cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impact of the Food and Drug Administration Approval of Flecainide and Encainide on Coronary Artery Disease Mortality: Putting Deadly Medicine to the Test

Abstract In his book Deadly Medicine and on television, Thomas Moore impugns the process of antiarrhythmic drug approval in the 1980s, alleging that the new generation of drugs had flooded the marketplace and had caused deaths in numbers comparable to lives lost during war. To assess these important public health allegations, we evaluated annual coronary artery disease death rates in relation to antiarrhythmic drug sales (2 independent marketing surveys). Predicted mortality rates were modeled using linear regression analysis for 1982 through 1991. Deviations from predicted linearity were sought in relation to rising and falling class IC and overall class I antiarrhythmic drug use. Flecainide came to market in 1986 and encainide in 1987. Combined class IC sales peaked in 1987 and 1988 (maximum market penetration, 20%, first quarter 1989). Results of the Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial (CAST) were disclosed in April 1989. Overall annual class I antiarrhythmic prescription sales actually fell slightly (−3% to −4%/yr) in the 2 years before CAST and then more abruptly (−12%) in the year after CAST (1990). Sales of class IC drugs fell dramatically after CAST (by 75%). Coronary death rates (age adjusted) fell in a linear fashion during the decade of 1982 through 1991. No deviation from predicted rates was observed during the introduction, rise, and fall in class IC (and other class I) sales: rates were 126/100,000 in 1985 (before flecainide), 114 and 110 in 1987 and 1988 (maximum sales), and 103 in 1990 (after CAST). Deviations in death rates in the postulated range of 6,000 to 25,000 per year were shown to be excluded easily by the 95% confidence intervals about the predicted rates. Entry of new antiarrhythmic drugs in the 1980s did not lead to overall market expansion and had no adverse impact on coronary artery disease death rates, which fell progressively. Thus, the allegations in Deadly Medicine could not be confirmed. In Deadly Medicine, Thomas Moore impugns the Food and Drug Administration's approval of flecainide and encainide, claiming that “more than 50,000 persons died from taking antiarrhythmic drugs in a 2-year period during which patients were being enrolled in Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial (CAST).” To assess these allegations, we reviewed national coronary artery disease death statistics and found that they fell throughout the 1980s in a linear fashion, with no deviation from predicted rates during the introduction, rise, and fall of class IC (and other class I) drug sales.
Aneuploidy and health risk assessment: current status and future directions.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently sponsored a workshop† to discuss (1) the contribution of aneuploidy to human disease and disability, (2) the development of tests for detecting chemicals that induce aneuploidy and the relevance of these tests to human risk, and (3) the current understanding of mechanisms by which aneuploidy arises. This summary is based on the presentations given at the workshop. It is hoped that this summary will stimulate thinking in this vitally important area of risk assessment and contribute to the establishment of priorities for basic research, development of new test methods, and validation of existing test approaches. Such research is needed to enhance the scientific basis of risk assessment for aneuploidy-producing chemicals.
Petroleum Production from Basal Greenbrier Formation in Hyden West Pool, Eastern Kentucky: ABSTRACT

The Hyden West pool of northeastern Leslie County in eastern Kentucky produces from the Mississippian "Big Lime" (Greenbrier or Newman Limestone). The pool includes approximately 7,000 acres (2,800 ha.), with more than 60 wells which range in depth from 1,900 to 2,400 ft (570 to 720 m). Production in the pool is primarily gas, with small amounts of oil, from the basal Greenbrier. Drill cuttings from 10 wells within the pool and on its margins were studied using a binocular microscope. The thickness of the Greenbrier was determined throughout the pool from gamma-ray logs and samples. Drillers' logs have been used cautiously, and only if other sources of data were unavailable. These thicknesses, as well as intervals within the Greenbrier and structural data from the logs, were used to construct maps and cross sections of the pool. The Greenbrier has a thickness of between 160 and 250 ft (48 and 75 m) in this pool, and consists of limestone and dolomite, with minor amounts of shale. Evidence suggests that the sequence was deposited in a shallow epicontinental sea that was transgressing across low-lying, exposed surfaces of the Maccrady siltstone. The dolomite present in the basal part of the Greenbrier is mainly a secondary replacement of limestone. Porosity and permeability in the dolomite provide the pay zone of the Hyden West pool. End_of_Article - Last_Page 844------------
Convex constrained programmes with unattained infima

Abstract We consider a problem of minimization of convex function f ( x ) over the convex region R where the objective function and the feasible region have a common direction of recession. In cases when one of these directions is not in the constancy space of the objective function, then the minimal solution is not achieved even if the function f ( x ) is bounded below over the region R . Many algorithms, if applied to this class of programmes, do not guarantee convergence to the global infimum. Our approach to this problem leads to derivation of the equation of the feasible parametrized curve C ( t ), such that the infimum of the logarithmic penalty function along this curve is equal to the global infimum of the objective function over the region R . We show that if all functions defining the program are analytic, then C ( t ) is also an analytic function. The equation of the curve can be successfully used to determine the global infimum (in particular, unboundedness) of the convex constrained programmes in cases when the application of classical methods, such as the steepest descent method, fails to converge to the global infimum.
Syndecans-1 and -4 Are Induced During Wound Repair of Neonatal but Not Fetal Skin

Syndecans are a family of four cell surface proteoglycans that bind to various components of the extracellular environment and can regulate many cellular behaviors including growth, adhesion, and movement. To determine whether syndecans can function during wound repair, we have examined expression of the syndecans during wound repair of adult mouse and neonatal or fetal human skin. Syndecan-1 and -4 were induced in the dermis within 12 h after incisional injury of murine or neonatal human skin. Syndecan-1 was induced primarily on endothelium, and syndecan-4 was present throughout the dermis at the site of injury. Following re-epithelialization, expression of the syndecans return to their baseline level. In marked contrast to these observations, wounded human fetal skin showed no increase in expression of syndecans. This lack of increase in the expression of syndecans by cells of the dermis correlates with prior observations that fetal skin heals without a polymorphonuclear cell infiltrate, appreciable fibrosis, or clinically apparent scar. Thus, induced expression of syndecans is not an absolute requirement for wound repair but does correlate with the occurrence of fibrosis in mature skin. These findings support the role of syndecans as regulators of cell behavior and suggest that syndecan-1 and -4 induction in the dermis may contribute to events that lead to inflammation and fibrosis.
Mammea E/BB, an isoprenylated dihydroxycoumarin protonophore that potently uncouples mitochondrial electron transport, disrupts hypoxic signaling in tumor cells.

The mammea-type coumarin mammea E/BB (1) was found to inhibit both hypoxia-induced and iron chelator-induced hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) activation in human breast tumor T47D cells with IC50...
Philosophy provides the rationale for nursing's multiple research directions.

The author wishes to acknowledge with gratitude the assistance in the refinement of these ideas of Ms. Neville Strumpf, Dr. Diane O. McGivern, Dr. Shake Ketefian and Dr. Patricia Winstead-Fry.
The usefulness of laboratory tests in the early assessment of severity of acute pancreatitis.

Acute pancreatitis is a disorder that affects approximately 200,000 individuals in the U.S. annually. While most cases are mild, up to 30% of patients will have a complicated course with prolonged hospitalization and significant morbidity and mortality. Early institution of several therapeutic interventions, such as enteral nutrition, prophylactic antibiotics, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and intensive care monitoring, have been shown to decrease the morbidity associated with severe acute pancreatitis. However, the ability of clinicians to predict, upon presentation, which patient will have mild or severe pancreatitis has remained poor over the years, thus leading to a delay in the institution of such treatments. Researchers have focused on markers that might improve upon clinical prediction alone. While data have shown the predictive value of tools such as Ranson's and Glasgow's criteria, C-reactive protein (CRP) and the APACHE score, their application in clinical practice has be...
Alteration of the extracellular matrix of smooth muscle cells by ascorbate treatment.

Abstract The protein composition in the extracellular matrix of cultured neonatal rat aortic smooth muscle cells has been monitored over time in culture. The influence of ascorbate on insoluble elastin and collagen has been described. In the absence of ascorbate, the cells accumulate an insoluble elastin component which can account for as much as 50% of the total protein in the extracellular matrix. In the presence of ascorbate, the amount of insoluble collagen increases, while the insoluble elastin content is significantly less. When ascorbate conditions are varied at different times during the culture, the extracellular matrices are altered with respect to collagen and elastin ratios. The decrease in elastin accumulation in the presence of ascorbate may be explained by an overhydroxylation of tropoelastin. Approximately 1 3 of the prolyl residues in the soluble elastin fractions isolated from cultures grown in the presence of ascorbate are hydroxylated. Since the insoluble elastin accumulated in these cultures contain the unique lysine-derived cross-links in amounts comparable to aortic tissue, this culture system proves ideal for studying the influence of extracellular matrix elastin on cell growth and metabolism.
An Acceleration Measurement Capability on International Space Station Supporting Microgravity Science Payloads

The conditions present in low-earth-orbit have enabled various scientific investigations to be conducted. A fundamental reason that space is a useful environment for science is the presence of a decreased effect of gravity while in orbital free-fall. Science investigations are conducted to study phenomena occurring as a result of reductions in buoyancy forces and phenomena enabled as a result of the apparent lack of gravity. The science community requires knowledge of the environment in which their experiments are being conducted. A general purpose measurement system was developed in the 1980's to supply scientific investigators with data of the residual acceleration environment. The Space Acceleration Measurement System, or SAMS, has flown aboard the NASA shuttle fleet over fourteen times, successfully acquiring acceleration measurement data in support of microgravity science experiments. As NASA continues its development of the International Space Station and its associated research payloads, it once again becomes necessary to address the requirement to measure the residual acceleration in support of the planned scientific investigations. As a follow-on to the SAMS project, SAMS-2 was initiated to investigate the requirements and develop the measurement system to support the microgravity science payloads aboard the International Space Station. The characteristics of the payload complement to be supported by SAMS-2 and the different capabilities provided by the station requires a fresh look at the design implementation of a general purpose measurement system. Not only is there a requirement for measurements in support of numerous, potentially simultaneous experiments, but this support is required to be provided for at least ten years of on-orbit operation as compared to a ten to fourteen day mission on shuttle. These differences in fundamental requirements result in the design configuration of the space station-based SAMS-2 being significantly different than that of the shuttle-based SAMS. This paper describes these differences in requirements and the planned features to be provided to the science user community. Some of the unique challenges faced in developing a general purpose measurement system are also discussed.
Quantitative determination of pharmaceuticals using nano-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry after reversed phase mini-solid phase extraction

Abstract The pre-concentration effect of solid phase microextraction (SPE) with nano-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (nano-ESI MS) for selected pharmaceuticals is presented. An analytical method is developed for the quantitative determination of dicyclomine in serum with cyclopentolate as the internal standard by off-line nano-ESI ion-trap MS with reversed phase mini-SPE. Homemade C18 and C4 mini-SPE cartridges of 0.5 and 1 cm in length and 1.55 mm i.d. have been tested for pre-concentration of samples originally 30 μL in volume. After SPE, the volume of the sample in methanol is about 1–2 μL and 0.5 μL can be injected into the nano-ESI MS instrument. Use of a 1 cm C18 cartridge lowered the detection limit of dicyclomine 100 times to 16.1 fmole. Dicyclomine spiked in serum can be determined by nano-ESI MS after protein precipitation and further clean-up on the 1 cm C18 cartridge. However, the slope of a calibration curve of dicyclomine standards spiked in serum is more than a factor of 10 less than that for a calibration curve of dicyclomine standards prepared in water indicating pre-concentration of pharmaceuticals could be compromised by a complex biological matrix.
THE MEASUREMENT AND SOURCES OF TECHNICAL INEFFICIENCY IN THE INDONESIAN WEAVING INDUSTRY

Production function models are estimated with a time series of cross-section data on Indonesian weaving establishments. The sources of technical inefficiency are investigated. Three firm attributes are identified as being potentially related to firm efhciency. Tbey are firm ownership, age and size. The importance of these attributes as sources of inefficiency in the Indonesian weaving industry is investigated and the implications of the find,ings discussed.
An extended phage growth cycle in T4 infected A. aerogenes

Abstract Spheroplasts of Aerobacter aerogenes infected with T4 produce about five times more phage than do spheroplasts of E. coli because they do not lyse at the usual time. This implies a role for the host in cessation of phage synthesis. In 1969 Wais and Goldberg reported that cultures of A. aerogenes spheroplasts infected with urea treated T4 phage particles produced more phage than did similarly infected cultures of E. coli spheroplasts. We thought it strange that phage T4 should grow better in spheroplasts of a resistant host than in its usual host. We now report that the A. aerogenes host supports an extended phage growth cycle resulting in the production of 1000 or more phage in singly infected, isolated spheroplasts. Augmented phage production appears to be due to failure of the phage lysis mechanism to lyse the membrane of the A. aerogenes spheroplast.
Detection of toxic mercury ions using a ratiometric CdSe/ZnS nanocrystal sensor

We have developed a strategy for the ratiometric detection of toxic Hg2+ ions using a semiconductor nanocrystal energy-transfer donor coupled to a mercury-sensitive “turn-on” dye acceptor. The results demonstrate a new paradigm of toxic metal sensing that resolves the difficulties with the use of semiconductor nanotechnology for this purpose.
Hypercalcemia and acromegaly--clarifying the connections. A case report and review of the literature.

ABSTRACT Objective Hypercalcemia in patients with acromegaly is rare and usually due to co-existent primary hyperparathyroidism. The etiology of hypercalcemia directly related to acromegaly is debated. Methods We present a case report of 1,25(OH)2D3-mediated hypercalcemia in a patient with acromegaly and discuss potential pathophysiological mechanisms contributing to the development of hypercalcemia late in the course of the disease. Results A 67-year-old female presented with classical features of acromegaly. A review of her previous photographs suggested a disease duration of approximately 10 years, and her serum calcium (Ca) was normal during this period. A biochemical work up confirmed a combined growth hormone (GH-) and prolactin (PRL-) cosecreting tumor with a GH level of 92.03 ng/mL (normal 0-3.61), an insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) level of 1,498 ng/ mL (59-225), and a PRL level of 223.3 ng/mL (2-17.4). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the pituitary showed a 1.9-cm macroadenoma. Her preoperative work up revealed new onset hypercalcemia with a corrected serum Ca level of 10.7 mg/dL (8.5-10.5), an ionized Ca level of 1.37 mmol/L (1.08-1.30), a parathyroid hormone (PTH) level of 13.0 pg/mL (10-60), and a high 1,25(OH)2D3 level of 72.6 pg/mL (15-60). She underwent resection of the pituitary adenoma with normalization of GH and PRL levels, and her IGF-1 level decreased to 304 ng/mL. Her serum Ca (9.3 mg/dL), ionized Ca(1.22) and 1,25(OH)2D3 levels (38.6 pg/mL) normalized after surgery. Conclusion While overt hypercalcemia in acromegaly is rare, it tends to occur late in the disease course. The hypercalcemia is mediated by elevated 1,25(OH)2D3 levels rather than PTH. (Endocr Pract. 2014;20:e86-e90)
Restoration and Authenticity Revisited

In this chapter, Marion Hourdequin and David Havlick focus on one of the central worries raised in relation to ecological restoration: the problem of authenticity. Robert Elliot, for example, has argued that restoration ‘fakes nature’. On this view, restoration is like art forgery: it deceptively suggests that its product was produced in a certain way, when in fact, it was not. Restored landscapes present themselves as the product of ‘natural processes’, when in actuality, they have been significantly shaped by human intervention. For Elliott, there seem to be two sources of inauthenticity in ecological restoration. First, the restored landscape is inauthentic because its natural genealogy has been disrupted by the intervention of humans: it has lost its authentic natural identity. Second, the restored landscape is inauthentic because it pretends to be something it is not; it obscures its own history. Hourdequin and Havlick argue that the first sense of inauthenticity is problematic; however, the second concern – about obscuring history – is important. Using case studies involving the naturalization of former military lands, Hourdequin and Havlick tease out more fully the ways in which landscapes can be ‘inauthentic’ by misleading observers about their genealogy. In such landscapes, it is not departure from ‘the original’ per se that is the source of inauthenticity; rather, restored landscapes fail to be authentic when they deceptively obscure critical elements of their past.
Correlated charge-density-wave states of double-quantum-well systems in a strong magnetic field

The Hartree-Fock ground state of a double-quantum-well system in a strong magnetic field is studied as a function of the well separation. The electronic tunneling between quantum wells, which causes the symmetric-to-antisymmetric energy gap, is explicitly taken into account in the investigation. The system is found to undergo a phase transition to a new type of charge-density-wave state when the well separation d is increased beyond a certain critical value ${\mathit{d}}_{\mathit{c}}$. This phase transition is consistent with the appearance of the soft mode in the collective excitation spectrum obtained at d\ensuremath{\approxeq}${\mathit{d}}_{\mathit{c}}$. The order parameters of the new state satisfy a sum rule similar to that of a charge-density-wave state of a two-dimensional electron system. The connection between the transition and a recent experimental result on the magnetic-field-driven destruction of integer quantum Hall states in double quantum wells is also discussed.
Sesquiterpenoid stress compounds from Nicotiana species

Abstract Solavetivone, 3-hydroxysolavetivone, solanascone, phytuberin and phytuberol were identified as stress compounds in leaves of Nicotiana tabacum cv Samsun NN. N. sylvestris , which is the maternal progenitor of N. tabacum , produced all the above compounds except 3-hydroxysolavetivone. In the F 1 , hybrid of N. tabacum and N. glutinosa , all the stress compounds produced by N. tabacum and N. glutinosa , respectively, were accumulated.
The Theory of magnetic poles

If one supposes that a particle with a single magnetic pole can exist and that it interacts with charged particles, the laws of quantum mechanics lead to the requirement that the electric charges shall be quantized---all charges must be integral multiples of a unit charge $e$ connected with the pole strength $g$ by the formula $eg=\frac{1}{2}\ensuremath{\hbar}c$. Since electric charges are known to be quantized and no reason for this has yet been proposed apart from the existence of magnetic poles, we have here a reason for taking magnetic poles seriously. The fact that they have not yet been observed may be ascribed to the large value of the quantum of pole.In 1931 I gave a primitive theory which described the motion of a pole in the field of a charged particle whose motion is given, or the motion of a charged particle in the field of a pole whose motion is given. The present paper sets up a general theory of charged particles and poles in interaction through the medium of the electromagnetic field. The idea which makes this generalization possible consists in supposing each pole to be at the end of an observable string, which is the line along which the electromagnetic potentials are singular, and introducing dynamical coordinates and momenta to describe the motion of the strings. The whole theory then comes out by the application of standard methods. There are unsolved difficulties, concerned with the interaction of a point charge or a point pole with the field it produces itself, such as occur in all dynamical theories of fields and particles in interaction.
An Area Specialized for Spatial Working Memory in Human Frontal Cortex

Working memory is the process of maintaining an active representation of information so that it is available for use. In monkeys, a prefrontal cortical region important for spatial working memory lies in and around the principal sulcus, but in humans the location, and even the existence, of a region for spatial working memory is in dispute. By using functional magnetic resonance imaging in humans, an area in the superior frontal sulcus was identified that is specialized for spatial working memory. This area is located more superiorly and posteriorly in the human than in the monkey brain, which may explain why it was not recognized previously.
Photovoltaic-reliability R&D toward a solar-powered world

Paper about the importance of continued progress toward low-cost, high-reliability, and high-performance PV systems. High reliability is an essential element in achieving low-cost solar electricity.
Teaching advice and support for new and adjunct faculty (panel session): experiences, policies, and strategies

The demand for computer science faculty is growing rapidly, along with the demand for seats in computer science courses. The problem of finding, recruiting, and retaining computer science faculty may have reached crisis proportions[1]. Meeting this demand means an influx of new faculty, including perhaps nontraditional faculty such as adjuncts from industry, emeriti, graduate students, or faculty from other disciplines.Such diversity is valuable but brings its own challenges. One of these is acclimating new faculty, particularly those from different academic or industrial environments, to the norms, practices, and expectations of a particular school and department. These may vary considerably among institutions, and some may be subtle and unrecognized, not always identified in existing orientation materials.For the new faculty's experience to be successful (for themselves, for their students, and for the institution), we must identify these issues. But we must also make that information available in an effective form: A comprehensive “policies and procedures” manual may be left unread amid the more immediate demands of meeting the first class or starting a research program. Experienced colleagues will have some answers, at least idiosyncratic ones, and likely are willing to share them when they have a free moment; even so, the new instructor may hesitate to call on the same person too often.The panelists will describe their experiences as new or adjunct faculty or as those orienting such faculty; thereafter, we will solicit experiences from the audience. We expect to generate and disseminate a list of teaching issues new faculty must address and a range of strategies for helping those faculty address them. This could serve as a “Prototype FAQ,” one that institutions (or their new-faculty coordinators) could adapt to local practices.
Effects of climate on mid-winter ice jams

The breakup of ice in Canadian rivers and the ensuing ice jams have a multitude of socio-economic impacts. Equally important, but not as well understood, is the strong relationship between the breakup event and the aquatic ecosystem in terms of both habitat and life cycle. Because breakup processes are highly sensitive to weather conditions, there is concern over the potential effects of changing climatic patterns on the ice-jam regime and thus on the stream ecology and local economy. Though breakup commonly occurs in the spring, it is occasionally triggered by mid-winter ‘thaws’, which are typical of the more temperate regions of Canada. Mid-winter jams can be more destructive than spring ones and may also have repercussions on the spring event. Current knowledge suggests that small perturbations in winter temperature can produce major changes in the incidence of breakup and ice jams, by altering snowstorms into rainfall events. This expectation is confirmed by a hydroclimatic analysis of field observations and historical data on the upper reach of the Saint John River, which forms the boundary between New Brunswick, Canada and Maine, USA. A slight warming in the past 80 years has been accompanied by a considerable increase in the occurrence of mild winter days, thus contributing to increasing rainfall amounts. This results in augmented flows during the winter, which are lately becoming capable of effecting breakup of the river-ice cover. Implications for future trends in the ice regime of the Saint John River and of other Canadian rivers are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Influence of dietary carbohydrates upon the metabolism of lipids and minerals in rabbits

Abstract Rabbits were fed purified diets containing either corn starch, sucrose, glucose or fructose as 39.5% of the caloric content, or were fed a commercial diet. At the end of the 12-week trial period, glucose tolerance tests did not reveal a difference by treatment, and males had a lower tolerance than females. The serum cholesterol concentrations of the various density lipoproteins varied by treatment as determined weekly; often the HDL cholesterol was higher in the rabbits fed corn starch, and the VLDL cholesterol was higher in the rabbits fed corn fructose. Cholelithiasis at the end of the trial was prevalent in rabbits fed sucrose, glucose or fructose, was infrequent in the rabbits fed corn starch, and was absent in the rabbits fed the commercial diet. Lipid and cholesterol concentrations in the liver were greater in the rabbits fed the purified diets than in those fed the commercial diet. Cholesterol concentration in the thoracic aorta was greater in the rabbits fed the commercial diet than in those fed the purified diet. Analyses of liver and kidneys for Cr, Mn, Cu and Zn revealed treatment differences only in the case of the kidneys where Cr concentration was greater in the kidneys when the commercial diet was fed.
Slotting Allowances and Scarce Shelf Space

Slotting allowances are payments made by manufacturers to obtain retail shelf space. They are widespread in the grocery industry and a concern to antitrust authorities. A popular view is that slotting allowances arise because there are more products than retailers can profitably carry given their shelf space. We show that the causality can also go the other way: the scarcity of shelf space may in part be due to the feasibility of slotting allowances. It follows that slotting allowances can be anticompetitive even if they have no effect on retail prices.
Optimal Model Matching Design for High Bandwidth, High Resolution Positioning in AFM

Abstract This paper introduces a two degree of freedom control design for achieving robust high resolution, high bandwidth positioning systems. Feedback designs have demonstrated a significant improvement in the performance of the flexure-stage based positioning systems in atomic force microscopes (AFM) that provide large travels with high resolution. In this paper, an optimal model matching framework, where both the feedback and feedforward controllers form the decision variables, is presented which facilitates achieving better performance in terms of the resolution bandwidth and robustness to modeling uncertainties in the closed-loop device. Feedback-only designs, which significantly diminish nonlinear effects of piezoactuation and other modeling uncertainties, are restricted by practical and fundamental limitations such as the control saturation and the Bode integral law. These limitations, which become even more prominent due to non-minimum phase zeros in the context of flexure stages with non-collocated actuators and sensors, typically lead to trade-off between resolution, bandwidth and the robustness of the positioning system. A two degree of freedom controller, achieves a better trade-off by exploiting feedforward designs that are not subject to some limitations that constrain the feedback-only designs. We show that our 2DOF design achieves performance objectives that are impossible for feedback-only designs. Experiments on positioning stages on a AFM show bandwidth improvements as large as 300% over existing feedback base designs.
Inertia of a nonradiating particle

A solution of the Abraham-Lorentz equation of motion for a radiating particle is found to have nonrunaway form if its mass components are subject to nonuniform acceleration. By supposing that the energy radiated is absorbed by the particle's own field, inertia is found as a resulting property and the relationE=Mc2 follows as a consequence.
Fungal Irritability and Survival Mechanisms

This issue of Mycological Research News features: Fungal irritability and survival mechanisms; In this issue; Genetic markers in single spores of AM fungi; Rice blast fungus attacks leaves and roots differently; Why picking wild mushrooms might be bad behaviour; and life-style choices in lichen-farming and lichen-dwelling fungi. Physiological and ecological papers in this part investigate peroxide accumulation and cell death, stress responses to peroxide and paraquat, and fungal decomposition of leaves in streams. Molecular studies address: phylogenetic relationships of Lecanoromycetes ; correlations with toxin production in Fusarium species; detection techniques for ectomycorrhizal fungi; the status of Xanthoria aureola ; the identity of a sterile red endophyte of cereals; Lepista in Australia; native Alternaria brassicicola populations; and the placement of southern African truffles. The following new scientific names are introduced: Eremiomyces and Kalaharituber gens. nov.; E. echinulatus (syn. Choirmyces echinulatus ) and K. pfeilii (syn. Tuber pfeilii ) combs. nov.
Assessment of natural and hybrid ventilation models in whole-building energy simulations

Abstract Natural ventilation is a traditional cost-effective technique to cool and ventilate buildings. Proper simulation tools are highly desired to ensure acceptable thermal performance of naturally ventilated buildings and to assist the design and optimization of such buildings. This study is to advance the use of natural and hybrid ventilation concepts in building design by assessing the accuracy and usability of current thermal-ventilation models. Because of the similarity noted among various models and tools, a prevalent airflow-thermal modeling program, EnergyPlus, was evaluated by simulating three selected real buildings that were supplied with most detailed building and measurement information. The study of these cases reveals that the current model has (1) significant functional limitations for venting and exhaust fan control schemes; (2) need for additional relationships to describe horizontal openings and fully-open connections between zones; and (3) possible over-prediction of buoyancy-driven flows in the case of multi-story buildings. The study further indicates the building and measurement data that are critical for a more accurate validation of thermal-ventilation models, including, on-site measured temperature, wind, and solar conditions; measured volume flow rate data, at critical points throughout the building; and effective area and discharge coefficients for specific vents used in building.
Predicting Performance in a Community College Content-Area Course from Academic Skill Level

Binary logistic regression analyses were performed on institutional data from a large urban community college in order to identify predictors of performance in a content course (psychology) that had high literacy demands. It was found that students who completed college English were more likely to pass the content course than students with developmental-level English skills. Also, academically underprepared students who completed developmental English passed the content course at the same rate as students who entered the college with college-level skills. Thus, once students' current level of literacy skill, measured by the highest English course completed, was considered, their initial literacy level upon entry in college was not predictive of achievement in the content course. This finding suggests that the English courses completed by students between the time of college entry and content course enrollment may have had a positive effect on their achievement in the content course.
The Impact of the Daubert Decision on Survey Research Used in Litigation

Abstract The opinions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., General Electric Co. v. Robert K. Joiner, Kumho Tire Co. Ltd. v. Carmichael, and Weisgram v. Marley changed the ground rules for whether a survey is admissible as evidence into a trial. This article provides a history of the criteria used to determine the admissibility of expert reports before Daubert and summarizes Daubert and the three other relevant opinions. It provides examples of how the Daubert criteria are being applied in cases involving survey research and provides recommendations for conducting surveys that are likely to survive a Daubert challenge.
Lidar observations in relation to the atmospheric winds aloft

Lidar observations of visually clear troposphere compared with simultaneous rawinsonde data for relationship between lidar echoes and atmospheric winds aloft
Three-dimensional panoramic imaging of cardiac arrhythmias in rabbit heart

Cardiac fluorescent optical imaging provides the unique opportunity to investigate the dynamics of propagating electrical waves during ventricular arrhythmias and the termination of arrhythmias by strong electric shocks. Panoramic imaging systems using charge-coupled device (CCD) cameras as the photodetector have been developed to overcome the inability to monitor electrical activity from the entire cardiac surface. Photodiode arrays (PDAs) are known to have higher temporal resolution and signal quality, but lower spatial resolution compared to CCD cameras. We construct a panoramic imaging system with three PDAs and image Langendorff perfused rabbit hearts (n=18) during normal sinus rhythm, epicardial pacing, and arrhythmias. The recorded spatiotemporal dynamics of electrical activity is texture mapped onto a reconstructed 3-D geometrical heart model specific to each heart studied. The PDA-based system provides sufficient spatial resolution (1.72 mm without interpolation) for the study of wavefront propagation in the rabbit heart. The reconstructed 3-D electrical activity provides us with a powerful tool to investigate the fundamental mechanisms of arrhythmia maintenance and termination.
Examination of the relationship between astrocyte morphology and laminar boundaries in the molecular layer of adult dentate gyrus.

Astrocytes are known to play an integral role in the development of compartmental boundaries in the brain and in the creation of trauma-induced boundaries. However, the physical relationship between astrocytes and such boundaries in the adult brain is less clear. If astrocytes do respect or play an ongoing role in maintaining such boundaries, a correlation between the position of such a boundary and the morphology of neighboring astrocytes might be observable. In this study, we examined the distribution of astrocytes with respect to the laminar boundaries compartmentalizing afferents to the dentate gyrus molecular layer. In addition, we attempted to determine whether astrocyte morphology is influenced by these laminar boundaries. To this end, protoplasmic astrocytes in the adult rat dentate gyrus were revealed with fluorescent tracer dyes and subsequently analyzed with respect to laminar boundaries demarcated by means of immunolabeling for the lamina-specific molecules EphA4 and neural cell adhesion molecule (N-CAM). We find that astrocyte distribution is influenced by the boundary separating the associational/commissural and perforant path afferents. In addition, we show that astrocytes in this region are polarized in their morphology, unlike typically stellate astrocytes, but that the laminar boundaries themselves do not appear to confer this morphology. This polarized morphology, however acquired, may have import for the functioning of astrocytes within the highly organized composition of the dentate gyrus molecular layer and for the overall microphysiology of this and other brain regions.
Effect of Surface Area–to-Volume Ratios in Storage Tubes on Oxygenation of Diluted Bull Semen

Summary Special flasks were designed from three different sizes of ordinary storage tubes to study the metabolism of spermatozoa with the conventional Warburg apparatus. Oxygen uptake of bull spermatozoa diluted with 0.9% saline to a concentration of 200×10 6 cells per ml. varies directly, but not exactly proportionally, with the ratio of the exposed surface area-to-volume of the fluid in the flask. Compared to 0.9% saline, the oxygen uptake was lower in phosphate diluent. Even at an S/V ratio as low as 0.17, the oxygen uptake is appreciable. In the present studies, a maximum oxygen uptake was reached with an S/V ratio of 1 to 1.9.
Reliability Analysis of Wireless Real-Time Control Networks

Probability of successful delivery under deadline constraints is one of the most important performance measures in a wireless real-time multihop control and sensor network. In this paper we approach the problem of determining the probability of successful packet delivery by calculating the per-link outage probability for different fading channel models. We provide easily computable results for the end-to-end reliability for two different physical layer designs. Furthermore, we show that incorporating physical layer information into routing and scheduling decisions can result in significant performance improvements when strict deadlines are imposed on the system.
SELF-MUTILATION: THREE CASES AND A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

The self-mutilating patient is an unusual psychiatric presentation in the emergency department (ED). Nonetheless, serious underlying psychiatric pathology and drug abuse are important background risk factors. A careful stepwise approach in the ED is essential, although the prognosis, follow-up, and eventual rehabilitation are poor.
Thermodynamic Properties of 2-Methylquinoline and 8-Methylquinoline

Measurements leading to the calculation of the standard thermodynamic properties for gaseous 2-methylquinoline (Chemical Abstracts registry number [91-63-4]) and 8-methylquinoline (Chemical Abstracts registry number [611-32-5]) are reported. Experimental methods include oxygen bomb calorimetry, adiabatic heat capacity calorimetry, vibrating-tube densitometry, comparative ebulliometry, inclined-piston gauge manometry, and differential scanning calorimetry (dsc). The critical temperature was measured with a differential scanning calorimeter. The critical pressure and critical density were estimated. Standard molar entropies, standard molar enthalpies, and standard molar Gibbs free energies of formation were derived at selected temperatures between 298.15 K and 700 K. All results are compared with experimental values reported in the literature.
Message and source factors, market uncertainty, and extrafunctional information processing: hypotheses and empirical evidence

This article examines how the perceived quality of extrafunctional information improves the innovation management process and contributes to success with innovations. Data collected from 420 Japanese managers and 270 US managers are used to test hypotheses about the antecedents of satisfaction with extra-functional information and the impacts on new product performance. The results demonstrate that the level of marketing and R&D managers' satisfaction with extrafunctional information is an important predictor of new product success and financial performance. The results also show that marketing and R&D managers differ significantly in their preferences and criteria for evaluating extrafunctional information. The empirical evidence suggests that the factors that increase R&D's satisfaction with market information are not necessarily the same as those that increase marketing's satisfaction with R&D satisfaction. Each functional area should recognize which message factors are most related to high satisfaction with received information, and emphasize these when sending such information. The authors also discovered the moderating effects of market and technical uncertainty that should provide guidance for marketing and R&D managers on how to allocate their efforts in information transfer based on the external environment. The empirical findings also revealed some cross-cultural differences, as well as a few similarities, between US and Japanese respondents.
The location of a closed channel gate in the GABAA receptor channel.

Considerable controversy surrounds the location of the closed channel gate in members of the Cys-loop receptor family of neurotransmitter-gated ion channels that includes the GABAA, glycine, acetylcholine, and 5-HT3 receptors. Cysteine-accessibility studies concluded that the gate is near the cytoplasmic end of the channel in acetylcholine and GABAA receptors but in the middle of the 5-HT3A receptor channel. Zn2+ accessibility studies in a chimeric 5-HT3-ACh receptor suggested the gate is near the channel's cytoplasmic end. In the 4-A resolution structure of the acetylcholine receptor closed state determined by cryoelectron microscopy, the narrowest region, inferred to be the gate, is in the channel's midsection from 9' to 14' but the M1–M2 loop residues at the channel's cytoplasmic end were not resolved in that structure. We used blocker trapping experiments with picrotoxin, a GABAA receptor open channel blocker, to determine whether a gate exists at a position more extracellular than the picrotoxin binding site, which is in the vicinity of α1Val257 (2') near the channel's cytoplasmic end. We show that picrotoxin can be trapped in the channel after removal of GABA. By using the state-dependent accessibility of engineered cysteines as reporters for the channel's structural state we infer that after GABA washout, with picrotoxin trapped in the channel, the channel appears to be in the closed state. We infer that a gate exists between the picrotoxin binding site and the channel's extracellular end, consistent with a closed channel gate in the middle of the channel. Given the homology with acetylcholine and 5-HT3 receptors there is probably a similar gate in those channels as well. This does not preclude the existence of an additional gate at a more cytoplasmic location.
Topology of the Shaker Potassium Channel Probed with Hydrophilic Epitope Insertions

The structure of the Shaker potassium channel has been modeled as passing through the cellular membrane eight times with both the NH2 and COOH termini on the cytoplasmic side (Durrell, S.R., and H.R. Guy. 1992. Biophys. J. 62:238–250). To test the validity of this model, we have inserted an epitope consisting of eight hydrophilic amino acids (DYKDDDDK) in predicted extracellular and intracellular loops throughout the channel. The channels containing the synthetic epitope were expressed in Xenopus oocytes, and function was examined by two-electrode voltage clamping. All of the mutants containing insertions in putative extracellular regions and the NH2 and COOH termini expressed functional channels, and most of their electrophysiological properties were similar to those of the wild-type channel. Immunofluorescent staining with a monoclonal antibody against the epitope was used to determine the membrane localization of the insert in the channels. The data confirm and constrain the model for the transmembrane topology of the voltage-gated potassium channel.
Optimization of a permeation-based microfluidic direct formic acid fuel cell (DFAFC)

A design for a passive, air-breathing microfluidic fuel cell utilizing formic acid (FA) as a fuel is described and its performance characterized. The fuel cell integrates high surface area platinum (cathode) and palladium‐platinum (anode) alloy electrodes within a PDMS microfluidic network that keeps them fully immersed in a liquid electrolyte. The polymer network that comprises the device also serves as a self-supporting membrane through which FA and oxygen are supplied to the alloy anode and cathode, respectively, by passive permeation from external sources. The cell is based on a planar form-factor and in its operation exploits FA concentration gradients that form across the PDMS membrane. These latter gradients allow the device to operate stably, producing a nearly constant limiting power density of 0.2 mW/cm 2 , without driven laminar flow of fluids or the incorporation of an in-channel separator between the anodic and the cathodic compartments. The power output of this elementary device in air is subject to electrolyte mass transport impacts, which can be reduced for a given design rule by decreasing the internal ohmic resistance of the cell. The results suggest that operational stability can be improved by decreasing the kinetic losses imposed on the cathode side of the cell due to FA crossover and modalities for doing so, such as by increasing the efficiency of fuel capture at the anode.