cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Waste incineration and energy recovery

Abstract We discuss the implications of waste incineration on energy production at currently achieved conversion efficiencies to electricity and for realistic estimates of incinerable fractions of municipal, hazardous, and biomedical wastes. We find approximate steady-state contributions in the U.S. of 6.1 × 103, (3.0–3.9) × 103 and 0.5 × 103 MWe for these three technologies, respectively. A combustion-research agenda for waste incinerators is summarized briefly. Its implementation may be expected to contribute to the efficacious development of waste-incineration technologies and associated energy recovery.
Treatment planning and volumetric response assessment for Yttrium-90 radioembolization: semiautomated determination of liver volume and volume of tumor necrosis in patients with hepatic malignancy.

Purpose The primary purpose of this study was to demonstrate intraobserver/interobserver reproducibility for novel semiautomated measurements of hepatic volume used for Yttrium-90 dose calculations as well as whole-liver and necrotic-liver (hypodense/nonenhancing) tumor volume after radioembolization. The secondary aim was to provide initial comparisons of tumor volumetric measurements with linear measurements, as defined by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors criteria, and survival outcomes.
Determination of Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations of Liquid Smoke Fractions

: The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of 9 liquid smoke fractions against pathogenic and food spoilage organisms were determined using broth or agar dilution methods. Extract F1 (highest carbonyl content and lowest pH) was most effective against all microorganisms. MIC of F1 was 0.75% against Lactobacil-lus plantarum; 1.5% against Listeria innocua M1, Salmonella, Escherichia coli 8677, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Aspergillus niger; and 2% against Pseudomonas putida. The least effective smoke fraction F9 had MIC >9% against most organisms tested, had high pH, low phenols, and low carbonyls. Growth curves of individual bacteria and yeast below the MIC exhibited a prolonged lag phase that increased with increasing smoke concentrations.
An experimental evaluation of patient decision aid design to communicate the effects of medications on the rate of progression of structural joint damage in rheumatoid arthritis.

Abstract Objective To explore how effectively information presentation formats used in a patient decision aid communicated the ability of a disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug to slow the rate of progression of rheumatoid arthritis related structural joint damage (SJD). Methods 91 first year psychology students and 91 RA patients participated in a prospective randomized, single blind, factorial experimental design evaluating the effect of four information formats on: satisfaction with risk communication, verbatim and gist recall of a hypothetical anti-rheumatic drug's ability to slow the rate of progression of SJD. Results Both groups underestimated the hypothetical drug's ability to slow SJD. Formats that supported the narrative statement with a reinforcing graphic element resulted in recall closer to the true value. Comparison of the results from testing of RA patients and college students were remarkably similar across formats. Conclusion Rate of progression as communicated by narrative statement plus a graphic element (i.e. speedometer metaphor or pictograph) aided recall better than a narrative statement alone. Our results suggest that testing decision aid components with non-patients may provide data generalizable to patient populations. Practice implications Graphics must be used carefully in patient decision aids as they can enhance recall, but may also introduce unintended recall bias.
The Missing Quadrants of Antidiscrimination: Going Beyond the “Prejudice Polygraph”

Behavioral realists urge the law to respond to new scientific discoveries about the reality of contemporary discrimination. But in thinking about how the law might respond, it is easy to frame the question as: When should evidence from scientific instruments, such as the Implicit Association Test, be admissible in a discrimination lawsuit. In other words, should we admit into evidence the results of some “Prejudice Polygraph”? But this framing, which focuses on specific facts, found ex post is too narrow and obscures a much broader range of potential legal responses. Indeed, by considering both specific and general facts, as well as both ex post and ex ante time orientations, four separate quadrants of analysis emerge. Psychologists, legal scholars, and policymakers should not miss these other quadrants of antidiscrimination.
Myocardial blood flow in aortic regurgitation: computer-based predictions from wall stress compared with fluorescent microsphere measurements

In severe, chronic aortic regulation (AR) in man, systolic pressure time interval and diastolic pressure time interval measurements suggest an abnormal load-to-endocardial blood flow relationship. To better define this relationship, the authors extended their previously reported model for determining myocardial wall stress in include radial stress from endocardial (ENDO) to epicardium (EPI), a factor believed to influence distribution of coronary blood flow. Estimates of radial, circumferential and meridional stresses were compared with axial and transmyocardial blood flow measured from the base to apex and ENDO to EPI in normal rabbits and rabbits with severe, chronic AR. The authors' results suggest that blood flow is uniform from base to apex but not from ENDO to EPI near the apex where radial wall stress may influence blood flow. >
Mean Square Stabilizability of a Class of Nonlinear Stochastic Systems

In this work, we consider a class of discrete-time nonlinear stochastic control systems. By the use of proper mean square stabilizability and observability conditions, we are able to show the stabilizing property of both moving and infinite horizon quadratic optimal controllers. It is demonstrated that the m.s. stabilizability properties of these different types of controllers are equivalent and, therefore, the existence of the m.s. stabilizing controller of one type implies the existence of the other type with the same stability property. These results will allow the use of finite-stage solutions of a Riccati-like matrix equation in a stabilizing control design which may drastically reduce the computation time.
Seasonal variation in CHD.

Sir, That there is a seasonal variation in the manifestations of coronary artery disease as recently reported in the QJM1,,2—a winter peak and summer trough in morbidity and mortality—is a universal phenomenon. The same findings have …
Light-energy conversion in engineered microorganisms

Increasing interest in renewable resources by the energy and chemical industries has spurred new technologies both to capture solar energy and to develop biologically derived chemical feedstocks and fuels. Advances in molecular biology and metabolic engineering have provided new insights and techniques for increasing biomass and biohydrogen production, and recent efforts in synthetic biology have demonstrated that complex regulatory and metabolic networks can be designed and engineered in microorganisms. Here, we explore how light-driven processes may be incorporated into nonphotosynthetic microbes to boost metabolic capacity for the production of industrial and fine chemicals. Progress towards the introduction of light-driven proton pumping or anoxygenic photosynthesis into Escherichia coli to increase the efficiency of metabolically-engineered biosynthetic pathways is highlighted.
Cytolethal distending toxin: a conserved bacterial genotoxin that blocks cell cycle progression, leading to apoptosis of a broad range of mammalian cell lineages

Cytolethal distending toxin (CDT) is a heterotrimeric AB-type genotoxin produced by several clinically important Gram-negative mucocutaneous bacterial pathogens. Irrespective of the bacterial species of origin, CDT causes characteristic and irreversible cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in a broad range of cultured mammalian cell lineages. The active subunit CdtB has structural homology with the phosphodiesterase family of enzymes including mammalian DNase I, and alone is necessary and sufficient to account for cellular toxicity. Indeed, mammalian cells treated with CDT initiate a DNA damage response similar to that elicited by ionizing radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks resulting in cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. The mechanism of CDT-induced apoptosis remains incompletely understood, but appears to involve both p53-dependent and -independent pathways. While epithelial, endothelial and fibroblast cell lines respond to CDT by undergoing arrest of cell cycle progression resulting in nuclear and cytoplasmic distension that precedes apoptotic cell death, cells of haematopoietic origin display rapid apoptosis following a brief period of cell cycle arrest. In this review, the ecology of pathogens producing CDT, the molecular biology of bacterial CDT and the molecular mechanisms of CDT-induced cytotoxicity are critically appraised. Understanding the contribution of a broadly conserved bacterial genotoxin that blocks progression of the mammalian cell cycle, ultimately causing cell death, should assist with elucidating disease mechanisms for these important pathogens.
Barriers to diabetes education in urban patients: perceptions, patterns, and associated factors.

PurposeThis study explored patients’ perceptions of barriers to diabetes education among a mostly African American population of adults with diabetes.MethodsA survey was conducted among 605 new patients attending an urban outpatient diabetes clinic. The questionnaire gathered information on issues patients believed would adversely affect their ability to learn about diabetes. The type and frequency of education barriers were evaluated, and variables associated with reporting an obstacle were analyzed.ResultsAverage patient age was 50 years, diabetes duration was 5.6 years, body mass index was 32 kg/m2, and hemoglobin A1C was 9.1%. The majority (56%) were women, 89% were African American, and 95% had type 2 diabetes. Most respondents (96%) had received some prior instruction in diabetes care; however, 53% anticipated future difficulties learning about diabetes. The most commonly cited concerns were poor vision (74%) and reading problems (29%). Patients with a perceived barrier to diabetes education were ol...
Experimental investigation of cocurrent two-phase flow in a vertical rectangular channel

New time averaged data of two-phase flow in bubbly and slug regimes are presented. A modified dual spherical tipped optical fiber probe is used to measure local void fractions, gas velocity and bubble sizes. Hot film anemometry was used to measure the local mean liquid velocity axially. The void fraction, gas and liquid velocities values were presented as averages over the long and short dimensions respectively. Also core values of these variables are presented along the smaller dimension of 12.7 mm, near the plane of symmetry of the longer dimension, to show the most general trend of the different bubbly and slug flow runs. Bubble sizes obtained experimentally were compared with predictive models applied to circular geometries and were found to have a reasonable agreement. It was also interesting to find that local void fractions measured using hot film anemometers were comparable to those found by optical fiber probes. Frequencies of interfacial passage of bubbles and slugs are presented which show rather flat profiles across the channel. It is hoped that these data can be further used in predictive two-phase two-fluid models in the future. Lastly of interest is the fact that slip values near the boundaries were shown to be less than 1.0 for some cases in bubbly flow similar to those observed in circular geometries. On presente une serie de nouvelles donnees moyennes dans le temps, sur les regimes bouchons et bulleux d'un ecoulement biphasique. Une double-sonde modifiee a fibre optique a extremite spherique a ete utilisee pour mesurer le degre de vide local, la vitesse du gaz et la taille des bulles. On a utilise l'anemometrie a film chaud pour mesurer dans le sens de l'axe la vitesse moyenne locale du liquide. Les valeurs du degre de vide, de la vitesse du gaz et de celle du liquide sont presentees sous forme de moyennes dans le sens de la grande et de la petite dimension respectivement. On presente egalement les valeurs ponctuelles de ces variables le long de la plus petite dimension de 12.7 mm pres du plan de symetrie pour la plus grande dimension, afin de montrer la tendance generale des differents essais d'ecoulement en regimes bulleux et bouchons. Les tailles de bulles obtenues de maniere experimentale se comparent raisonnablement bien aux resultats de modeles predictifs appliques a des geometries circulaires. On a egalement remarque que les degres d vida locaux mesures par anemometrie a film chaud sont comparables a ceux obtenus a l'aide de word optiques. On montre que les frequences de passage interfacial des bulles et des bouchons ont des span le canal. On espere utiliser ces donnees ulterieurement dans des modeles predictifs biphasiques a span Finalement, on a trouve que les valeurs de glissement pres des frontieres sont inferieures a l'unite dans certains cas d'ecoulements bulleux identiques a ceux qu'on observe en geometrie circulaire.
Epstein–Barr Virus Modulates Host Cell MicroRNA-194 to Promote IL-10 Production and B Lymphoma Cell Survival

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a γ-herpesvirus that is linked to the development of posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD) in solid organ recipients. We previously demonstrated that EBV(+) B cell lymphoma cell lines isolated from patients with PTLD produce human IL-10 as an autocrine growth factor. However, little is known regarding IL-10 regulation in B cells. Here we show that EBV infection markedly alters the expression of host B cell microRNA, a class of small noncoding RNA that is an important regulator of transcriptional and posttranscriptional gene expression. Gene arrays reveal unique microRNA profiles in EBV(+) B cell lymphoma lines from patients with PTLD, compared to normal B cells or in vitro generated EBV(+) lymphoblastoid cell lines. We show that microRNA-194 expression is uniquely suppressed in EBV(+) B cell lines from PTLD patients and that the 3'untranslated region of IL-10 is targeted by microRNA-194. Overexpression of microRNA-194 attenuates IL-10 production and increases apoptosis of EBV(+) B cell lymphoma lines. Together, these data indicate that EBV co-opts the host B cell microRNA network and specifically suppresses microRNA-194 to override control of IL-10 expression. Thus, modulation of microRNA-194 may constitute a novel approach to inhibiting proliferation of EBV(+) B cell lymphomas in PTLD.
Significance Testing in Theory and Practice

Frequentism and Bayesianism represent very different approaches to hypothesis testing, and this presents a skeptical challenge for Bayesians. Given that the most empirical research uses frequentist methods, why (if at all) should we rely on it? While it is well known that there are conditions under which Bayesian and frequentist methods agree, without some reason to think these conditions are typically met, the Bayesian hasn’t shown why we are usually safe in relying on results reported by significance testers. In this article, I provide arguments that such conditions will usually be met; the Bayesian can maintain her theoretical disagreement with the frequentist while holding that her error is mostly harmless in practice.
Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy for Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy of the Prostate

system. Treatment was delivered using 6/10 MV beam with one single 360 o arc containing 20 sectors. The MLC performed a full dynamic sweep in each sector. All the calculations were performed using a Monte Carlo algorithm, including the QA plans. Plans wereverified using the cylindrical ArcCheck QA device. AQA criterion of 3%-3mm was used to determine the plan passing rate. Results: In all cases at least 95% of the PTV received the prescription dose. The resulting coverage yielded a median prostate mean dose of 53.7 Gy [52.2 - 55.2 Gy] and a median PTV mean dose of 53.5 Gy [51.8 - 54.5 Gy]. Due to the proximity of PTV, the most stringent dose constraints were for the bladder wall and anterior rectal wall. The median bladder wall V25Gy was 9.3cc [8.8 - 13.8] and the median anterior rectum wall V50Gy was 1.9cc [0.7 - 3.5]. The urethra maximum dose was limited to less than 52.5 Gy. The median treatment time was 10:06 min [8:24 - 12:35] and the median number of MUs was 3630 [3137 4620] which indicated that most of the MUs were efficiently delivered at a high dose rate during most of the treatment (max dose rate 480 MU/min). The number of MLC segments decreased progressively as experience built up and the median was 185 [166 1108]. QA passing rates were fully satisfactory and above our threshold of 90% with a median of 95.95% [93.4 - 98.6%]. Conclusions: Highly conformal plans were generated and delivered using Monaco and VMAT. Very short treatment times were achieved, thereby improving patient comfort and reducing the risk of intra-fractional motion associated with long treatments times. QA results show excellent agreement between measurements and plans. Patients tolerated treatments well acutely.
The Measurement of Platelet-Poor Plasma Serotonin: A Systematic Review of Prior Reports and Recommendations for Improved Analysis

BACKGROUND: Recent reports of new and important roles for serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) in the periphery have substantially increased interest in measuring peripheral serotonin. Nearly all circulating serotonin is found within platelets and this pool has been assessed by measuring serotonin in whole blood or in platelet-rich plasma. Measurement of the much smaller but potentially critically important pool of human free plasma serotonin in platelet-poor plasma (PPP) has proven much more difficult, with a wide range of reference values reported. CONTENT: To characterize the available data we carried out a systematic literature search of previous reports of PPP serotonin and attempted to determine the best estimate of true PPP serotonin concentration in humans. A total of 101 published reports that included PPP serotonin values in healthy controls were found and included in the summary statistical analyses. The distribution of PPP serotonin values demonstrated high skewness (+1.98), and the reported values ranged from 0.6 to 179 nmol/L, with a mean of 31.6 nmol/L, an SD of 38.9 nmol/L, and a median of 14.8 nmol/L. SUMMARY: Reported concentrations for human PPP or free plasma serotonin were highly discrepant, with most reports giving erroneously high values that should be disregarded. Inherent difficulties in selectively measuring the extremely low concentrations of serotonin present in PPP and in preparing PPP without contamination from platelet-derived serotonin contributed to the problem, as did the failure of researchers to compare their results with those from prior studies. There is a clear and pressing need for reference materials for the measurement of plasma (PPP) serotonin.
Optimal design of flat-gain wide-band fiber Raman amplifiers

We present a novel method for designing multiwavelength pumped fiber Raman amplifiers with optimal gain-flatness and gain-bandwidth performance. We show that by solving the inverse amplifier design problem, relative gain flatness well below 1% can be achieved over bandwidths of up to 12 THz without any gain equalization devices. This constitutes a substantial improvement in gain flatness compared to the existing wide-band optical fiber amplifiers.
Variation of noise in multi-run functional MRI using generalized autocalibrating partially parallel acquisition (GRAPPA)

Purpose: To investigate the noise variation in multi-run functional MRI (fMRI) scans using generalized autocalibrating partially parallel acquisition (GRAPPA), with a focus on the cause of this variation. Materials and Methods: A phantom was continuously scanned for 10 runs using echo-planar imaging (EPI) combined with GRAPPA to simulate a multi-run fMRI exam. The variation of noise between runs was examined for different GRAPPA acceleration factors. The noise variation was also evaluated in a real fMRI experiment with human subjects at an acceleration factor of two. The cause of noise variation was explored by offline reconstruction using different GRAPPA weights and numerical simulation of GRAPPA reference scans. Results: It was found that the noise distribution in the image is stable within a run but may vary randomly from run to run. The variation of noise was also observed in fMRI experiments with human subjects. The variation can be significantly reduced if all the images from individual runs are reconstructed using the same reference scan data. Conclusion: Both phantom experiments and human data showed that the noise pattern may change in different fMRI runs. The variation is mainly caused by the random noise in separate reference scans for GRAPPA in each run. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2012;462-470. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Influence of Parent and Peer Attachments on Life Satisfaction in Middle Childhood and Early Adolescence

Satisfaction in different life domains wasexamined with respect to parent and peerattachment relationships in middle childhoodand early adolescence. Three hundred threestudents, evenly distributed across sex andgrade (fourth, sixth, and eighth) wereadministered People in My Life, ameasure of attachment relationships, and theMultidimensional Students' LifeSatisfaction Scale. Children and earlyadolescents in this sample generally reportedhigh levels of life satisfaction. Some sex andgrade differences in satisfaction with variouslife domains emerged. Attachments to bothparents and peers predicted life satisfaction,although the influence of these relationshipsvaried as a function of grade level and lifedomain. Findings are reviewed in relation topast research, and implications forprofessional practice are discussed.
Toward Synergy-Based Brain-Machine Interfaces

This paper demonstrates a synergy-based brain-machine interface that uses low-dimensional command signals to control a high dimensional virtual hand. First, temporal postural synergies were extracted from the angular velocities of finger joints of five healthy subjects when they performed hand movements that were similar to activities of daily living. Two synergies inspired from the extracted synergies, namely, two-finger pinch and whole-hand grasp, were used in real-time brain control, where a virtual hand with 10 degrees of freedom was controlled to grasp or pinch virtual objects. These two synergies were controlled by electrocorticographic (ECoG) signals recorded from two electrodes of an electrode array that spanned motor and speech areas of an individual with intractable epilepsy, thus demonstrating closed loop control of a synergy-based brain-machine interface.
Fractional flow-guided coronary artery bypass grafting: a word of caution.

The traditional basis for all forms of coronary artery revascularization has been the percent stenosis resulting from an atherosclerotic plaque or thrombotic occlusion based on coronary angiography. With the introduction of fractional flow reserve (FFR) technology, a new gold standard has been developed to assess the severity of a coronary artery stenosis that takes into account the physiology of that stenosis. Article see p 1405 FFR is defined as the ratio of maximal blood flow across a stenotic lesion compared with normal maximal flow. It is measured with a coronary pressure guidewire and is compared with the aortic pressure measured simultaneously with the guide catheter during maximum hyperemia. An FFR value of 90%.1 The FFR technique requires some extra manipulation during the catheterization, and a central line may be necessary if intravenous adenosine is used to elicit the maximal hyperemic response. Although there is potential for trauma to the coronary vessel, this complication is rarely reported. Initially, FFR was used to determine the applicability of stenting for patients with single-vessel disease. In a study involving 67 patients with multivessel disease, Melikian and coworkers2 showed that FFR measurements were not influenced by either the presence or absence of stenosis in other adjacent vessels and could be used to assess coronary stenosis in patients with multivessel disease. The Fractional Flow Reserve Versus Angiography in Multivessel Evaluation (FAME) I trial used FFR to determine the need for stent deployment in 1005 patients with ≥2 diseased coronary arteries compared with decisions based on angiography alone.3 The primary end point, a combination of death, myocardial infarction, and the need for repeat revascularization, occurred in 18.3% of patients in the angiography group compared with 13.2% in the FFR group ( P …
Regional variation in home-range-scale habitat models for fisher (Martes pennanti) in California

We analyzed recent survey data and mapped environmental variables integrated over a home range scale of 10 km2 to model the distribution of fisher (Martes pennanti) habitat in California, USA. Our goal was to identify habitat factors associated with the current distribution of fishers in California, and to test whether those factors differ for widely disjunct northern and southern populations. Our analyses were designed to probe whether poor habitat quality can explain the current absence of fishers in the historically occupied central and northern Sierra Nevada region that separates these two populations. Fishers were detected at 64/433 (14.8%) sample units, including 35/111 (32%) of sample units in the Klamath/Shasta region and 28/88 (32%) of sample units in the southern Sierra Nevada. Generalized additive models (GAM) that included mean annual precipitation, topographic relief, forest structure, and a spatial autocovariate term best predicted fisher detections over the species' recent historical range in California. Models derived using forest structure data from ground plots were comparable to models derived from Landsat Thematic Mapper imagery. Models for the disjunct Klamath/Cascades and southern Sierra Nevada populations selected different environmental factors and showed low agreement in the spatial pattern of model predictions. Including a spatial autocovariate term significantly improved model fits for all models except the southern Sierra Nevada. We cannot rule out dispersal or habitat in explaining the absence of fishers in the northern and central Sierra Nevada, but mapped habitat quality is low over much of the region. Landscapes with good fisher habitat may exist in rugged forested canyons of the currently unoccupied northern Sierra Nevada, but these areas are fragmented and at least 60 km from the nearest recent fisher detections.
Progress in Biofeedback Conditioning for Fecal Incontinence

Fifty consecutive patients with severe daily fecal incontinence for 1–38 yr were treated with biofeedback training using a 3-balloon system connected to a physiograph. Ages ranged from 6 to 97 yr (average 46 yr) including 36 females and 14 males. Follow-up period was 4–108 mo (average 32 mo, median 26 mo). Twenty-four patients had incontinence associated with previous anorectal surgery. Eleven patients had spinal surgery. Medical problems associated with incontinence included irritable bowel syndrome, diabetes, rectal prolopse, multiple sclerosis, scleroderma, and stroke. Patients were taught to develop reflex transient contraction of the external sphincter in response to rectal distention. Increasing sensitivity was conditioned by gradually decreasing the distending volume. Thirty-six of 50 patients achieved a good symptomatic response to biofeedback training as evidenced by disappearance of incontinence or by decrease in frequency of incontinence by 90%. Before conditioning, threshold (minimal volume of distention required to produce external sphincter contraction) was similar (40 cc) in both good responders and poor responders. Eight good responders, before conditioning, had no contraction to volumes of 50 cc or greater. After conditioning, threshold diminished to 16 cc in the responders and 33 cc in the poor response group. Seventy-five percent (27) of those who achieved a good response did so after one conditioning session. Only 2 patients regressed temporarily, and they responded to repeat conditioning. The patients with impaired sphincter muscle but normal neural apparatus had better results. There are no medical contraindications to the procedure. It is simple, rapid, and without morbidity. The effectiveness of this biofeedback conditioning demonstrates for the first time that manometric techniques can play a direct therapeutic role in the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders.
Coping with cleft: A conceptual framework of caregiver responses to nasoalveolar molding

Objective: To present a conceptual framework of caregiver coping and adaptation to early cleft care using nasoalveolar molding. Design: In-depth interviews were conducted at three time points with caregivers of infants with cleft lip or cleft lip and palate whose children had nasoalveolar molding to treat their cleft. Qualitative data were analyzed using modified grounded theory. Results: Most caregivers expressed initial apprehension and anxiety about the responsibilities of care associated with nasoalveolar molding (e.g., changing and positioning tapes, cleaning the appliance). In subsequent interviews, caregivers often reported positive feelings related to their active participation in their child's treatment for cleft. These positive feelings were associated with increased self-esteem and feelings of empowerment for the caregivers. Although caregivers also identified burdens associated with nasoalveolar molding (e.g., stress related to lip taping, concerns about the appliance causing sores in their ch...
Sources and Distribution of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Urban Soils: Case Studies of Detroit and New Orleans

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous organic pollutants in urban environments. Incomplete combustion of petroleum and coal are the primary sources of elevated concentrations of urban PAHs. The purposes of the study were: 1) to determine and compare the concentration of PAHs in soils taken from two major US cities, New Orleans and Detroit; and 2) to examine the main sources of PAHs in urban soils by diagnostic PAH ratios. A total of 107 New Orleans soil samples were taken from 6 census tracts (n = 13–19 per census tract) and compared with 106 Detroit soil samples from 6 census tracts. Sampling sites included house foundations, open spaces, and soil bordering residential and busy streets. The average total PAH (sum of 17 PAH concentrations) of Detroit soils was 7,843 μ g/kg, compared to 5,100 μ g/kg for New Orleans soils. Several diagnostic PAH concentration ratios were calculated for source determination for Detroit and New Orleans, respectively: phenanthrene/anthracene ratios (2.97 and 5...
Semi-analytic treatment of nearly-singular Galerkin surface integrals

On utilizing piecewise linear test and interpolation functions over flat triangles, three semi-analytic techniques for evaluating nearly-singular surface integrals of potential theory are developed and investigated in the context of a three-dimensional Galerkin approximation. In all procedures, the inner surface integral is calculated exactly via recursive expressions defined over the edges of the integration triangle. In addition, the proposed methods respectively employ a Duffy transformation, sinh transformations, and polynomial transformations to weaken or smooth out near singularities, followed by a standard product Gauss-Legendre quadrature rule to compute the outer boundary integral. Numerical experiments and comparisons of the proposed approaches are included to provide more insight into the performance of these techniques. Computational tests have demonstrated that the algorithm based on a Duffy transformation is the most efficient and effective method for dealing with nearly-singular as well as well-separated integrals.
Ecophysiology of an Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaeon Adapted to Low-Salinity Habitats

Ammonia oxidation in marine and terrestrial ecosystems plays a pivotal role in the cycling of nitrogen and carbon. Recent discoveries have shown that ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) are both abundant and diverse in these systems, yet very little is known about their physiology. Here we report a physiological analysis of a novel low-salinity-type AOA enriched from the San Francisco Bay estuary, Candidatus Nitrosoarchaeum limnia strain SFB1. N. limnia has a slower growth rate than Nitrosopumilus maritimus and Nitrososphaera viennensis EN76, the only pure AOA isolates described to date, but the growth rate is comparable to the growth of marine AOA enrichment cultures. The growth rate only slightly decreased when N. limnia was grown under lower-oxygen conditions (5.5 % oxygen in the headspace). Although N. limnia was capable of growth at 75 % of seawater salinity, there was a longer lag time, incomplete oxidation of ammonia to nitrite, and slower overall growth rate. Allylthiourea (ATU) only partially inhibited growth and ammonia oxidation by N. limnia at concentrations known to completely inhibit bacterial ammonia oxidation. Using electron microscopy, we confirmed the presence of flagella as suggested by various flagellar biosynthesis genes in the N. limnia genome. We demonstrate that N. limnia is representative of a low-salinity estuarine AOA ecotype and that more than 85 % of its proteins have highest identity to other coastal and estuarine metagenomic sequences. Our findings further highlight the physiology of N. limnia and help explain its ecological adaptation to low-salinity niches.
Two New Nearctic Species of Boletina Staeger Fungus Gnats (Diptera: Mycetophilidae) from Jack Pine (Pinus banksiana Lambert) Forest

Two new species of Boletina Staeger fungus gnats were discovered in western Michigan near the southern limit of the distribution of jack pine, Pinus banksiana Lambert. Neither species was observed during almost 10 years of trapping in a nearby swamp dominated by black ash (Fraxinus nigra Marshall) despite being so close to the drier evergreen locality (approximately 1 km) that one trapping spot could be seen from the other if vegetation were not in the way. This suggests habitat specificity for Boletina incisa Taber and Boletina rugosa Taber.
Engineering Management—University Extension

The burgeoning field of engineering management is an education phenomenon of the post-World War II era. University extension, nationwide, have been the traditional suppliers of engineering management programs for practicing professionals. Free-standing evening courses speak to the needs of individual engineers seeking specific management training at minimum cost. Certificate programs in several engineering management fields are offered through after-hours courses given in urban centers, many of these in cooperation with the recognized technical/professional societies in cognizant fields. Short courses, full-time offerings of three to five days, answer the needs of engineer managers in industry and construction. More expensive than an after-hours course, the short course is expected to deliver more intense management education for the time invested. The UCLA Engineering and Management Course, a cornerstone of the industry now in its 24th year, is described in detail.
Rethinking Institutional Analysis: Interviews with Vincent and Elinor Ostrom

On November 7th, 2003, the Fund for the Study of Spontaneous Orders, the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, and the Institute for Humane Studies honored Vincent and Elinor Ostrom with a Lifetime Achievement Award for their pioneering contributions to the field of political economy through their work on institutional reform, common pool resources, self-governance, and a variety of other topics. In honor of this award, Paul Dragos Aligica interviewed the scholars on their work in institutional analysis.
Liquidation of Businesses May Produce Specifically Allocable Nonbusiness Income

The author discusses a developing line of cases ruling on the proper allocation of the liquidation proceeds of liquidated C or S corporations where the proceeds were not reinvested in similar businesses of the shareholder. In these cases, the liquidation proceeds were found allocable to the state or states where the liquidated assets were physically located or, in the case of goodwill or other intangibles, to the state of commercial domicile of the liquidated corporation. The author finds these cases to be broadly applicable and reports that they may provide a defense against taxation of the gain in the nondomiciliary states where the liquidated corporation had business operations.
Draft Genome Assembly of a Filamentous Euendolithic (True Boring) Cyanobacterium, Mastigocoleus testarum Strain BC008.

ABSTRACT Mastigocoleus testarum strain BC008 is a model organism used to study marine photoautotrophic carbonate dissolution. It is a multicellular, filamentous, diazotrophic, euendolithic cyanobacterium ubiquitously found in marine benthic environments. We present an accurate draft genome assembly of 172 contigs spanning 12,700,239 bp with 9,131 annotated genes with an average G+C% of 37.3.
Medical Termination of Pregnancy Laws in Nepal and India: A Comparative Study

The researcher would like to begin this paper, by clarifying its scope. It is in light of this that the researcher in this paper, will be dealing with termination of pregnancy rather than 'abortion'. The following are the reasons why the terms cannot be read as synonyms. First, abortion can also mean miscarriage or the unexpected or unintended loss of fetus due to natural processes. However, what the researcher seeks to discuss in this paper is the intended ending of pregnancy which would otherwise be expected to progress normally. Secondly, abortion would also cover within its ambit abortion performed or attempted outside the medical arena, whereas, the researcher seeks to examine the issues concerning termination of pregnancy using medically prescribed methods. Lastly, the term abortion is much broader than 'medical termination of pregnancy', which is the main focus of researcher.
The microvasculature of the sesamoid complex: its clinical significance.

The microvascular anatomy of the sesamoid complex was investigated in 15 cadaver specimens using histology and tissue clearing (Spalteholz) techniques. It was found that both sesamoids appeared equally well vascularized and the vascular supply to each sesamoid originated from two major sources (proximal and plantar) and one minor source (distal). Proximally, vessels originating from the first plantar metatarsal artery enter the sesamoid at its attachment to the flexor hallucis brevis. In addition, vessels enter the plantar surface of the sesamoid near the midline and arborize throughout the bone, anastamosing with the proximal vessels. The distal vascular supply to the sesamoids originates from its distal capsular attachment and appears to contribute minimally to the overall vascular scheme. The lateral attachments of the sesamoids to the plantar plate and joint capsule were relatively avascular. In two bipartite specimens examined, the major blood supply originated from the proximal and distal poles of t...
Kinetics of B2 and D03 Ordering: Theory

Monte-Carlo simulations (MCS) and the path probability method (PPM) were used to study disorder→order transformations in bcc alloys having the AB3 stoichiometry. Both methods used an explicit vacancy mechanism of ordering and an activated-state rate theory for the vacancy jumps. We studied the evolution of short-range order (SRO) as well as B2 and D03 long-range order (LRO)in alloys that began as random solid solutions. The growth rates of SRO and LRO were significantly higher for the PPM than for the MCS. We attribute this difference to improper handling of correlated vacancy motions in the PPM. The PPM also suffered from an artificial incubation time for the initiation of LRO. Both the MCS and the PPM showed that SRO has a tendency to develop in two stages. In the first stage there is a quick relaxation of the SRO by itself. In the second stage, which occurs with a longer time constant, the SRO and LRO grow simultaneously. Parametric plots of one order parameter against another, here termed “kinetic paths”, are discussed. A variety of different kinetic paths through the B2 and D03 order parameters can be predicted theoretically, depending on the choice of interatomic potentials. This range of calculated “kinetic paths” is broad enough to encompass our experimental results of SRO and LRO evolution in Fe3Al.
Autism and Epilepsy

The prevalence of autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) in children (2-18 years of age) with epilepsy was evaluated at a Tertiary Care Epilepsy Clinic at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada
CONCLUDING REMARKS ON TUBULAR HANDLING OF CALCIUM AND PHOSPHATE

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the handling of phosphate by the kidney. In isolated rabbit renal tubules perfused in vitro, studies have localized sites of phosphate absorption (Jp) in the proximal tubule segments, and parathyroid hormone (PTH) action. These studies explain the effects of pH, glucose, amino acids, arsenate, and dietary manipulations. They also highlight the dependence of Jp on Na+ in the lumen and K+ in the bath, competition of glucose and amino acids with phosphate, inhibition of Jp by arsenate, and augmentation of Jp by a low phosphate diet. The chapter also provides an overview on the various aspects of phosphate homeostasis. Under a variety of experimental conditions, a correlation between the serum phosphorus and the tubular maximum is shown for phosphate absorption (Tmp). The alterations in tubular phosphate absorption do not appear to be dependent on the action of PTH, but rather seem to be related to changes in phosphate supply and demand. The uptake of phosphate by brush border membrane vesicles reflects the changes in the whole kidney. This adaptive response of the kidney to alterations in dietary phosphate is greatly blunted in x-linked hypophosphatemic mice.
The role of the orbitofrontal cortex in regulation of interpersonal space: evidence from frontal lesion and frontotemporal dementia patients

Interpersonal distance is central to communication and complex social behaviors but the neural correlates of interpersonal distance preferences are not defined. Previous studies suggest that damage to the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is associated with impaired interpersonal behavior. To examine whether the OFC is critical for maintaining appropriate interpersonal distance, we tested two groups of patients with OFC damage: Patients with OFC lesions and patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia. These two groups were compared to healthy controls and to patients with lesions restricted to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Only patients with OFC damage showed abnormal interpersonal distance preferences, which were significantly different from both controls and patients with dorsolateral prefrontal damage. The comfortable distances these patients chose with strangers were significantly closer than the other groups and resembled distances normally used with close others. These results shed light on the role of the OFC in regulating social behavior and may serve as a simple diagnostic tool for dementia or lesion patients.
Cuba and the Development of Underdevelopment

Cuba’s position within the international capitalist system has been determined by historical forces not of its own making, and in many fundamental ways the Cubans have merely responded to the external stimulus imposed upon the nation by the consolidation of the capitalist world economy. As a result, Cuba’s developmental history is symbolic of the paradoxical relationship that emerged among Europe, North America (for the purposes of this analysis the US, not Canada) and the nations of the Third World. This chapter will shift to an analysis of those factors that have contributed to Cuba’s domestic and international position within the context of the capitalist world economy. At this point it is necessary to explore the economic, political, and social conditions which first led Spain to pursue the colonial adventure.
Quantifying Dynamic Changes in Plantar Pressure Gradient in Diabetics with Peripheral Neuropathy.

Diabetic foot ulcers remain one of the most serious complications of diabetes. Peak plantar pressure (PPP) and peak pressure gradient (PPG) during walking have been shown to be associated with the development of diabetic foot ulcers. To gain further insight into the mechanical etiology of diabetic foot ulcers, examination of the pressure gradient angle (PGA) has been recently proposed. The PGA quantifies directional variation or orientation of the pressure gradient during walking, and provides a measure of whether pressure gradient patterns are concentrated or dispersed along the plantar surface. We hypothesized that diabetics at risk of foot ulceration would have smaller PGA in key plantar regions, suggesting less movement of the pressure gradient over time. A total of 27 participants were studied, including 19 diabetics with peripheral neuropathy and 8 non-diabetic control subjects. A foot pressure measurement system was used to measure plantar pressures during walking. PPP, PPG and PGA were calculated for four foot regions - 1st toe (T1), 1st metatarsal head (M1), 2nd metatarsal head (M2), and heel (HL). Consistent with prior studies, PPP and PPG were significantly larger in the diabetic group compared to non-diabetic controls in the T1 and M1 regions, but not M2 or HL. For example, PPP was 165% (P=0.02) and PPG was 214% (P<0.001) larger in T1. PGA was found to be significantly smaller in the diabetic group in T1 (46%, P=0.04), suggesting a more concentrated pressure gradient pattern under the toe. The proposed PGA may improve our understanding of the role of pressure gradient on the risk of diabetic foot ulcers.