cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Revolver: Vertex-Centric Graph Partitioning Using Reinforcement Learning

Big graph analytics is gaining a widespread momentum across different fields, including biology, computer vision, social networks, recommendation systems and transportation logistics, to mention just a few. Distributed systems for graph analytics are utilized as a mean to process big graphs. To distribute and balance computation and communication loads within a distributed graph analytics system, graph partitioning algorithms can be leveraged. In this paper, we propose Revolver, a machine learning-based graph partitioning algorithm. In particular, Revolver uses reinforcement learning and label propagation to efficiently and effectively carry out the task of graph partitioning. It employs a vertex-centric approach where each vertex in a graph is associated with an autonomous agent responsible for assigning a suitable partition to the vertex. In addition, it uses label propagation to evaluate the decency of partitioning. Evaluation results show that Revolver can produce highly balanced and localized partitions compared to three popular and state-of-the-art graph partitioning algorithms.
Patient-Provider Interactions: Promoting Effective Behavior and Providing Optimal Care

The patient-provider relationship is an integral aspect of healthcare and behavior change that has progressively prioritized patient-centered care. As the patient-provider relationship has evolved, so have the methods used to assess, understand, and modify this relationship. Moreover, there has been increasing interest in evaluating how clinical encounters may impact patient-oriented outcome variables such as satisfaction with care, adherence to treatment recommendations, and clinical outcomes. Consideration of variability in patient preferences (e.g., preferred role in decision-making and behavioral self-management) appears to be a critical factor in providing optimal patient-centered care. Motivational interviewing and tailored health communication represent tools to help providers promote effective patient behavior change by customizing interventions to patients’ characteristics or readiness to change. Through addressing critical aspects of the patient-provider interaction, healthcare providers and delivery systems can maximize the reach and effectiveness of their impact on patient outcomes.
Aryl hydrocarbon receptor-mediated activity of gas-phase ambient air derived from passive sampling and an in vitro bioassay

The gaseous fraction of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) in ambient air appears to be responsible for a significant portion of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR)-mediated activity, but the majority of compounds contributing to this activity remain unidentified. The present study investigated the use of polyethylene passive samplers to isolate gaseous HOCs from ambient air for use in in vitro bioassays and to improve our understanding of the toxicological relevance of the gaseous fraction of ambient air in urban and residential environments. Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and organic flame retardants were measured in polyethylene passive sampler extracts. Extracts were also analyzed using an in vitro bioassay to measure AhR-mediated activity. Bioassay-derived benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) equivalents (BaP-Eqbio ), a measure of potency of HOC mixtures, were greatest in the downtown Cleveland area and lowest at rural/residential sites further from the city center. The BaP-Eqbio was weakly correlated with concentrations of 2-ring alkyl/substituted PAHs and one organophosphate flame retardant, ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate. Potency predicted based on literature-derived induction equivalency factors (IEFs) explained only 2 to 23% of the AhR-mediated potency observed in bioassay experiments. Our results suggests that health risks of gaseous ambient air pollution predicted using data from targeted chemical analysis may underestimate risks of exposure, most likely due to augmentation of potency by unmonitored chemicals in the mixture, and the lack of relevant IEFs for many targeted analytes. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:748-759. © 2019 SETAC.
Note on the Plan of Strauss’ The City and Man

The City and Man (1964) is examined as representative of Leo Strauss’ teaching. Read from a Cold War perspective, The City and Man offers a window into Strauss’ teaching in its purest form: no less than an anti-utopian political manifesto intended to bolster the West against the Communist enemy and urge the free world to mend its ways. Strauss’ interpretations of Aristotelian politics, the concept of justice in Plato’s Republic, and the idea of war in Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War are prominent examples. It is in this text that Strauss the teacher emerges in all his glory; here, the complexities of his development from Weimar to America visibly converge.
Regional, institutional, and departmental factors associated with gender diversity among BS-level chemical and electrical engineering graduates.

Engineering remains the least gender diverse of the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. Chemical engineering (ChE) and electrical engineering (EE) are exemplars of relatively high and low gender diversity, respectively. Here, we investigate departmental, institutional, and regional factors associated with gender diversity among BS graduates within the US, 2010–2016. For both fields, gender diversity was significantly higher at private institutions (p < 1x10-6) and at historically black institutions (p < 1x10-5). No significant association was observed with gender diversity among tenure-track faculty, PhD-granting status, and variations in departmental name beyond the standard “chemical engineering” or “electrical engineering”. Gender diversity among EE graduates was significantly decreased (p = 8x10-5) when a distinct degree in computer engineering was available; no such association was observed between ChE gender diversity and the presence of biology-associated degrees. States with a highly gender diverse ChE workforce had a significantly higher degree of gender diversity among BS graduates (p = 3x10-5), but a significant association was not observed for EE. State variation in funding of support services for K-12 pupils significantly impacted gender diversity of graduates in both fields (p < 1x10-3), particularly in regards to instructional staff support (p < 5x10-4). Nationwide, gender diversity could not be concluded to be either significantly increasing or significantly decreasing for either field.
Highlights from the HAWC Observatory

Abstract The High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory is a wide-field survey instrument sensitive to gamma rays and cosmic rays in the energy range from ∼100 GeV to > 100 TeV. Located in the state of Puebla, Mexico at 4100 m above sea level, HAWC has been fully operational for over three years, since its inauguration in March 2015. This work highlights recent results from HAWC, including both Galactic and extragalactic gamma-ray sources as well as cosmic-ray observations. It also highlights HAWC's role in several multimessenger studies, focusing on what we can learn in conjunction with neutrinos observed by IceCube and HAWC observations of GRBs in the context of gravitational waves.
Current Device-based Clinical Treatments for Tinnitus

Device-based clinical treatments for tinnitus are predominantly sound based and include ear-level sound generators, hearing aids, cochlear implants, and tinnitus treatment devices. They are intended for patients with bothersome tinnitus. Bothersome tinnitus is characterized by problems with sleep, concentration, and mood. Most people with bothersome tinnitus have hearing loss and would benefit from amplification; however, not all patients are willing to use hearing aids. Tinnitus treatment devices are available to assist those who are not good candidates for amplification, and include devices used while sleeping and devices used for specified periods during the day.
Dateneingabe durch Sensoren

In der modernen Mes- und Regelungstechnik werden Einflus und Bedeutung der Datenubertragung und -verarbeitung von Jahr zu Jahr groser. Die Zahl der praktischen Anwendungen und deren Wachstum ist dabei wesentlich bestimmt und begrenzt durch die Sensoren, die physikalische Grosen wie Weg, Druck, Temperatur usw. in elektrische Grosen umsetzen. Liefern die Sensoren an ihrem Ausgang Analogwerte, so ist, unter Umstanden nach einer Verstarkerstufe, ein Analog-DigitalUmsetzer nachzuschalten. Es ist zu beobachten, das die technische Entwicklung ein raumliches und funktionelles Naherrucken von Sensor und Wandler erkennen last, aber auch eine verstarkte Entwicklung von Sensoren, die direkt digitale Signale abgeben, d.h., die Digitalisierung des Messignals ruckt immer naher an die Messtelle. Nachgeschaltete Mikroprozessoren erleichtern heute die Konstruktion von Sensorsystemen durch Speicherung von nichtlinearen Kennlinien und durch Ausgleichsrechnung, wobei auch Temperatureinflusse mit berucksichtigt werden konnen.
ConFoc: Content-Focus Protection Against Trojan Attacks on Neural Networks.

Deep Neural Networks (DNNs) have been applied successfully in computer vision. However, their wide adoption in image-related applications is threatened by their vulnerability to trojan attacks. These attacks insert some misbehavior at training using samples with a mark or trigger, which is exploited at inference or testing time. In this work, we analyze the composition of the features learned by DNNs at training. We identify that they, including those related to the inserted triggers, contain both content (semantic information) and style (texture information), which are recognized as a whole by DNNs at testing time. We then propose a novel defensive technique against trojan attacks, in which DNNs are taught to disregard the styles of inputs and focus on their content only to mitigate the effect of triggers during the classification. The generic applicability of the approach is demonstrated in the context of a traffic sign and a face recognition application. Each of them is exposed to a different attack with a variety of triggers. Results show that the method reduces the attack success rate significantly to values < 1% in all the tested attacks while keeping as well as improving the initial accuracy of the models when processing both benign and adversarial data.
Forgotten bastards of the Eastern Front: American airmen behind the Soviet lines and the collapse of the Grand Alliance: by Serhii Plokhy, New York, NY, Oxford University Press, 2019, xiv, 340 pp., $29.95 (hardback).

By the end of World War II, the alliance between the United States and the Soviet Union was collapsing, heralding the start of the Cold War. The reasons for this breakdown have preoccupied many pop...
Identifying Specific Emotion Regulation Deficits that Associate with Nonsuicidal Self-injury and Suicide Ideation in Adolescents.

It is not known how emotion regulation deficits and strategies may differentially relate to nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicide ideation in samples of community-based adolescents. The current study examined emotion regulation using comprehensive multi-method assessment to identify which specific deficits are uniquely related to NSSI and suicide ideation in a sample of high school students. Regarding specific deficits, it was expected that lack of emotional awareness, lack of access to emotion regulation strategies, poor cognitive reappraisal, and poorer automatic emotion processing would uniquely associate with past-year NSSI engagement. It was also predicted that lack of access to strategies, lack of impulse control, lack of awareness, and nonacceptance of emotion would uniquely associate with past-year presence of suicide ideation and suicide ideation severity. The sample included 696 adolescents (54.8% female; ages 14–17; mean age = 15.5) recruited from public high schools. Self-report measures were administered assessing suicide ideation, NSSI engagement, dimensions of emotion regulation, and automatic emotion processing (Emotion Stroop). Emotion suppression was the only unique and significant predictor of past-year NSSI engagement, and lack of access to emotion regulation strategies was the strongest predictor of both past-year presence of suicide ideation and recent suicide ideation severity when accounting for all deficits in the same model. Acquiring emotion regulation skills during the period of adolescence has great potential to buffer from occurrence of NSSI and severity of suicide ideation.
A Computational Discriminability Analysis on Twin Fingerprints

Sharing similar genetic traits makes the investigation of twins an important study in forensics and biometrics. Fingerprints are one of the most commonly found types of forensic evidence. The similarity between twins' prints is critical establish to the reliability of fingerprint identification. We present a quantitative analysis of the discriminability of twin fingerprints on a new data set (227 pairs of identical twins and fraternal twins) recently collected from a twin population using both level 1 and level 2 features. Although the patterns of minutiae among twins are more similar than in the general population, the similarity of fingerprints of twins is significantly different from that between genuine prints of the same finger. Twins fingerprints are discriminable with a 1.5%~1.7% higher EER than non-twins. And identical twins can be distinguished by examine fingerprint with a slightly higher error rate than fraternal twins.
Conservation of biodiversity in an area impacted by the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

A conservation study was conducted at Camp Swift, Bastrop County, Texasto determine if the red imported fire ant, Solenopsisinvicta, could be selectively managed to protect endemic antdiversity. The study site was deemed to be an area where S.invicta had recently invaded, and was still in the process ofexpanding its population. The study was conducted between 1998 and 2001, andresulted in significantly higher ant diversity in the area where S.invicta was managed by prescription bait treatments. The controlsite, which was not conserved, lost four endemic ant species during the test,while the treatment site had an increase in one species. This provides evidencethat S. invicta populations can be managed, but may notneed to be eliminated, to preserve ant diversity. New county records are givenfor Brachymyrmex depilis, Foreliusmccooki, F. pruinosus, Gnamptogenyshartmani, Monomorium minimum,Pogonomyrmex comanche, and Tetramoriumspinosum.
Place Matters (Most): An Empirical Study of Prosecutorial Decision-Making in Death-Eligible Cases

This article investigates prosecutorial discretion in death penalty prosecution in Missouri. Based upon an empirical analysis of all intentional-homicide cases from 1997-2001, this article concludes that Missouri law gives prosecutors unconstitutionally broad discretion in charging these cases. This article also finds that prosecutors exercise this broad discretion differently, leading to geographic and racial disparities in sentencing, and concludes with proposals for statutory reform.
Experimental evaluation of in situ CO2-water-rock reactions during CO2 injection in basaltic rocks: Implications for geological CO2 sequestration

[1] Deep aquifers are potential long-term storage sites for anthropogenic CO2 emissions. The retention time and environmental safety of the injected CO2 depend on geologic and physical factors and on the chemical reactions between the CO2, the aquifer water, and the host rocks. The pH buffer capacity of the aquifer water and the acid neutralization potential of the host rocks are important factors for the permanent stabilization of the injected CO2. Mafic rocks, such as basalt, which primarily consists of Ca, Mg silicate minerals, have a high acid neutralization capacity by providing alkaline earth elements that form stable carbonate minerals. The carbonate minerals formed thus sequester CO2 in a chemically stable and environmentally benign form. In this study, we present results from a small-scale CO2 injection test in mafic and metasedimentary rocks. The injection test was conducted using a single-well push-pull test strategy. CO2 saturated water (pH = 3.5) was injected into a hydraulically isolated and permeable aquifer interval to study the acid neutralization capacity of Ca, Mg silicate rocks and to estimate in situ cation release rates. Release rates for Ca, Mg, and Na were calculated by use of solute compositions of water samples retrieved after the CO2 injection, the incubation time of the injected solution within the aquifer, and geometric estimates of the reactive surface area of the host rocks. Our results confirm rapid acid neutralization rates and water-rock reactions sufficient for safe and permanent storage of CO2. Carbonic acid was neutralized within hours of injection into a permeable mafic aquifer by two processes: mixing between the injected solution and the aquifer water, and water-rock reactions. Calculated cation release rates decrease with increasing pH that is confirmed by laboratory-based experiments. Large differences between release rates obtained from the field and laboratory experiments may be mainly due to uncertainties in the estimation of the reactive surface area in the field experiment and in hydrological and geological factors. Our results underscore the importance of defining bulk rock dissolution rates under in situ conditions in order to evaluate target formations for permanent mineral sequestration of carbon dioxide.
Choromański's Jealousy and Medicine

Jealousy and Medicine is an admirable work, still fresh and modern after fifty years, and undeserving of the obscurity that has befallen it. I hope to arouse interest in Choromariski's work through a closer look at his masterpiece. In particular, I would like to answer the chief criticism of Jealousy and Medicine, lodged by Leon Piwiriski in 1933. He said, "As a whole, this remarkable novel lacks one thing— philosophical depth. Jealousy (and hence love, as well) has here been reduced to pathology perhaps a bit excessively." I hope to show that Jealousy and Medicine is a sly gloss on the work of a disturbed Austrian philosopher and that this fact is a key to the peculiar ideas and attitudes expressed in the novel.
Clustering and Mobility of Voltage-dependent Sodium Channels during Myelination

In myelinated axons, voltage-dependent sodium channels are segregated at high density at nodes of Ranvier (Rosenbluth, 1976; Waxman and Quick, 1978; Black et al., 1990; Elmer et al., 1990), a distribution that is critical for the saltatory conduction of action potentials (Huxley and Stampfli, 1949). The factors that specifically control the organization and immobilization of sodium channels at nodes are unknown. Recently we have reported that segregation of sodium channels on axons is highly dependent on interactions with active Schwann cells and that continuing axon-glial interactions are necessary to maintain sodium channel distribution during differentiation of myelinated nerve (Joe and Angelides, 1992). The specific recruitment of sodium channels at these early stages of myelination and the conspicuous absence of other axon membrane components suggest that the factors governing sodium channel cluster formation show molecular specificity. However, it is not clear whether these clustered sodium channels originate from a redistribution of preexisting diffusely distributed sodium channels. To determine how Schwann cells might regulate sodium channel distribution during myelination we have examined the lateral mobility of fluorescently labeled sodium channels at defined stages of myelination by fluorescence photobleach recovery using tetramethylrhodamine (TmRhd)-labeled Tityus gamma, a sodium channel-specific fluorescent toxin. First, to test whether Schwann cells, in addition to modulating sodium channel distribution, affect the mobility of sodium channels, we cultured dorsal root ganglion neurons in the presence or absence of Schwann cells and monitored sodium channel mobility on cell bodies, axon hillocks, and axons. Even in the absence of Schwann cells, approximately 80% of the sodium channels were immobile on the time scale of the fluorescence photobleach recovery measurement (DL < or equal to 10(-12) cm2/sec), although the remaining fraction of channels are mobile with diffusion coefficients of 5-13 x 10(-11) cm2/sec. Most importantly, in contrast to the effects of Schwann cells on altering the distribution of sodium channels, we found that Schwann cells did not alter the rate of lateral mobility or the mobile fraction of axonal sodium channels. Therefore, although sodium channel distribution depends on Schwann cell contact, immobilization of sodium channels is independent of Schwann cell contact. These effects appear to be specific for sodium channels because 45% of the succinyl concanavalin-A receptors on the axon are mobile, a fraction that decreases to 25% in the presence of Schwann cells later in development. To determine how sodium channels might be immobilized other than by Schwann cell contact, TmRhd-Tityus gamma-labeled dorsal root neurons were treated with 0.5% Triton X-100.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Ontology-Driven Provenance Management in eScience: An Application in Parasite Research

Provenance, from the French word "provenir ", describes the lineage or history of a data entity. Provenance is critical information in scientific applications to verify experiment process, validate data quality and associate trust values with scientific results. Current industrial scale eScience projects require an end-to-end provenance management infrastructure. This infrastructure needs to be underpinned by formal semantics to enable analysis of large scale provenance information by software applications. Further, effective analysis of provenance information requires well-defined query mechanisms to support complex queries over large datasets. This paper introduces an ontology-driven provenance management infrastructure for biology experiment data, as part of the Semantic Problem Solving Environment (SPSE) for Trypanosoma cruzi (T.cruzi ). This provenance infrastructure, called T.cruzi Provenance Management System (PMS), is underpinned by (a) a domain-specific provenance ontology called Parasite Experiment ontology, (b) specialized query operators for provenance analysis, and (c) a provenance query engine. The query engine uses a novel optimization technique based on materialized views called materialized provenance views (MPV) to scale with increasing data size and query complexity. This comprehensive ontology-driven provenance infrastructure not only allows effective tracking and management of ongoing experiments in the Tarleton Research Group at the Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases (CTEGD), but also enables researchers to retrieve the complete provenance information of scientific results for publication in literature.
Inherited nuclear cataracts in the Morgan horse

Congenital cataracts affecting the fetal and embryonal lens nucleus were found in 12 Morgan horses. Ten of the 12 affected animals were sired by the same stallion and the condition also affected his female half sibling. Although females were almost three times more likely to be affected than males (9 vs 3), the difference was not significant. The ratio of 11 normal to 10 affected offspring by the affected stallion is compatible with an autosomal dominant mode of inheritance.
Cell Adhesion Pathology

Significant progress has been made in identifying single gene mutations responsible for causing human cardiomyopathies. Although many of these monogenic cardiomyopathies are rare, insights into pathogenesis by identification of the responsible mutations can provide clues about mechanisms in more common forms of heart disease.We have studied a group of human cardiomyopathies caused by mutations in genes encoding proteins that function as linkers in cell-cell adhesion junctions. These heart diseases, which we have termed cell-cell junction cardiomyopathies, are caused by mutations in intracellular proteins that link adhesion molecules at adherens junctions and desmosomes to the myocyte cytoskeleton. Among the genes implicated in these diseases are those encoding desmoplakin, plakoglobin, and plakophilin-2. These mutations have both dominant and recessive patterns of inheritance and are associated with clinical phenotypes of arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy/dysplasia (ARVC/D) or dilat cardiomyopathy (DCM), with or without hair and skin abnormalities [1].Common features of the cell-cell junction cardiomyopathies are a high incidence of syncope, ventricular arrhythmias, and sudden cardiac death. This observation suggests that alterations in intercellular adhesion caused by defects in cell-cell mechanical junctions may create anatomic substrates that are particularly conducive to the development of lethal ventricular arrhythmias. Our work in this area has focused on the hypothesis that defective mechanical linkage in the cell-cell junction cardiomyopathies causes remodeling of gap junctions, which, in turn, can give rise to conduction abnormalities that may contribute to the high incidence of sudden death in these patients.
Use of B→J/ψ f0 decays to discern the qq or tetraquark nature of scalar mesons.

We consider the relative decay rates of ${\overline{B}}^{0}$ and ${\overline{B}}_{s}^{0}$ mesons into a $J/\ensuremath{\psi}$ plus a light scalar meson, either the ${f}_{0}(500)$ ($\ensuremath{\sigma}$) or the ${f}_{0}(980)$. We show that it is possible to distinguish between the quark content of the scalars being quark-antiquark or tetraquark by measuring specific ratios of decay rates. Using current data we determine the ratio of form factors in ${\overline{B}}_{s}^{0}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}J/\ensuremath{\psi}{f}_{0}(980)$ with respect to ${\overline{B}}^{0}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}J/\ensuremath{\psi}{f}_{0}(500)$ decays to be ${0.99}_{\ensuremath{-}0.04}^{+0.13}$ at a four-momentum transfer squared equal to the mass of the $J/\ensuremath{\psi}$ meson squared. In the case where these light mesons are considered to be quark-antiquark states, we give a determination of the mixing angle between strange and light quark states of less than 29\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} at 90% confidence level. We also discuss the use of a similar ratio to investigate the structure of other isospin singlet states.
Cation effects on the denaturation of DNA

The midpoint ( T m ) of the thermal denaturation curve of a DNA sample increases linearly with the logarithm of the ionic strength for 0·0003 M μ M . This ionic strength dependence does not depend on the base ratio of the DNA sample. The transition breadth increases with decreasing ionic strength. The broadening effect is interpreted as indicating that the transition is less cooperative at low μ . At μ = 3 × 10 −4 M , the divalent ions Mg 2+ and Co 2+ are bound almost stoicheiometrically by DNA and T m increases by 35 to 45°C. The transition breadth is greater for 1/2 equivalent of divalent ion per mole of DNA phosphate than for zero or one equivalent; this is attributed to stronger ion binding by native than by denatured DNA. Silver ion at a ratio of 0·2 Ag + per base increases T m by about 40°C and broadens the transition. The pH values for denaturation by acid and base for several DNAs are reported.
Production of Riboflavin Deficiency in the Monkey.

SummaryAn acute riboflavin deficiency; has been produced in monkeys fed a highly purified diet containing all known vitamins except riboflavin. A “freckled dermatitis” and an anemia are the most st...
Resolution of enantiomeric mixtures of primary aliphatic hydroxylamines and amins by gas chromatography

Abstract A method is described for the analysis of enantiomeric mixtures of primary aliphatic amines and the corresponding N-hydroxylamine metabolites. Optically active substrates are converted to diastereomeric derivatives by reaction with a chiral acylating agent and the products are separated by gas—liquid chromatography, yielding four peaks corresponding to the resolved amines and hydroxylamines. Optical composition can be calculated and concentrations of isomers determined at levels approaching 1 μg/ml. The absolute configuration of the resolved hydroxylamines has been determined.
Anthracycline cardiotoxicity in survivors of childhood cancer: Clinical course, protection, and treatment

Abstract Childhood cancer survivors are now living longer as a result of advancements in cancer treatment, but not without consequences. Cardiovascular disease is the leading non-cancer-related cause of morbidity and mortality in long-term survivors of childhood cancer. Cardiotoxicity associated with cancer treatment in children can be pervasive, persistent, and progressive. Serum cardiac biomarker concentrations during therapy can predict late cardiotoxicity; although there is still a need for validated cardiac monitoring guidelines. The cardioprotective strategy of continuous infusion of doxorubicin, while showing short-term benefit in adults, provides no long-term cardioprotection or improvement in event-free survival over bolus-infusion in children with a diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. However, dexrazoxane protects the heart from the cardiotoxic effects of anthracycline treatment and does not interfere with oncologic efficacy or increase the risk of second malignancies. The emerging field of cardio-oncology emphasizes the need for collaborations between cardiologists and oncologists to find a balance between oncologic efficacy and the risks of cardiotoxicity to maximize the quality of life and survival for long-term survivors of childhood cancer.
The Germicidal Action of Raw Milk upon an Organism of the Sweet Curdling Type

Summary Certain samples of mixed raw milk exerted a marked restraining action upon an organism capable of rapidly producing a sweet curdling type of fermentation. This action was present in the milk over a period of several months. Coagulation produced by the sweet curdler was delayed from three and one-half to six hours in different samples of mixed raw milk. Coagulation usually occurred when the sweet curdler attained a population of from 10 to 40million. The marked germicidal activity in this study was confined to Jersey milk. Under the conditions of these experiments, S. lactis exerted but little influence upon the development of the sweet curdler and was only slightly restrained by the bactericidal activity of the milk. Both S. lactis and the sweet curdler multiplied more rapidly in the heated milk than in the non-germicidal raw milk. The difference was relatively small during the first eight hours, but thereafter was usually large. These observations indicate that under certain conditions a strong germicidal action may be of distinct value in protecting the milk supply.
Blood volume in congestive heart failure as determined with iodinated human serum albumin.

Abstract 1.1. Blood volume was determined in thirty-two cases of congestive heart failure. Repeat determination was made in twenty-five of the patients after treatment leading to compensation. Human serum albumin labeled with I 131 was used in making these studies. 2.2. Blood volume was elevated above normal in those cases studied. Total packed red cell volume was more markedly elevated than plasma volume. 3.3. In response to therapy the plasma component was more labile and decreased more rapidly than the cellular component. Hematocrit increased with therapy. 4.4. During recovery from congestive heart failure the rate of apparent destruction of erythrocytes exceeded, in some instances, the expected calculated rate of destruction.
Shared Viral Antigen of Mammalian Leukaemia Viruses

IN 1966, Geering, Old and Boyse1 identified group-specific (gs) antigens of murine leukaemia viruses (MuLV) in immunoprecipitation tests with antigen in the form of disrupted virions or extracts of infected tissue. Antisera containing a wide range of precipitating MuLV antibodies are obtained from inbred rats bearing large subcutaneous transplants of syngeneic leukaemias induced by wild-type Gross virus1. Usually a large number of rats have to be screened in order to find one with antibody to the complete set of MuLV antigens known to be demonstrable by immunoprecipitation. Rats which have both a massive local tumour and metastasis to local lymph nodes, and which have survived for a comparatively long time after they received the leukaemic transplants, are most likely to yield such antisera.
Judicial acceptance of hair tests for substances of abuse in the United States courts: scientific, forensic, and ethical aspects.

Changes in the acceptance of hair test results in the United States courts have resulted from two factors: the rapidly evolving scientific understanding of hair test data; and modification of the admissibility standards for forensic evidence in United States courts. The scientific, forensic, and ethical aspects of drug testing in hair impact the acceptance of hair test results. Our knowledge and experience with this new analytical technology have been developing rapidly, although there are many unanswered questions that influence acceptance of data. A consequence of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to have the Federal Rules of Evidence take precedence over the Frye standard in the admissibility of scientific evidence has enabled judges to determine if evidence will assist in obtaining a fuller understanding of a given case. A summation of the scientific, forensic, and ethical aspects of judicial acceptance of hair test results may be: If hair test results are positive, have we proven beyond a reasonable doubt and/or demonstrated that the preponderance of evidence supports a finding of drug use? In general, recent court decisions indicate that hair test results provide information that the courts should consider. However, unresolved scientific, forensic, and ethical issues may have a greater effect on the weight applied to hair test evidence rather than its admissibility in future court proceedings.
Identification of Model Parameters and Associated Uncertainties for Robust Control Design

The integration of system identification and robust control is considered. The identification algorithm is an extended Kalman filter, and the robust control algorithm is based on Petersen-Holl ot's bounds (modified for random correlated parameters). The identification and control problems are coupled because the inputs for the identification experiment are selected to optimize the robust control performance. The optimization problem, interpreted as a form of Riccati equation control, is solved by exploiting the analytical properties of the Riccati equation in a nontraditional manner. The result appears an equivalent quadratic-linear boundary-value-problem, which allows a convergent numerical solution. An effective numerical algorithm is also offered for solving the extended Kalman filter equations in high-dimensional modal test problems. The algorithm is based on block decomposition of the modal state-space model. The developed approach is applied to the Middeck Active Control Experiment (MACE) testbed. MACE is an MIT STS flight experiment scheduled for launch in 1994.
Interaction of the Catch-Loop Tyrosine βY317 with the Metal at Catalytic Site 3 of Chlamydomonas Chloroplast F1-ATPase†

Site-directed mutants Y317C, Y317E, Y317F, Y317G, and Y317K were made to the catch-loop tyrosine on the β subunit of the chloroplast F1-ATPase in Chlamydomonas. EPR spectra of VO2+−ATP bound to site 3 of CF1 from wild type and mutants were obtained. Every mutant changed the 51V hyperfine parameters of the VO2+ bound at this site in the catalytically active conformation of the enzyme but had no effect on these parameters in the form that predominates when the enzyme activity is latent. These results indicate that this residue is a ligand to the metal of the Mg2+−nucleotide complex that binds to the empty catalytic site. The mutations also decreased the kcat of the ATPase activity to a much greater extent than kcat/KM. Thus, these mutations limit the rate of product (Mg2+−ADP and phosphate) release in the ATPase direction or, conversely, the initial binding of substrates in the ATP synthesis direction. On the basis of these observations, coordination of βY317 by Mg2+−ADP that binds to the empty catalytic si...
The cardiovascular health status of minority female nursing assistants working in long-term care: a pilot study.

Abstract Objective To describe the cardiovascular disease (CVD) status of nursing assistants (NAs) working in long-term care. Background : Most research with NAs focus on work-related outcomes despite NAs' potentially high risk for CVD. Methods Baseline data from a pilot physical activity (PA) and diet focused health promotion study were used to describe NAs CVD risk. Objective (blood pressure, lipid panel, PA levels, body mass index) and subjective (depressive symptoms) data from 39 NAs were used to provide a CVD assessment. Results Twenty-nine (76.3%) participants had at least three CVD risk factors. Specifically, 18% of participants were hypertensive, 89% of participants were overweight/obese, 90% of participants had hyperlipidemia and 97% of participants did not meet PA guidelines. Conclusion The data suggest NAs working in long-term care have multiple CVD risk factors. Future research should consider PA and diet focused worksite health promotion (WHP) interventions to decrease their CVD risks.
Cellular spacings - II. Dynamical studies

Abstract Directional solidification experiments were carried out in model transparent systems to establish the dynamical processes by which an unstable planar interface restabilizes into a periodic array of cells. In the succinonitrile-acetone system, where the interface properties are nearly isotropic, the cells increase their spacings by the cell elimination process and decrease their spacings by the tip-splitting mechanism. In the pivalic acid-ethanol system, the significantly anisotropic interface properties do not allow the tip-splitting phenomenon to occur readily. Dynamical studies of the variation in cellular spacing with changes in growth rate show that the spacing does not alter until a significantly large change in growth rate is imposed. When a decrease in spacing occurs, two distinctly different configurations are observed depending on whether the perturbation which leads to the change is localized or nonlocalized. In the case of a localized perturbation, a propagating tip-splitting mode is observed. For nonlocalized perturbations, the entire interface undergoes a cell-planar-cell transition.
“LOVEJOY, HARTSHORNE, AND PROGRESS IN PHILOSOPHY”

Hartshorne affirme la possibilite pour la philosophie de progresser, tout en reconnaissant qu'elle n'a pas evolue autant qu'elle le pouvait. Pour en comprendre les raisons et y remedier, l'A. examine les propositions de Lovejoy et la maniere dont Hartshorne les a reprises
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies in ruminants

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) have been observed in North American sheep, cervidae, and cattle. The causative agent of TSEs seems to be proteins that induce a conformational change in normal host proteins. Common clinical signs of TSEs include chronic weight loss and deteriorating neurologic function. Mechanisms of TSE transmission vary among host species. The diagnostic approach for TSEs of ruminants is presented, and the history and justification of regulatory programs to control and eradicate TSEs are outlined.
EFFECTIVENESS OF HEME IN THE AUGMENTATION OF GONADOTROPIC EXTRACTS FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES1

SEVERAL REPORTS have been made which show the increased effectiveness of gonadotropic hormones of the anterior pituitary gland when injected with other substances which are inactive as regards the stimulation of the ovary of ths immature rat. These augmenters include tannic acid (1), copper (2), and zinc salts (3, 4, 5), yeast extract and ash from yeast (a), male urine (6), blood serum (7), leuco cytes (8), egg albumin (9), merthiolate (10) and chlorophyll (11, 12). Casida (13) reported that the formed elements of blood augment gonadotropic extracts of sheep pituitary powder and that the ash from the formed elements does not. McShan and Meyer (14) separated the hemoglobin from the blood of the cow into heme and globin, and found that the hemin was an effective augmenter when it was dissolved in dilute sodium carbonate or sodium hydroxide solution and mixed in vitro with gonadotropic extract of sheep pituitary powder.
Electronic structure of the zigzag spin-chain compound In 2 V O 5

Band-structure calculations within the local spin-density approximation are presented in order to investigate the electronic and magnetic properties of the zigzag spin-chain compound ${\mathrm{In}}_{2}\mathrm{V}{\mathrm{O}}_{5}$. The essential structural feature of the system is a double chain of $\mathrm{V}{\mathrm{O}}_{6}$ octahedra, which leads to competing intrachain and interchain magnetic couplings. Frustration of the spin chains is expected for the proposed antiferromagnetic ordering at low temperatures. However, the band-structure calculations indicate that the experimental room-temperature crystal structure are incompatible with antiferromagnetism. Both the intrachain and interchain couplings are found to be ferromagnetic.
Coping with public speaking anxiety: An examination of various combinations of systematic desensitization, skills training, and visualization

Abstract This study examined whether the sequencing of cognitive, affective, and behavioral components of an intervention designed to help people cope with public speaking anxiety (PSA) made a difference in the effectiveness of the intervention. Since no data were available to posit hypotheses about the effectiveness of treatment sequencing, all treatment sequences were expected to be more effective than no treatment in reducing self‐reported levels of trait and state CA, the proportion of negative to positive thoughts, and behavioral manifestations of speech anxiety. Contrary to expectations, some treatment combinations were not more effective than no treatment in reducing PSA, negative thoughts, and behavioral manifestations of anxiety. In general, treatment combinations that began with a behavioral component were no better than no treatment in reducing these indicators of speech anxiety. However, treatments that began with cognitive or affective components were effective in reducing trait and state CA,...
Closed form solution for the linear graded channel JFET

Abstract An analysis of a linearly tapered inhomogeneous channel junction field-effect transistor (JFET) is presented leading to a closed-form solution for the current-voltage characteristics and the modified FET parameters. Operational improvement for the inhomogeneous FET is shown directly from a comparison with the solution for a homogeneous channel FET.
Filament-assisted pulsed laser deposition of epitaxial PbZrxTi1−xO3 films: Morphological and electrical characterization

Abstract A modification of the conventional pulsed laser deposition technique was employed, whereby a low energy electron emitting filament was placed between the target and the substrate (-20 V filament/substrate bias) in order to produce reactive species (O2- and O−) during deposition. Using this modification, epitaxial thin films of PbZrxTi1−xO3 (PZT, 0 ≤ × ≤ 0.6) were prepared in situ on virgin (100) MgO and (100) Pt/(100) MgO substrates at a substrate temperature of 550°C and in an oxygen ambient (0.3 Torr). The topography of films prepared without a filament on virgin MgO were porous and composed of grains of about 1000 A in diameter. As the emission current was increased from 0 to 400 μA, the grain size decreased to less than 100 A with a concomitant decrease in the porosity. The nucleation of crystallites of other orientations was observed at emission currents greater than about 500 μA. Trilayer structures (Pt/PZT/Pt/ MgO) were fabricated for electrical measurements. Non-filament-assisted PZT ...
Topology preservation on 3D images

A thinning algorithm must `preserve topology,' but in the case of a parallel thinning algorithm it can be hard to prove that it does so. Ronse has given sufficient conditions which can be used to simplify such proofs in the 2D case. By Ronse's results, the fact that a parallel thinning algorithm is topology preserving can be verified by checking only a rather small number of configurations. This paper introduces Ronse-like sufficient conditions for 3D binary images.
A review of the genus Argyripa (Coleoptera: Scarbaeidae)

The Neotropical genus Argyripa is reviewed. Keys, descriptions, illustrations, distributions, and locality record dot maps are presented for the four species in the genus, anomala (Bates), gloriosa n.sp., lansbergei (Salle), subfasciata Ritsema.
Octylcyanoacrylate versus polyurethane for treatment of burns in swine: a randomized trial☆

Abstract In order to determine whether the enhanced reepithelialization of second-degree burns treated with octylcyanoacrylate (OCA) was due to its occlusive nature we compared reepithelialization (REP) and infection rates of second degree burns treated with OCA and polyurethane film (Tegaderm) in swine. Forty-four standardized partial thickness burns were created by applying an aluminum bar preheated to 80°C to the backs of pigs for 20 s and randomly treated with OCA or Tegaderm. Full thickness biopsies were taken at 7, 10 and 14 days for blinded histopathological evaluation of rates of infection and reepithelialization. T -tests and χ 2 tests were used for group comparisons. There were no between group difference in the rates of reepithelialization and infection. All wounds were reepithelialized by day 14 and there were no infections in either group. We conclude that treatment of partial thickness burns with OCA spray or Tegaderm results in similar rates of reepithelialization and infection, suggesting that the beneficial effects of OCA on reepithelialization are due to its occlusive nature.
The application of photodynamic therapy in the treatment of metastatic endobronchial disease.

Background and Objective: We utilized photodynamic therapy (PDT) for palliation of metastatic endobronchial tumors employing sensitization with synthetic porphyrin, application of non-thermal light, and endoscopic debridement of necrotic tumor. Study Design/Materials and Methods: Nine patients with symptomatic endobronchial metastasis from carcinomas of the colon(3), breast(3), kidney(2), and tongue(1) received PDT. Results: After two PDT treatments, patients showed substantial response, which was complete in all but one. One patient had perioperative complications and expired 2 days after developing massive hemoptysis during tumor debridement. Patient survival was 6.38 months (mean) and 4.2 months (median). Most patients died from advanced metastatic disease. One patient with metastasis limited to the airway is still alive 24 months following endobronchial presentation. Conclusions: PDT ameliorates symptoms of metastatic airway obstruction, is easy to apply, has low morbidity and improves the quality of life.