cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of iron absorption by noble-metal capsules on phase boundaries in rock-melting experiments at 30 kilobars

Andesite-H_2O and basalt-H_2O mixtures encapsulated in Pt, Ag_(30)Pd_(70), and Ag_(75)Pd_(25) with high ratios of metal/sample were run in half-inch diameter piston-cylinder apparatus at 30 kbar at temperatures where the mixtures were molten or partly crystallized. For andesite liquid at l 100°C the rate of iron absorption by the capsules is greatest in the first hour, 70 percent of initial FeO being lost with Pt capsules. After 3 hours, percentages of initial FeO lost are 85 percent for Pt, 35 percent for Ag_(30)Pd_(70), and 25 percent for Ag_(75)Pd_(25). For the phase assemblage garnet(Ga) + clinopyroxene(Cpx) + liquid(L) with 80 percent L at 1100°C in Ag_(75)Pd_(25) capsules, clinopyroxene and liquid lose about 30 percent FeO in the 4-hour interval between 1 and 5 hour runs, but garnet does not change composition. Distribution coefficients for Fe and Mg between liquid and minerals therefore vary as a function of run duration. At 1000°C and below, iron loss is not a serious problem in Ag_(30)Pd_(70) for runs of 10 hours duration, but attempts to reverse the Cpx-out phase boundary in andesite-10% H_2O near 950°C demonstrate kinetic and nucleation problems; the reversal bracket is wide, 890°-975°C. Consistency between one-stage and two-stage low-to-high temperature runs for andesite and basalt with at least 10 percent H_2O between 1050°C and 1200°C suggests a close approach to equilibrium for garnet and clinopyroxene after 1-hour runs. For runs with basalt-H_2O in Pt capsules, longer runs cause the recorded positions of the Cpx-out and Ga-out phase boundaries to increase and decrease in temperature, respectively, with discrepancies of 25-50°C between runs of 1 hour and 12 hours. This makes it difficult to demonstrate reversible equilibrium of a high-temperature phase boundary in a rock-H_2O system; reversibility in a system of changing bulk composition is not necessarily an equilibrium condition.
Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma: Allogeneic Reduced Intensity Conditioning

Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) is the fifth most common cancer among men and women in the United States [1]. High-dose chemotherapy with autoHCT offers curative potential to some patients who are not cured with frontline combination chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. However, autoHCT is not the optimal therapy for patients with marrow involvement or for some patients with indolent disease. Conventional myeloablative allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) has unequivocally demonstrated a reduction in relapse/progression compared with autoHCT in both indolent and aggressive NHL but is also associated with significant treatment-related mortality (TRM) [2, 3]. Over the last decade, the use of nonmyeloablative or reduced intensity conditioning (RIT) regimens has increased with an associated reduction in upfront toxicity in most published studies. RIT regimens broaden patient eligibility since older patients, patients with comorbid conditions, and heavily pretreated patients, including those who have failed a prior autoHCT can better tolerate such regimens. This approach incorporates immunosuppressive doses of chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy to achieve a mixed donor-host hematopoietic chimeric state, thus facilitating development of a donor immune-mediated graft-versus-lymphoma (GVL) effect.
A Converted Time Thief or a Voluntary Help Giver: The Use of Time for Crowdsourcing

The digital revolution has given rise to new organizational forms which enable individuals to work across time and space boundaries. Such changing nature of work is likely to present traditional or...
Purse-string transoral outlet reduction (TORe) is effective at inducing weight loss and improvement in metabolic comorbidities after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.

Background and study aims Transoral outlet reduction (TORe), performed using a traditional interrupted or a recently described purse-string suture pattern, is effective at inducing short- and mid-term weight loss in patients with weight regain after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). We aimed to determine the technical feasibility and safety of purse-string TORe and to assess its impact on weight and metabolic profiles. Patients and methods RYGB patients undergoing purse-string TORe were included. The gastrojejunal anastomosis (GJA) was ablated using argon plasma coagulation or dissected using endoscopic submucosal dissection. A suture was used to place stitches around the GJA in a continuous ring fashion. The suture was cinched over a balloon (8 – 12 mm). The primary outcome was technical feasibility. Secondary outcomes were the percentage of total body weight lost (%TWL), adverse events, impact on comorbidities, and predictors of weight loss. Results 252 RYGB patients underwent 260 purse-string TORes. They had regained 52.6 ± 46.4 % of lost weight and weighed 107.6 ± 24.6 kg. The technical success rate was 100 %. At 6 and 12 months, %TWL was 9.6 ± 6.3 and 8.4 ± 8.2. Two serious adverse events (0.8 %) occurred: gastrointestinal bleeding and GJA stenosis. At 12 months, blood pressure, hemoglobin A1c, and ALT had improved. Prior weight regain was associated with %TWL at 12 months (β = 0.07, P = 0.007) after controlling for BMI, pouch size, and number of purse-string rings. Conclusion Purse-string TORe to treat weight regain after RYGB is technically feasible and safe. Additionally, it is associated with improvement in weight and comorbidity profiles up to 12 months post-procedure.
Efficient Calculation of Impedance Matrices for Vacuum Electronic Device Circuit Structures

We present a computationally efficient method for the calculation of impedance matrices of a large class of standing- and traveling-wave structures used in klystrons, traveling-wave tubes, and other vacuum electronic (VE) devices. By treating the gaps as “lumped ports,” this method avoids the time and disk spaces consuming steps employed in [1] , which required postprocessing the electromagnetic fields from a finite-element (FE) simulation. By applying analytical transformations to the impedance matrix, we show that it may be cast in a form suitable for the large-signal 1-D and 2-D beam-wave interaction codes CHRISTINE-CC [4] , [5] and TESLA-Z [1] . These transformations are formulated in a way to avoid numerical errors near structure resonance frequencies (singularity points). We also derive and apply formulas by which the impedance matrix of a structure may be constructed from the impedance matrices of its component parts, without additional FE simulations; by inverting the algebraic operations, we show that the impedance matrix of a structure from which a selected subsection has been removed may also be computed. Application of these formulas greatly facilitates the accurate calculation of the impedance matrices of large complex circuits that are difficult or impossible to model whole in a single FE simulation.
Simulating the effects of carbon nanotube continuity and interfacial bonding on composite strength and stiffness

Molecular dynamics simulations of carbon nanotube (CNT) composites, in which the CNTs are continuous across the periodic boundary, overestimate the experimentally measured mechanical properties of CNT composites along the fiber direction. Since the CNTs in these composites are much shorter than the composite dimensions, load must be transferred either directly between CNTs or through the matrix, a mechanism that is absent in simulations of effectively continuous CNTs. In this study, the elastic and fracture properties of high volume fraction discontinuous carbon nanotube/amorphous carbon composite systems were compared to those of otherwise equivalent continuous CNT composites using ReaxFF reactive molecular dynamics simulations. These simulations were used to show how the number of nanotube-matrix interfacial covalent bonds affect composite mechanical properties. Furthermore, the mechanical impact of interfacial bonding was decomposed to reveal its effect on the properties of the CNTs, the interfacial layer of matrix, and the bulk matrix. For the composites with continuous reinforcement, it was found that any degree of interfacial bonding has a negative impact on axial tensile strength and stiffness. This is due to disruption of the structure of the CNTs and interfacial matrix layer by the interfacial bonds. For the discontinuous composites, the modulus was maximized between 4%-7% interfacial bonding and the strength continues to increase up to the highest levels of interfacial bonding studied. Areas of low stress and voids were observed in the simulated discontinuous composites at the ends of the tubes, from which fracture was observed to initiate. Experimental carbon nanotube yarn composites were fabricated and tested. The results were used to illustrate knockdown factors relative to the mechanical performance of the tubes themselves.
Operational Transparency on Crowdfunding Platforms: Effect on Donations for Emergency Response

Online crowdfunding has emerged as a powerful tool to raise funds for emergency response. Crowdfunding campaigns can use two transparency tools to attract donors: updates and certification. Updates are additional messages that the organizer issues after launching the campaign and are a form of operational transparency when they communicate the campaign’s work to donors. Alternatively, certification is a form of conventional transparency that ensures the campaign truly benefits a charitable purpose. Using an econometric analysis, we investigate the effects of transparency on donations. We study the direction of causality and mechanisms behind work‐related updates by conducting an experiment. Results from the econometric analysis using over 100,000 campaigns benefiting victims of emergencies reveal that both updates and certification have positive effects on donations. Each additional work‐related word in an update (operational transparency) increases donations on average by $65 per month, while certification (conventional transparency) raises funds on average by $22 per month. Results from the experiment confirm the direction of causality; posting work‐related updates in crowdfunding campaigns increases donations. Two mechanisms explain this effect: donors’ enhanced perceptions of effort and perceptions of trust.
Oat haploids from wide hybridization

Haploids of cultivated oat (Avena sativa L., 2n=6x=42) have been produced from wide hybridizations with Panicoidae species, particularly maize (Zea mays L.), by procedures similar to ones described for the production of wheat (Triticum sp.) haploids from wheat x maize hybridizations (Laurie and Bennett, 1988; Rines et al., 1997). As in wheat, oat haploid production by the maize wide cross method appears to be much less genotype restricted than haploid production by anther culture. However, in oat the plant recovery frequencies reported to date of 1–2% of florets maize-pollinated is much lower than that attained with wheat and, like for oat haploid production in oat anther culture (Kiviharju et al., 2000), not yet adequate for routine use in breeding. Also, there are important differences in the types and in the reproductive behavior of plants recovered in oat x maize compared to wheat x maize hybridizations. These include on occasion maize chromosome retention in the recovered oat plants and partial self-fertility in oat haploid plants (Riera-Lizarazu et al., 1996). These differences in products can be detrimental in trying to produce doubled haploids routinely for breeding, but on the plus side they have led to the recovery of valuable novel materials for genetic studies. The following protocols described for haploid and doubled haploid oat plant recovery and characterization are ones in our current use, but modifications in factors such as oat and maize genotype effects, post pollination treatment, embryo rescue medium hormone components, and plant growth conditions are being investigated in ours and other laboratories.
Bacterial adhesion and colonization assays.

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews methods where bacteria and bacterial adhesins can be applied as tools for defining specific cell lineages and for characterizing eukaryotic receptor epitopes, primarily based on experiences with Helicobacter pylori, Streptococcus pyogenes, Escherichia coli, and Actinomyces spp. In situ screening of histological sections has been used to reveal the cell specific distribution of bacterial receptors among different cell populations in target tissues using histochemical and immunohistochemical stainings, in situ DNA hybridization, or electron microscopy. Direct binding of fluorochrome conjugated E. coli to frozen sections of human kidney has been described. A powerful adaptation of this technique developed in the chapter utilizes the bacteria themselves as probes to study the distribution of receptor epitopes in histological sections of potential target tissues. The advantage with this model is that it allows direct evaluation of the cellular distribution of receptor molecules, and that it can be used to characterize the receptor directly on the tissue by performing double labeling, biochemical modifications, and inhibition assays.
Hydrodynamic considerations and design concepts for optimal thermal compressors

Abstract Novel and highly compact design concepts for the desorber and rectifier components are presented to facilitate development of small capacity ammonia-water absorption systems for a wide range of applications. These designs enable thermodynamically optimal diabatic distillation and can be applied for direct-coupled waste heat recovery applications or for indirect heat source coupling. A hydrodynamic design methodology is developed and applied to address liquid–vapor countercurrent flow limitations. Feasibility of these designs is validated through air-liquid flow visualization experiments that simulate target flow patterns. The effects of geometric parameters and fluid properties are investigated to specify internal component features and dimensions. Parameters for coupled heat and mass transfer modeling of these designs are identified and quantified through high-speed video analysis. The results of this study guide the design and further development of highly compact and efficient desorption components for optimal thermal compressors.
Effect of SLCO polymorphisms on high-dose methotrexate clearance in pediatric oncology patients.

e22503Background: High-dose methotrexate (HD MTX) is a critical treatment component for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and osteosarcoma. While very effective, H...
Special Populations in Implantable Auditory Devices: Geriatric.

Hearing loss is common in the geriatric population. Most hearing loss is associated with presbycusis or age-related hearing loss, impacting one-third of individuals over 65 years and increasing in prevalence with age. Hearing loss impacts quality of life, psychological health, and cognition. Implantable auditory devices are an exceptional option to improve hearing and quality of life. Various implantable auditory devices have been implemented safely with significant improvement in communication and performance on auditory tasks. Counseling is essential to establishing realistic expectations. Rehabilitation may be required to optimize outcomes and auditory performance with use.
Efficacy of oritavancin alone and in combination against vancomycin-susceptible and -resistant enterococci in an in-vivo Galleria mellonella survival model.

ABSTRACT Objective The optimal therapy for serious enterococcal infections, especially vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), remains unclear, although combination therapy is often recommended. Oritavancin has demonstrated in-vitro activity against VRE, but data evaluating oritavancin in combination with other agents and in in-vivo systems are lacking. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of oritavancin alone and in combination with ceftriaxone, daptomycin, gentamicin, linezolid and rifampin against vancomycin-susceptible enterococci and VRE in an in-vivo Galleria mellonella survival model. Methods Five enterococcal strains were used: three clinical isolates (VRE S38141, VRE H19570, VRE W21579), Enterococcus faecium ATCC 700221 and Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212. G. mellonella larvae were inoculated with the test strain followed by the test drug at humanized weight-based dose alone or in combination within 1 h of inoculation. After injection, larvae were incubated at 37°C and survival was measured daily for 7 days. Survival was plotted using the Kaplan–Meier method, and differences between groups were determined via the log-rank test. Mean survival times were also determined. Results Each single agent improved survival significantly compared with the untreated control strain. Oritavancin was the most efficacious single agent, and led to a significant increase in survival compared with ceftriaxone, gentamicin and daptomycin. Compared with oritavancin alone, none of the oritavancin combinations tested were significantly better, and mean survival times were comparable. Conclusions Oritavancin monotherapy had the highest survival rate at 7 days, and none of the combinations tested showed improved survival over oritavancin alone. These data add to the body of literature rebutting the routine use of combination therapy with oritavancin for the treatment of infections due to VRE.
Influence of plastic properties on the grain size effect on twinning in Ti and Mg

Abstract Deformation twinning is an inevitable mode of plastic deformation in hexagonal close packed (HCP) crystals and has been considered a hinderance to achieving formability and ductility. It has long been recognized that reductions in grain size can lower the propensity for twinning. In prior work, EBSD statistical analyses on big data sets of twins in pure Ti and Mg were carried out for the same twin type, loading conditions, initial texture, and range of grain sizes. Here, we revisit these data sets to investigate the role of material plastic properties on grain size effects on deformation twinning. We show that while reductions in grain size dramatically lower the number of twins per grain and the twin thickness in both metals, these effects are several times stronger in Ti than that for Mg. To rationalize this difference, full-field, 3D crystal plasticity calculations are performed. The analysis indicates that the stronger grain size effect in Ti arises due to the larger critical resolved shear stress (CRSS) of its easiest slip system, making Ti less accommodating of the twin shear than Mg. This result points to plastic properties as additional variables that can be tuned towards developing HCP materials for structural applications.
Digital Literacy: The Need for Technology Integration and Its Impact on Learning and Engagement in Community School Environments

The article seeks to explore and evaluate the current research regarding the use of technology in community school classrooms. The article will discuss current trends in digital learning as well as...
Interaction of Urban Heat Island Effects and Land-Sea Breezes during a New York City Heat Event

AbstractThe state of knowledge of the effects of urban heat islands is advanced through investigation of a heat event in the highly complex coastal environment of New York City (NYC) by using the W...
Unexpected aetiology of chronic thrombocytopaenia

An asymptomatic adult woman with no significant medical or family history was found to have splenomegaly during workup for chronic, mild thrombocytopaenia. A peripheral blood smear showed isolated thrombocytopaenia and was otherwise unremarkable. A bone marrow aspirate was essentially a dry-tap with normal flow cytometry and cytogenetics. Touch preparations and histological sections of the core biopsy demonstrated abundant histiocytes (figure 1). The background trilineage haematopoiesis was otherwise unremarkable. Figure 1 Bone marrow aspirate and core biopsy. Histiocytes with characteristic ‘Gaucher cell’ features on touch preparations (A,B). Wright-Giemsa. Histological sections demonstrate diffuse infiltration of the bone marrow by histiocytes (C). High magnification shows bland histiocytes with voluminous cytoplasm with a lightly eosinophilic, striated appearance (D). H&E (C,D). Review the high-quality, interactive digital Aperio slide at http://virtualacp.com/JCPCases/jclinpath-2019-206289/ and consider your diagnosis. …
Mode-division multiplexing using few-mode elliptical-core optical fibers (Conference Presentation)

Increasing optical fiber communication data speeds with mode division multiplexing, i.e., data transmission over the modes of few mode optical fibers, has received recent interest. As mitigation of mode crosstalk remains a prominent problem, over few kilometer lengths, the canonical solution via coherent detection based multiple-input-multiple-output digital signal processing may be prohibitive. In this presentation, we review the use of few mode elliptical core optical fibers for mode division multiplexing. Due to core ellipticity, an intrinsic reduction of mode crosstalk obviates its mitigation, thereby enabling direct detection based transmission over each mode. Dependence on transmitted mode alignment, optical fiber bending, and polarization mode dispersion, are discussed.
Citizen Political Knowledge and Accountability: Panel Survey Evidence on Devolved Government in Kenya

Devolution complicates citizens’ ability to assign responsibility for the provision of public goods and services to different tiers of government. Misattribution of responsibility limits the effectiveness electoral accountability in the nested principal-agent relationships comprising voters, politicians, and bureaucrats. This raises two important questions. First, how do citizens learn about the functions of different tiers of government under devolution? Second, how do levels of political knowledge condition citizens’ evaluations of sub-national governments? Using cross-sectional and panel survey data from Kenya (2014 - 2018), this article shows that voters accumulate knowledge through exposure to government services, but that gender and partisanship condition knowledge accumulation. In addition, exposed citizens are more likely to give positive evaluations of subnational politicians, despite the fact that such exposure may reveal subnational governments’ low capacity, ineffectiveness, and governance gaps. These findings advance our understanding of the dynamics of political accountability under devolution.
In vitro primer-based RNA elongation and promoter fine mapping of the respiratory syncytial virus.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a nonsegmented negative-sense (NNS) RNA virus and shares a similar RNA synthesis strategy with other members of NNS RNA viruses, such as measles, rabies virus, and Ebola virus. RSV RNA synthesis is catalyzed by a multifunctional RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP), which is composed of a large (L) protein that catalyzes three distinct enzymatic functions and an essential coenzyme phosphoprotein (P). Here, we successfully prepared highly pure, full-length, wild-type and mutant RSV polymerase (L-P) complexes. We demonstrated that the RSV polymerase could carry out both de novo and primer-based RNA synthesis. We defined the minimal length of the RNA template for in vitro de novo RNA synthesis using the purified RSV polymerase as 8 nucleotides (nt), shorter than previously reported. We showed that the RSV polymerase catalyzed primer-dependent RNA elongation with different lengths of primers on both short (10-nt) and long (25-nt) RNA templates. We compared the sequence specificity of different viral promoters and identified positions 3, 5, and 8 of the promoter sequence as essential to the in vitro RSV polymerase activity, consistent with the results previously mapped with the in vivo minigenome assay. Overall, these findings agree well with those of previous biochemical studies and extend our understanding of the promoter sequence and the mechanism of RSV RNA synthesis.IMPORTANCE As a major human pathogen, RSV affects 3.4 million children worldwide annually. However, no effective antivirals or vaccines are available. An in-depth mechanistic understanding of the RSV RNA synthesis machinery remains a high priority among the NNS RNA viruses. There is a strong public health need for research on this virus, due to major fundamental gaps in our understanding of NNS RNA virus replication. As the key enzyme executing transcription and replication of the virus, the RSV RdRP is a logical target for novel antiviral drugs. Therefore, exploring the primer-dependent RNA elongation extends our mechanistic understanding of the RSV RNA synthesis. Further fine mapping of the promoter sequence paves the way to better understand the function and structure of the RSV polymerase.
A Comparison of Natural Language Samples Collected From Minimally and Low-Verbal Children and Adolescents With Autism by Parents and Examiners

Purpose We aimed to compare the speech of parents and examiners as they elicited language samples from minimally and low-verbal (MLV) children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), w...
Paradoxical changes in brain reward status during opioid self-administration in a novel test of the negative reinforcement hypothesis

ABSTRACT Background and Purpose The extra-medical use of, and addiction to, prescription opioid analgesics is a growing health problem. To characterize how prescription opioid abuse develops, this study investigated the affective consequences of escalating prescription opioid use using intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) reward and oxycodone intravenous self-administration (IVSA) models. Experimental Approach Male Wistar rats were given access to oxycodone IVSA (0.15 mg/kg/infusion, i.v.) in Short Access (ShA; 1 h) or Long Access (LgA; 12 h) sessions for 5 sessions/week followed by intermittent 60 h discontinuations from drug access, a novel explicit test of the negative reinforcement hypothesis. Separate groups were first trained in the ICSS procedure and then in oxycodone IVSA in 11 h LgA sessions. Key Results Rats given LgA to oxycodone escalated their responding more than ShA rats, with further significant increases observed following each 60 h discontinuation. Pre-session brain reward thresholds increased with sequential daily LgA IVSA sessions, consistent with a growing negative affective state consequent to successive daily intoxication/abstinence cycles. A 1 h oxycodone IVSA interval was sufficient to normalize these elevated reward thresholds, as was, paradoxically, a 60 h weekend abstinence. The increase in ICSS thresholds was attenuated in a group treated with the long-acting kappa opioid antagonist norBNI prior to IVSA training. Conclusions and Implications Changes in brain reward function during escalation of oxycodone self-administration are driven by an interplay between kappa opioid receptor-mediated negative affective state associated with escalated oxycodone intake and dynamic restoration of brain reward status during longer periods of abstinence.
High glucose-induced effects on Na+-K+-2Cl- cotransport and Na+/H+ exchange of blood-brain barrier endothelial cells: involvement of SGK1, PKCβII, and SPAK/OSR1.

Hyperglycemia exacerbates edema formation and worsens neurological outcome in ischemic stroke. Edema formation in the early hours of stroke involves transport of ions and water across an intact blo...
COVID vaccine efficacy against the B.1.351 ("South African") variant-The urgent need to lay the groundwork for possible future challenge studies.

SARS-CoV-2’s B.1.351 (“South African”) variant “is markedly more resistant to neutralization by convalescent plasma (9.4 fold) and vaccinee sera (10.3–12.4 fold),”1,2 raising the specter that that ...
Breast tumor stiffness instructs bone metastasis via maintenance of mechanical conditioning

While the immediate and transitory response of breast cancer cells to pathological stiffness in their native microenvironment has been well explored, it remains unclear how stiffness-induced phenotypes are maintained over time after cancer cell dissemination in vivo. Here, we show that fibrotic-like matrix stiffness promotes distinct metastatic phenotypes in cancer cells, which are preserved after transition to softer microenvironments, such as bone marrow. Using differential gene expression analysis of stiffness-responsive breast cancer cells, we establish a multigenic score of mechanical conditioning (MeCo) and find that it is associated with bone metastasis in patients with breast cancer. The maintenance of mechanical conditioning is regulated by RUNX2, an osteogenic transcription factor, established driver of bone metastasis, and mitotic bookmarker that preserves chromatin accessibility at target gene loci. Using genetic and functional approaches, we demonstrate that mechanical conditioning maintenance can be simulated, repressed, or extended, with corresponding changes in bone metastatic potential.
An Estimation of the Coastal Premium for Residential Housing Prices in San Diego County

The authors attempt to estimate the "coastal premium" - additional value conferred on a residence from being located near the coast - of single family homes in San Diego County, while controlling for other locational and structural characteristics. A previous investigation published in 2001 for south Orange County found that moving away from the coast by one mile was associated with a $42,000 lower housing price. Intrigued by this finding, we investigate whether (a) a similar coastal premium exists for all of San Diego County and (b) the premium varies by incremental distance from the coast (e.g., for 500-feet increments). Using data from 9,755 San Diego County home sales in 2006, results presented here suggest that for a median-prices home ($540,000) at the mean distance from the coast (approximately 9 miles - and considerably farther than the Orange County estimate) a one-mile increase in distance from the coast would reduce the sale price by approximately $8,680. Specifying by specific distance increments, we find that the coastal premium is approximately 101.9% for houses within 500 feet of the coast (i.e., their value is 101.9% higher than similar homes located beyond six miles of the coast), falling to 62.8% for homes between 500 and 1,000 feet, declining to approximately 3.3% for homes located between five and six miles of the coast, disappearing entirely beyond around six miles. Since average comparisons of the sort initially considered in this analysis can be very misleading, researchers should consider the nonlinear incremental distance effects in model specifications.
Application of a Multi-Regge Model to the Reaction π-p --> pπ+π-π-πO at 13 and 20 GeV/c

Abstract Data from the reaction π−p → pπ+π−π−πO at 13 and 20 GeV/c are compared with the predictions of the Reggeized multiperipheral model of Chan, Łoskiewicz and Allison [1]. The model is in good agreement with the single-particle momentum distributions and adequately reproduces the shape of the non-resonant regions of the invariant-mass distributions.
Simulated N-Body: New Particle Physics-Based Heuristics for a Euclidean Location-Allocation Problem

The general facility location problem and its variants, including most location-allocation and P-median problems, are known to be NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems. Consequently, there is now a substantial body of literature on heuristic algorithms for a variety of location problems, among which can be found several versions of the well-known simulated annealing algorithm. This paper presents an optimization paradigm that, like simulated annealing, is based on a particle physics analogy but is markedly different from simulated annealing. Two heuristics based on this paradigm are presented and compared to simulated annealing for a capacitated facility location problem on Euclidean graphs. Experimental results based on randomly generated graphs suggest that one of the heuristics outperforms simulated annealing both in cost minimization as well as execution time. The particular version of location problem considered here, a location-allocation problem, involves determining locations and associated regions for a fixed number of facilities when the region sizes are given. Intended applications of this work include location problems with congestion costs as well as graph and network partitioning problems.
Evaluating and understanding top of the atmosphere cloud radiative effects in Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) models using satellite observations

[1] In this study, the annual mean climatology of top of the atmosphere (TOA) shortwave and longwave cloud radiative effects in 12 Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project (AMIP)-type simulations participating in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) is evaluated and investigated using satellite-based observations, with a focus on the tropics. Results show that the CMIP5 AMIPs simulate large-scale regional mean TOA radiative fluxes and cloud radiative forcings (CRFs) well but produce considerably less cloud amount, particularly in the middle and lower troposphere. The good model simulations in tropical means, with multimodel mean biases of -3.6 W/m2 for shortwave CRF and -1.0 W/m2 for longwave CRF, are, however, a result of compensating errors over different dynamical regimes. Over the Maritime Continent, most of the models simulate moderately less high-cloud fraction, leading to weaker shortwave cooling and longwave warming and a larger net cooling. Over subtropical strong subsidence regimes, most of the CMIP5 models strongly underestimate stratocumulus cloud amount and show considerably weaker local shortwave CRF. Over the transitional trade cumulus regimes, a notable feature is that while at varying amplitudes, most of the CMIP5 models consistently simulate a deeper and drier boundary layer, more moist free troposphere, and more high clouds and, consequently, overestimate shortwave cooling and longwave warming effects there. While most of the CMIP5 models show the same sign as the multimodel mean, there are substantial model spreads, particularly over the tropical deep convective and subtropical strong subsidence regimes. Representing clouds and their TOA radiative effects remains a challenge in the CMIP5 models.
Barriers to use of oral rehydration therapy.

Not all physicians comply with American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for the use of oral rehydration therapy (ORT) to treat acute diarrhea and dehydration in children under five years old. The authors therefore surveyed 104 general pediatricians attending a national continuing medical education conference on their ORT-related knowledge attitude and practices to identify potential barriers to the use of ORT. 66% of the doctors were in private practice and 76% completed their training after 1980. Although 83% reported ORT to be important in their management of dehydration 30% reported withholding ORT in children with vomiting or moderate dehydration 50% fail to advise prompt refeeding and only 3% advise use of a spoon or syringe. The degree of importance of ORT in physicians practice was negatively associated with reported lack of convenience of ORT administration in the practice setting support staff preference for intravenous versus ORT need for additional training of support staff to implement ORT and likelihood of reimbursement for intravenous versus ORT. The degree of importance of ORT was not however associated with physician ORT knowledge. The authors conclude that efforts to improve use of ORT should be expanded beyond physician education and focus upon barriers such as support staff limitations and financial constraints.
OFDM channel estimation in the presence of asynchronous interference

We have recently proposed a frequency-domain channel estimation algorithm for a single-user orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) wireless system in the presence of synchronous interference. However, the interference cyclic prefix does not usually align with the desired user's cyclic prefix (i.e., the interferer is asynchronous) and thus a different approach is required. For an asynchronous interferer in a rich multipath environment, the received frequency-domain measurement is correlated in space with a full-rank covariance matrix on each subcarrier. Therefore, the synchronous algorithms may give poor detection performance since they assume reduced rank interference and use a smaller number of parameters. We overcome these problems by employing an appropriately structured model with a properly defined number of covariance parameters. We estimate the interference covariance parameters using a residual method of moments (RMM) estimator and the mean (i.e., the desired user's channel) parameters by maximum likelihood (ML) estimation. Since the RMM estimates are invariant to the mean, we obtain simple non-iterative estimates of the covariance parameters while having optimal statistical efficiency. Numerical results illustrate the applicability of the proposed algorithm.
The Electrical Plant of Transocean Radio Telegraphy

A description of the expansion of the Transocean Communication System of the Radio Corporation of America from a few isolated plants to a unified group of electrical plants all controlled for communication purposes from a central traffic in New York City, with a summary of the technical conditions covering the design of the Radio Central Station and of the technical conditions to be met in operating efficiently a modern radio communication system.
Resistance to streptolysin O in mammalian cells treated with oxygenated derivatives of cholesterol cholesterol content of resistant cells and recovery of streptolysin O sensitivity

Cultures of L cells and HeLa cells were made resistant to the cytolytic toxin, streptolysin O, by incubating them in the presence of 20 alpha-hydroxycholesterol or 25-hydroxycholesterol. Such cells were also found to be more resistant to the cytotoxic effects of saponin and digitonin, agents known to interact with membrane cholesterol. Sterol synthesis in L cells that had been treated with either of the oxygenated derivatives of cholesterol was reduced by almost 90%, and the free cholesterol content of streptolysin O-resistant HeLa and L cells fell to approx. 50% of control cell levels. Significant recovery of sensitivity to streptolysin O occurred in about 6 h when refractory L cells were incubated in serum or cholesterol. Partial recovery was observed when the cultures were incubated for 24 h in mevalonate or lipid-depleted serum. The results provide further support for the role of membrane cholesterol in the cytotoxic action of streptolysin O on mammalian cells.
Surgery for Thyroid Cancer

A technique of thyroidectomy that facilitates resection of the thyroid, preserves the parathyroid glands with their blood supply, and preserves the recurrent and the superior laryngeal nerves is described. This technique provides a simple and versatile means of complete extracapsular thyroidectomy for lesions of the thyroid gland and minimizes postoperative complications.
Allometry and developmental integration of body growth in a piranha, Pygocentrus nattereri (Teleostei: Ostariophysi).

Piranhas, like many teleosts, change their diets on both ontogenetic and phylogenetic time scales. Prior studies have suggested that pervasive morphological changes in body form on a phylogenetic time scale may be related to changes in diet, but previous reports have found little shape change in piranhas on an ontogenetic time scale. We re-examine the post-transformational allometry of body form in one piranha, Pygocentrus nattereri (Kner), using the method of thin-plate splines decomposed by their partial warps. We find substantial evidence of allometry, primarily elongation of the mid-body relative to the more anterior and posterior regions, elongation of the postorbital and nape regions relative to the more anterior head and posterior body, and deepening of the head relative to the body. In addition to these pervasive changes throughout the body, there are some that are more localized, especially elongation of the postorbital region relative to eye diameter and snout, and an even more localized elongation of the snout relative to eye diameter. Initial dietary transitions are associated with changes in head and jaw proportions, but rates of shape change decelerate through growth, so that the final transition to a diet increasingly dominated by small whole fish appears associated with change largely in overall body size. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Changes in glycerolipid content and fatty acid composition during tobacco seed germination

Abstract Tobacco seeds were germinated under 12 hr photoperiod at 28° for eight days and the contents of individual glycerolipids as their constituent fatty acids, as well as the fatty acid composition, were determined at one to two day intervals. Triacylglycerols, which were by far the largest seed lipid component, decreased markedly from 32 to 8.2% of seed mass. 1,2-Diacylglycerols increased remarkably in amount at first but then decreased; 1,3-diacylglycerol and free fatty acid content also increased as did that of phospholipids. Both monogalactosyldiaclyglycerol and digalactosyldiacylglycerol, as well as chlorophyll, were detected after three days of germination and largely increased thereafter. The fatty acid composition of the triacylglycerols did not change significantly during germination. Generally, in phospholipids the proportion of oleate decreased and that of linolenate increased, while in glycolipids the percentage of linolenate increased with concomitant decreases in that of palmitate, stearate and oleate.
Abstract 600: The HSV-2 oncolytic virus ΔPK induces multiple death and inflammatory programs associated with inhibition of melanoma tumor growth

Metastatic melanoma is a highly aggressive and drug resistant cancer. Oncolytic virotherapy is a novel therapeutic strategy designed to circumvent cancer resistance through virus replication-induced cancer cell lysis. Unfortunately, its clinical efficacy is modest, apparently related to poor virus replication within the tumors and the failure to stimulate inflammatory/immunotherapeutic pathways. The growth compromised herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) mutant ΔPK causes metastatic melanoma cell death through activation of multiple non-redundant death pathways. Activation of calpain and caspases-3 and -7 provide the bulk of the death programs, as evidenced by the finding of 80% protection in cells treated with the combination of calpain (PD150606) and pancaspase (zVAD-fmk) inhibitors. In addition, ΔPK upregulates the autophagy proteins Beclin-1 and LC-II and the autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine (3-MA) reduces ΔPK-induced cell death by 15-17%. Cell death is further decreased (to a total of 28-34%) by treatment with 3-MA together with the JNK inhibitor SP600125, indicating that JNK signaling and autophagy contribute independently to ΔPK-induced cell death. Inflammatory-related pathways contribute to ΔPK-induced melanoma cell death, as evidenced by caspase-1 activation, interleukin (IL)-1β release into the conditioned medium and upregulation of pro-apoptotic/stress signaling molecules and pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines identified by microarray analysis. These include BAD, BIK, BOK, NLRC4, CIDEB, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-12α, IL-12β, LTα, CXCL-10, c-JUN and caspases-4, -5, -6, -8, and -10. Tumor burden is significantly reduced by intratumoral injection of ΔPK and xenografts generated from a fresh clinical isolate, were completely eliminated for a period of 1 year following treatment. Growth inhibition is associated with activation of calpain and caspases-3, -7 and -1 and expression of the inflammatory cytokine TNF-α. Collectively, the data indicate that ΔPK eliminates tumor burden through the simultaneous activation of multiple non-redundant death programs and pro-inflammatory signaling, providing a distinct and promising virotherapeutic approach. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 600. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-600
Violence, abuse, and crime exposure in a national sample of children and youth.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research was to obtain national estimates of exposure to the full spectrum of the childhood violence, abuse, and crime victimizations relevant to both clinical practice and public-policy approaches to the problem. METHODS: The study was based on a cross-sectional national telephone survey that involved a target sample of 4549 children aged 0 to 17 years. RESULTS: A clear majority (60.6%) of the children and youth in this nationally representative sample had experienced at least 1 direct or witnessed victimization in the previous year. Almost half (46.3%) had experienced a physical assault in the study year, 1 in 4 (24.6%) had experienced a property offense, 1 in 10 (10.2%) had experienced a form of child maltreatment, 6.1% had experienced a sexual victimization, and more than 1 in 4 (25.3%) had been a witness to violence or experienced another form of indirect victimization in the year, including 9.8% who had witnessed an intrafamily assault. One in 10 (10.2%) had experienced a victimization-related injury. More than one third (38.7%) had been exposed to 2 or more direct victimizations, 10.9% had 5 or more, and 2.4% had 10 or more during the study year. CONCLUSIONS: The scope and diversity of child exposure to victimization is not well recognized. Clinicians and researchers need to inquire about a larger spectrum of victimization types to identify multiply victimized children and tailor prevention and interventions to the full range of threats that children face.
Predictors of cardiac survival after percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty in patients with severe left ventricular dysfunction

To assess the outcome of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) in patients with severe left ventricular (LV) dysfunction and to determine the predictors of mortality, 73 patients with LV ejection fraction less than or equal to 40% who underwent initial PTCA were analyzed. The majority of patients had prior (greater than 1 week) myocardial infarction (62 patients, 85%). Congestive heart failure and unstable angina were present in 24 (45%) and 49 (67%) patients, respectively. Multivessel coronary artery disease was present in 60 (83%). The LV ejection fraction ranged from 14 to 40% (mean 34%). Intraaortic balloon pump (15%) and percutaneous cardiopulmonary bypass support (4%) was used infrequently. Angiographic success was obtained in 109 of 128 lesions (85%) attempted. Complete revascularization was obtained in 16 of 60 patients with clinical success. Procedure-related mortality was 5% (4 patients). All patients were followed from greater than or equal to 6 to less than or equal to 71 months (average 26). The estimated survival was 79 +/- 5%, 74 +/- 6%, 66 +/- 7% and 57 +/- 8% at 1, 2, 3 and 4 years, respectively. A Cox regression analysis revealed that the presence of congestive heart failure, a lower LV ejection fraction and a higher myocardial jeopardy score for contractile myocardium were independent predictors of survival after PTCA in patients with LV dysfunction. In conclusion, a high-risk subset can be identified among patients with severe LV dysfunction who undergo PTCA.