the sciatic nerve of old mice led to the typical paralytic disease in half the number of animals. 5. For 3 days after intrasciatic injection the virus could be demonstrated in the nerve but not in the spinal cord or brain. At the onset of paralysis (6th day) virus was detectable in the spinal cord but no longer in the inoculated nerve. 6. The capacity of the virus to invade the central nervous system from the nerve but not from the muscle suggested the existence of a barrier in the muscle or myoneural junction. 7. Injection of the virus into the vitreous humor of the eye is followed by a fatal encephalitis in 15 day old mice, but 1 year old mice, with few exceptions, survive without showing signs of disease. 8. The spread of virus in the brains of intraocularly injected, 15 day old mice was too rapid to indicate the pathways which were pursued, but in 21 day old mice there was evidence that the primary pathway was probably along the axons of the optic nerve with decussation to the contralateral diencephalon and mesencephalon, and subsequent early spread to the corresponding occipital cortex. In resistant, old mice, however, no virus was found in any part of the brain.
Prevention of artifactual protein oxidation generated during sodium dodecyl sulfate‐gel electrophoresis

Prevention of artifactual protein oxidation occurring during sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) acrylamide gel electrophoresis is critical for identifying physiological protein oxidation implicated in human diseases due to the routine use of gel electrophoresis to separate the multiple proteins in proteomic studies. To develop a methodology that completely prevents artifactual protein oxidation in SDS acrylamide gel electrophoresis, cytochrome c was electrophoresed on polyacrylamide gels and subjected to trypsin in-gel digestion followed by tryptic peptide analysis by mass spectrometry. It was found that degassing the acrylamide solution to remove molecular oxygen prior to gel polymerization is a crucial process to protect the electrophoresed protein from reactive oxygen species generated during electrophoresis. However, significant artifactual protein oxidation remains that can only be eliminated entirely, if proteins are electrophoresed on an SDS gel photopolymerized with flavin as the photoinitiator and thioglycolate included in the cathode buffer as a reactive oxygen species scavenger. Using this combination of methodologies, cytochrome c isolated from adult rat heart mitochondria was purified and digested followed by mass spectrometric analysis, demonstrating the requisite high resolution of the polyacrylamide gel and the entire elimination of artifactual oxidation.
Triangular finite elements for Poisson's equation with nodal derivatives

Abstract Explicit values are given for the element stiffness matrices of two triangular finite elements for Poisson's equation in the plane. One with four nodal points including derivatives as nodal values at the vertices and another without a central point. These provide O ( h 6 ) and O ( h 4 ) accuracy in the energy, respectively.
Understanding storm‐time ring current development through data‐model comparisons of a moderate storm

[1] With three components, global magnetosphere (GM), inner magnetosphere (IM), and ionospheric electrodynamics (IE), in the Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF), the moderate storm on 19 May 2002 is globally simulated over a 24-hour period that includes the sudden storm commencement (SSC), initial phase, and main phase of the storm. Simulation results are validated by comparison with in situ observations from Geotail, GOES 8, GOES 10, Polar, LANL MPA, and the Sym-H and Dst indices. It is shown that the SWMF is reaching a sophistication level for allowing quantitative comparison with the observations. Major storm characteristics at the SSC, in the initial phase, and in the main phase are successfully reproduced. The simulated plasma parameters exhibit obvious dawn-dusk asymmetries or symmetries in the ring current region: higher density near the dawn and higher temperature in the afternoon and premidnight sectors; the pressure is highest on the nightside and exhibits a near dawn-dusk symmetry. In addition, it is found in this global modeling that the upstream solar wind/ IMF conditions control the storm activity and an important plasma source of the ring current is in the solar wind. However, the ionospheric outflow can also affect the ring current development, especially in the main phase. Activity in the high-latitude ionosphere is also produced reasonably well. However, the modeled cross polar cap potential drop (CPCP) in the Southern Hemisphere is almost always significantly larger than that in the Northern Hemisphere during the May storm.
Combining the von Langenbeck and the Wardill-Kilner operations in certain clefts of the palate.

Abstract The rationale for combining two standard cleft palate procedures is set forth. The circumstances in which this combination is recommended are outlined and diagrammed. By joining the positive qualities of two established and popular methods, it is possible in certain cases to facilitate palate closure while reducing common minor complications by incorporating the good qualities of each procedure and reducing the negative.
Brainstem encephalitis: an unusual presentation of herpes simplex virus infection

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) encephalitis has a predilection for the temporal and frontal lobes but occasionally affects the brainstem. We describe a patient who developed HSV brainstem encephalitis that progressed to quadriplegia. Using MEDLINE, we conducted a comprehensive review of other published cases of HSV brainstem encephalitis. Twenty-four published cases of HSV brainstem encephalitis met our inclusion criteria. The mean age was 41.4 years (range 18-71). HSV-1 was the etiologic agent in 79% of reported HSV brainstem encephalitis cases, and HSV-2 accounted for 21% of cases. Infection was limited to the brainstem in 29% of cases and multi-focal, including the brainstem, in 71%. Common manifestations of HSV brainstem encephalitis included neuro-ophthalmologic findings (81%), cranial nerve deficits (69%), and fever (69%). Quadriplegia, as occurred in our patient, was an unusual finding (19%). The mortality rate of HSV brainstem encephalitis was 41%. Intravenous acyclovir showed a beneficial effect on mortality (75% vs. 22%, p = 0.06). HSV brainstem encephalitis is a distinct type of HSV encephalitis. With the increasing use of HSV-PCR, more cases of HSV brainstem encephalitis may be identified. A greater recognition of this syndrome will help better define its optimal treatment and prognosis.
Ecosystem Recovery Following Selenium Contamination in a Freshwater Reservoir

Belews Lake, North Carolina, was contaminated by selenium in wastewater released from a coal-fired electric generating facility during 1974-1985. Selenium bioaccumulated in aquatic food chains and caused severe reproductive failure and teratogenic deformities in fish. Beginning in 1986, the electric utility company changed its ash disposal practices and selenium-laden wastewater no longer entered the lake. A survey of selenium present in the water, sediments, benthic invertebrates, fish, and aquatic birds was conducted in 1996. Concentrations were compared to pre-1986 levels to determine how much change occurred during the decade since selenium inputs stopped. The data were also examined using a hazard assessment protocol to determine if ecosystem-level hazards to fish and aquatic birds had changed as well. Results reveal that waterborne selenium fell from a peak of 20 micrograms/liter before 1986, to < 1 microgram/liter in 1996; concentrations in biota were 85-95% lower in 1996. Hazard ratings indicate that high hazard existed prior to 1986 and that moderate hazard is still present, primarily due to selenium in the sediment-detrital food pathway. Concentrations of selenium in sediments have fallen by about 65-75%, but remain sufficiently elevated (1-4 micrograms/g) to contaminate benthic food organisms of fish and aquatic birds. Field evidence confirmed the validity of the hazard ratings. Developmental abnormalities in young fish indicate that selenium-induced teratogenesis and reproductive impairment are occurring. Moreover, the concentrations of selenium in benthic food organisms are sufficient to cause mortality in young bluegill and other centrarchids because of Winter Stress Syndrome. At the ecosystem level, recovery has been slow. Toxic effects are still evident 10 years after selenium inputs were stopped. The sediment-associated selenium will likely continue to be a significant hazard to fish and aquatic birds for years.
What influences career choices among graduates of a primary care training program

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors that influence primary care residents to become generalists or specialists.
Sex Differences in Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics

Significant differences that exist between the sexes affect the prevalence, incidence and severity of a broad range of diseases and conditions. Men and women also differ in their response to drug treatment. It is therefore essential to understand these reactions in order to appropriately conduct risk assessment and to design safe and effective treatments. Even from that modest perspective, how and when we use drugs can result in unwanted and unexpected outcomes. This review summarizes the sex-based differences that impact on pharmacokinetics, and includes a general comparison of clinical pharmacology as it applies to men, women and pregnant women. Sex-related or pregnancy-induced changes in drug absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination, when significant, may guide changes in dosage regimen or therapeutic monitoring to increase its effectiveness or reduce potential toxicity. Given those parameters, and our knowledge of sex differences, we can derive essentially all factors necessary for therapeutic optimization. Since this is a rapidly evolving area, it is essential for the practitioner to review drug prescribing information and recent literature in order to fully understand the impact of these differences on clinical therapeutics.
Knight Shift in Lead Telluride via Relativistic Augmented-Plane-Wave Functions

The augmented-plane-wave method, including relativistic corrections, is used to calculate the Knight shift for ${\mathrm{Pb}}^{207}$ in $p$-type PbTe. The $s$ character is determined to be 0.59, and the hyperfine parameter to be 1.2 ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$. The spin paramagnetic susceptibility, including allowance for $g$-factor anisotropy, is found to be 5.8\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}8}$-cgs units at 300\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K, for a hole concentration of 1.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{18}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$. Under these conditions, the measured Knight shift is 2.34\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$. The calculated Knight shift is 2.0\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$.
The Child and Adolescent Mental Health Studies (CAMS) Minor at New York University.

Objective The authors describe the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Studies (CAMS) undergraduate college minor at New York University.
Modeling of combustion and ignition of solid-propellant ingredients

Abstract Techniques for modeling energetic-material combustion and ignition have evolved tremendously in the last two decades and have been successfully applied to various solid-propellant ingredients. There has been a paradigm shift in the predictive capability of solid-propellant combustion models as the field has advanced from a simple and global-kinetics approach to a detailed approach that employs elementary reaction mechanisms in the gas phase, and accommodates thermal decomposition and subsequent reactions in the condensed phase. The detailed models not only allow calculation of propellant burning-rate characteristics, such as pressure and temperature sensitivities, but also of the surface conditions and entire combustion-wave structure, including the spatial variations in temperature and species concentrations. This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent advances in the modeling and simulation of various solid-propellant ingredients over a wide range of ambient conditions. The specific materials of concern include nitramines (RDX, HMX), azides (GAP), nitrate esters (NG, BTTN, TMETN), ADN, and AP monopropellants, as well as homogeneous mixtures representing binary (RDX/GAP, HMX/GAP, and AP/HTPB) and ternary (RDX/GAP/BTTN) pseudo-propellants. Emphasis is placed on the steady-state combustion and laser-induced ignition of nitramines. The capabilities and deficiencies of existing approaches are addressed. In general, the detailed gas-phase reaction mechanisms developed so far represent the chemistry of monopropellants and associated mixtures consistently well, and help understand the intricate processes of solid-propellant combustion. The reaction mechanisms in the condensed phase, however, still pose an important challenge. Furthermore, the current knowledge of the initial decomposition of molecules emerging from the propellant surface is insufficient to render the models fully predictive. Modeling is thus not yet a predictive tool, but it is a useful guide. In the near future, it is likely that detailed combustion models can assist in the formulation of advanced solid propellants meeting various performance and emission requirements.
Gendered Power, Spirituality, and Relational Processes: Experiences of Christian Physician Couples

The authors examine how gendered power and spirituality interact in the relational processes of heterosexual Christian physician couples. Using a relational feminist theoretical perspective and the documented link between gender equality and relational and individual well-being, they aimed to investigate Christian physician couples’ marital and spiritual experiences. Physicians’ increasing openness to spiritual issues, growing numbers of women entering medicine, and work pressures on medical marriages make studying this population particularly relevant. This constructivist grounded theory analysis drew on interviews with 22 married couples in whom at least one spouse was a physician to investigate how physician couples experienced God and their spouse. Findings suggest that Christian spirituality and relational processes seem inseparable from couples’ gendered power dynamics and connect across three themes: emotional tone, relational pattern, and dialogic direction. Implications for addressing social disc...
Interstitial thermoradiotherapy: thermal dosimetry and clinical results☆

Abstract From August 1977 to August 1986, 72 patients with advanced primary or recurrent cancers were treated using interstitial thermoradiotherapy. Sites treated included the pelvis in 49 patients, the head and neck in 15, and other sites in six. Median tumor volume was 52 cm 3 , and all but nine patients had received prior irradiation. In 69 patients, hollow stainless steel catheters were implanted and used as electrodes with a 0.5 MHz radiofrequency (RF) generator, whereas in three patients, standard plastic Henschke tubes were used with a commercially available interstitial microwave (MW) system operating at 915 MHz. Most patients were heated intraoperatively for 30 minutes, aiming for a minimum measured intratumoral temperature (T min ) of 42°C. The implant was occasionally preceded by external irradiation, and after hyperthermia, the catheters were afterloaded with 192 Ir for brachytherapy T min exceeded 42°, 42.5°, 43°, and 44° in 25, 16, 12, and 3, respectively, of 70 patients with temperature data available, and the probability of successful heating was independent of tumor volume or site. Twenty-five of 69 (36%) evaluable patients achieved a complete response (CR). Probability of CR demonstrated a significant univariate dependence upon T min radiation dose, site treated, and tumor volume, but multivariate analysis showed only three significant predictor variables: tumor volume, radiation dose, and T min , The probability of a CR ranged from 95% for patients with small tumors receiving high doses of radiation and adequate heat, to 5% for patients with large tumors receiving low radiation doses and less than adequate heat. Of 25 patients with CR, 10 relapsed; median response duration was min , radiation dose, and tumor volume. Seventeen patients sustained a complication, of which nine were severe enough to require hospitalization or surgery. All severe complications occurred in patients with pelvic tumors. The probability of a complication of any severity had a significant univariate association with maximum intratumoral temperature (T max ) and tumor size. We conclude that interstitial thermoradiotherapy offers the promise of heating large tumors in locations where externally applied hyperthermia has not been successful.
Stability criteria for certain third-order delay differential equations

In this paper, we study the asymptotic stability of the zero solution of third-order linear delay differential equations of the form y'''(t) = p1y''(t) + p2y''(t-τ) + q1y'(t) + q2y'(t-τ) + v1y(t) + v2y(t-τ), where p1, p1, q1, q2, v1 and v2 are certain constants. Here τ > 0 is a constant delay. In proving our results we make use of Pontryagin's theory for quasi-polynomials.
Temporal Changes in Proton MRS Metabolites After Kainic Acid-Induced Seizures in Rat Brain

Summary: Purpose: In situ 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) was used to study temporal metabolic changes in a rat model of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) by using kainic acid (KA). Methods: Rat brains were scanned at the level of the hippocampal body for MRS measurements. Relative ratios of N- acetyl groups (NA: N-acetylaspartate and N-acetylaspartyl glutamate), choline, and lactate (Lac) over creatine (Cr) were calculated. Results: NA/Cr ratios increased significantly during the ictal phase. During the postictal and interictal phases, the NA/Cr ratio decreased. There was a significant and prolonged increase of the lactate/Cr ratio in the hippocampi of rats that started 1 h after the onset of KA-induced seizure activity and persisted up to 24 h after the injection. The prolonged lactate/Cr increase in an area susceptible to neuronal damage (e.g., hippocampus) correlated with the onset of seizure activity but remained elevated thereafter. Conclusions: The ictal and early postictal increase in lactate ratios may reflect increased cellular activity and metabolism resulting from KA excitotoxicity. Assuming that the changes in NA/Cr ratios are due to NAA increase, we speculate that an activation of the N-acetylaspartylglutamate (NAAG) dipeptidase pathway may explain the ictal increase in NA/Cr ratios. The late postictal decrease in NNCr ratios is a reflection of KA-induced neuronal cell loss.
“Mainstreaming” Women Peacebuilders

During the past decade, the United Nations, particularly within United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, has emphasized women's participation in peace negotiations and peacebuilding initiat...
A ranked-set sample signed-rank statistic

A procedure analogous to the Wilcoxon signed-rank test is developed for settings in which ranked-set samples are used in place of simple random samples. The ranked-set sample statistic is shown to be distribution-free and to have a symmetric null distribution. The statistic is a linear combination of U-statistics, so U-statistics results can be used to obtain the asymptotic distribution. Asymptotic relative efficiencies of the test relative to its simple random sample counterpart and to the ranked-set sample sign test are derived. Results are derived for both perfect and imperfect judgment rankings
Fibrin glue for intraperitoneal laparoscopic mesh fixation: a comparative study in a swine model

The classic method of mesh fixation in laparoscopic ventral hernia repair is transfascial sutures with tacks. This method has been associated with low recurrence rates, but yields significant morbidity from pain and bleeding. Fibrin glue has been used successfully in inguinal hernia repair with decreased incidence of chronic pain without an increase in recurrence rates, but its utility for laparoscopic ventral hernia repair is unknown. Our aim is to evaluate the efficacy of fibrin glue for laparoscopic mesh fixation to the anterior abdominal wall compared with other fixation methods. Four different laparoscopic mesh fixation methods were randomly assigned to midline positions along the abdominal wall of 12 female pigs and compared: (1) fibrin glue only (GO), (2) transfascial sutures with tacks (ST), (3) fibrin glue with tacks (GT), and (4) tacks only (TO). At 4 weeks post implantation, tensile strength, adhesions, migration, contraction, and buckling/folding were assessed using Kruskal–Wallis one-way analysis by ranks test. There were no significant differences in tensile strength, adhesions or buckling/folding among the four fixation methods. A significant increase in mean migration (3.3 vs. 0.0 mm, p = 0.03) and percentage contraction (28% vs. 14%, p = 0.02) were identified in the GO group when compared with ST (see Table 3). Mesh fixation using fibrin glue has comparable tensile strength and adhesion rate to sutures with tacks in the swine model. Increased contraction and migration rates associated with fibrin glue alone may be an issue and warrants further study. On the other hand, the GT group showed similar biomechanical characteristics to the other groups and may represent a reasonable alternative to the use of transfascial sutures.
Genetic characterization of ruminant pestiviruses: sequence analysis of viral genotypes isolated from sheep.

Abstract Historically, the genus pestivirus was believed to contain three species of viruses; bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), border disease virus (BDV) and classical swine fever virus (CSFV). However, based on limited sequence analysis of a small number of pestiviral isolates from domestic livestock, evidence has recently emerged indicating that at least four distinct genotypes exist. In an attempt to gain a better understanding of the degree of viral variation among ruminant pestiviruses, the entire structural gene coding region of an ovine pestivirus, BD31, genome encompassing 3358 nucleotides was cloned and sequenced. Sequence analysis revealed that BD31 shares less than 71% nucleotide similarity with other pestiviruses, suggesting that BD31 is distinct from BVDV, CSFV as well as other ovine and bovine pestiviruses currently referred to as BVDV type II. Based on this data, BD31 is the first North American pestivirus isolate that falls under the category ‘true BDV’. Results from the analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the E0-E1 coding region of six additional ruminant pestiviruses identified the existence of three distinct virus genotypes in North America. Thus, among ruminent pestiviruses, bovine isolates can be grouped into two genotypes, namely types 1 and 4, whereas ovine isolates fall into genotypes 1, 3 and 4.
Reprocessing and reuse of waste tire rubber to solve air-quality related problems

There is a potential for using waste tire rubber to make activated-carbon adsorbents for air-quality control applications. Such an approach provides a recycling path for waste tires and the production of new adsorbents from a low-cost waste material. Tire-derived activated carbons (TDACs) were prepared from waste tires. The resulting products are generally mesoporous, with N2−BET specific surface areas ranging from 239 to 1031 m2/g. TDACs were tested for their ability to store natural gas and remove organic compounds and mercury species from gas streams. TDACs are able to achieve 36% of the recommended adsorbed natural gas (methane) storage capacity for natural-gas-fueled vehicles. Equilibrium adsorption capacities for CH4 achieved by TDACs are comparable to Calgon BPL, a commercially available activated-carbon adsorbent. The acetone adsorption capacity for a TDAC is 67% of the adsorption capacity achieved by BPL at 1 vol % acetone. Adsorption capacities of mercury in simulated flue-gas streams are, in ge...
Targeting the non-structural proteins of hepatitis C virus: beyond hepatitis C virus protease and polymerase

Background: Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a main cause of cirrhosis of the liver and hepatocellular carcinoma. The standard of care is a combination of pegylated interferon with ribavirin, a regimen that has undesirable side effects and is frequently ineffective. Compounds targeting HCV protease and polymerase are in late-stage clinical trials and have been extensively reviewed elsewhere. Objective: To review and evaluate the progress towards finding novel HCV antivirals targeting HCV proteins beyond the already precedented NS3 protease and NS5B polymerase. Methods: Searches of CAplus and Medline databases were combined with information from key conferences. This review focuses on NS2/3 serine protease, NS3 helicase activity and the non-structural proteins 4A, 4B and 5A. Conclusions: Use of the replicon model of HCV replication and biochemical assays of specific targets has allowed screening of vast libraries of compounds, but resulted in clinical candidates from only NS4A and NS5A. The fie...
Can paramedics safely treat and discharge hypoglycemic patients in the field

To determine whether paramedics can safely treat and discharge insulin-dependent diabetic patients experiencing uncomplicated hypoglycemic events, we conducted a prospective, observational study with a convenience sample of diabetic patients whose hypoglycemia resolved after intravenous administration of dextrose and before they were transported by paramedics. On-line medical control was contacted to obtain approval and informed consent for participation from interested patients who met all eligibility criteria for the study. Participating patients were given instructions upon discharge from the study and were contacted by telephone 24 hours later to ascertain their medical outcomes and their opinions of the study protocol. We enrolled a total of 36 patients with 38 incidents of hypoglycemia. Of these, 91% reported no complications after discharge. Two patients developed recurrent hypoglycemia but treated themselves and did not require further emergency care. One further patient was found unresponsive on the morning following discharge and was subsequently admitted to a long-term care facility with hypoglycemic encephalopathy. Of the study participants, 85% were very satisfied with not being transported to an emergency department (ED) and 91% were very satisfied with the care they had received. All (100%) of the patients surveyed favored a permanent protocol allowing discharge of hypoglycemic patients without admission to an ED. We conclude that paramedics successfully treated, without complication, most of the patients with uncomplicated hypoglycemic events who were examined in our study. These patients generally preferred discharge without transportation to an ED.
High-Rate Solar Photocatalytic Conversion of CO2 and Water Vapor to Hydrocarbon Fuels

Efficient solar conversion of carbon dioxide and water vapor to methane and other hydrocarbons is achieved using nitrogen-doped titania nanotube arrays, with a wall thickness low enough to facilitate effective carrier transfer to the adsorbing species, surface-loaded with nanodimensional islands of cocatalysts platinum and/or copper. All experiments are conducted in outdoor sunlight at University Park, PA. Intermediate reaction products, hydrogen and carbon monoxide, are also detected with their relative concentrations underlying hydrocarbon production rates and dependent upon the nature of the cocatalysts on the nanotube array surface. Using outdoor global AM 1.5 sunlight, 100 mW/cm(2), a hydrocarbon production rate of 111 ppm cm(-2) h(-1), or approximately 160 microL/(g h), is obtained when the nanotube array samples are loaded with both Cu and Pt nanoparticles. This rate of CO(2) to hydrocarbon production obtained under outdoor sunlight is at least 20 times higher than previous published reports, which were conducted under laboratory conditions using UV illumination.
Morphology and movements of polarizations features on Venus as seen in the pioneer Orbiter Cloud Photopolarimeter data

The regional structure of Venus seen in polarization data acquired during the first 600 orbits of the Orbiter Cloud Polarimeter are described. Local organized features are seen whose morphology is similar to that of the ultraviolet clouds. No obvious correlation between the observed amount of polarization and the relative brightness is found, suggesting that the polarization features are not due to variations in the unpolarized intensity alone. Substantial variations in the structure and visibility of the polarization features suggest that the amount of haze in and above the main cloud layer is not constant. These features show movements similar to those of the ultraviolet clouds in both direction and speed.
The use of volume‐averaging techniques to predict temperature transients due to water vapor sorption in hygroscopic porous polymer materials

Volume-averaging techniques developed for modeling drying processes in porous materials offer a convenient framework for analyzing vapor sorption in porous hygroscopic polymeric materials. Because of the large temperature changes associated with water vapor sorption in these materials (from 10° to 20°C), sorption/diffusion processes are best characterized through the coupled differential equations describing both the transport of energy and mass through the porous structure. Experimental and numerical results are compared for a variety of natural and man-made porous polymeric materials (textiles) using the volume-averaging technique. Boundary heat and mass transfer coefficients and assumptions about thermal radiative properties of the experimental apparatus are shown to influence results obtained with the numerical solution method.
Cross-shear in metal-on-polyethylene articulation of orthopaedic implants and its relationship to wear

Wear of polyethylene (UHMWPE) is dependent on cross-shear. The aim of the present study was: 1) to develop a theoretical description of cross-shear, 2) to experimentally determine the relationship between cross-shear motion and UHMWPE wear using a wheel-on-flat apparatus, and 3) to calculate the work it takes to remove a unit volume of wear for the use in advanced computational models of wear. The theoretical description of cross-shear has been based on the previously reported finding that cross-shear is maximal when movement occurs perpendicular to fibril orientation. Here, cross-shear is described with a double-sinusoidal function that uses the angle between fibril orientation and velocity vector as input, and maximum cross-shear occurs at 90° and 270°. In the experimental part of the study, friction and wear of polyethylene were plotted against increasing sliding velocity vector angles, i.e. increasing cross-shear. It was found that wear intensified with increasing cross-shear, and wear depth could be predicted well using the double-sinusoidal function for cross-shear (r2=0.983). The friction data were then used to calculate the work to remove a unit particle by integrating the frictional force over the directional sliding distance. Using the wear volumes, determined for both longitudinal and perpendicular motion directions, the work to remove a unit volume of material was qy = 8.473 × 108 J/mm3 and qx = 1.321 × 108 J/mm3, respectively. Hence, 6.4 times more work was necessary to remove a unit wear volume in the direction of principal motion (i.e. along the molecular fibril orientation) than 90° perpendicular to it. In the future, these findings will be implemented in computational models to assess wear.
Applying statistical tests to empirically compare tabu search parameters for MAX 3-SATISFIABILITY: A case study

Abstract The application of stochastic heuristic, like tabu search or simulated annealing, to address hard discrete optimization problems has been an important advance for efficiently obtaining good solutions in a reasonable amount of computing time. A challenge when applying such heuristics is assessing when a particular set of parameter values yields better performance compared to other such sets of parameter values. For example, it can be difficult to determine the optimal mix of memory types to incorporate into tabu search. This in turn prompts users to undertake a trial and error phase to determine the best combination of parameter settings for the problem under study. Moreover, for a given problem instance, one set of heuristic parameter settings may yield a better solution than another set of parameters, for a given initial solution. However, the performance of this heuristic on this instance for a single heuristic execution is not sufficient to assert that the first set of parameter settings will always produce superior results than the second set of parameters, for all initial solutions. This paper looks at three known statistical procedures (one of which is a basic statistical test procedure and two of which were developed for discrete event simulation (discrete) optimization) to assess and compare the computational performance of tabu search for MAX 3-SATISFIABILITY. The statistical procedures designed for application within the domain of discrete event simulation output analysis (a paired difference t -test and two multiple comparison procedures developed and studied by Nelson and others) are adapted for this new purpose. An empirical case study is reported by computationally studying MAX 3-SATISFIABILITY instances across 32 variations of tabu search.
Near-Death Experiences and Self-Transformation

The near-death experience (NDE) may be one of many mechanisms that may activate renewal and transformation, fundamental tendencies of the psyche. An examination of three successive NDEs in one individual suggests that such alterations of consciousness weaken ego control and foster transcendence of the ego, promoting transformation and regeneration.
Mogadishu on the Mississippi: Language, Racialized Identity, and Education in a New Land by BIGELOW, MARTHA H.

A review of the book "Mogadishu on the Mississippi: Language, Racialized Identity, and Education in a New Land," by Martha H. Bigelow is presented.
Overcoming the myth of the mental

Can we accept John McDowell’s Kantian claim that perception is conceptual “all the way out,” thereby denying the more basic perceptual capacities we seem to share with prelinguistic infants and higher animals? More generally, can philosophers successfully describe the conceptual upper floors of the edifice of knowledge while ignoring the embodied coping going on on the ground floor? I argue that we shouldn’t leave the conceptual component of our lives hanging in midair and suggest how philosophers who want to understand knowledge and action can profit from a phenomenological analysis of the nonconceptual embodied coping skills we share with animals and infants, as well as the nonconceptual immediate intuitive understanding exhibited by experts.
Optimally Scaled Hip-Force Planning: A control approach for quadrupedal running

This paper presents Optimally Scaled Hip-Force Planning (OSHP), a novel approach to controlling the body dynamics of running robots. Controllers based on OSHP form the high-level component of a hierarchical control scheme in which they direct lower level controllers, each responsible for coordinating the motion of a single leg. An OSHP controller takes in the state of the runner at the apex of its primary aerial phase and returns desired profiles for the vertical and horizontal forces to be exerted at each hip during the subsequent stride. The hip force profiles returned by OSHP are scaled variants of nominal force profiles based on biological ground reaction force data. The OSHP controller determines the scaling parameters for these profiles through constrained nonlinear optimization on an approximate model of the runner's body dynamics. Evaluation of an OSHP controller for a quadruped model in simulation shows that even with very simple leg controllers, the OSHP controller can accelerate the runner from rest to steady-state running without a pre-defined footfall sequence.
Ethnographies of science education: situated practices of science learning for social/political transformation

This article is an introductory essay to the Ethnography and Education special issue Ethnographies of science education: situated practices of science learning for social/political transformation.
Inhibition of an inward rectifier potassium channel (Kir2.3) by G- protein βγ subunits

The molecular basis of G-protein inhibition of inward rectifier K+ currents was examined by co-expression of G-proteins and cloned Kir2 channel subunits in Xenopus oocytes. Channels encoded by Kir2.3 (HRK1/HIR/BIRK2/BIR11) were completely suppressed by co-expression with G-protein betagamma subunits, whereas channels encoded by Kir2. 1 (IRK1), which shares 60% amino acid identity with Kir2.3, were unaffected. Co-expression of Galphai1 and Galphaq subunits also partially suppressed Kir2.3 currents, but Galphat, Galphas, and a constitutively active mutant of Galphail (Q204L) were ineffective. Gbetagamma and Kir2.3 subunits were co-immunoprecipitated using an anti-Kir2.3 antibody. Direct binding of G-protein betagamma subunits to fusion proteins containing Kir2.3 N terminus, but not to fusion proteins containing Kir2.1 N terminus, was also demonstrated. The results are consistent with suppression of Kir2.3 currents resulting from a direct protein-protein interaction between the channel and G-protein betagamma subunits. When Kir2.1 and Kir2.3 subunits were coexpressed, the G-protein inhibitory phenotype of Kir2.3 was dominant, suggesting that co-expression of Kir2.3 with other Kir subunits might give rise to novel G-protein-inhibitable inward rectifier currents.