cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Three-dimensional ultrasound imaging

The objective of this article is to provide scientists, engineers and clinicians with an up-to-date overview on the current state of development in the area of three-dimensional ultrasound (3-DUS) and to serve as a reference for individuals who wish to learn more about 3-DUS imaging. The sections will review the state of the art with respect to 3-DUS imaging, methods of data acquisition, analysis and display approaches. Clinical sections summarize patient research study results to date with discussion of applications by organ system. The basic algorithms and approaches to visualization of 3-D and 4-D ultrasound data are reviewed, including issues related to interactivity and user interfaces. The implications of recent developments for future ultrasound imaging/visualization systems are considered. Ultimately, an improved understanding of ultrasound data offered by 3-DUS may make it easier for primary care physicians to understand complex patient anatomy. Tertiary care physicians specializing in ultrasound can further enhance the quality of patient care by using high-speed networks to review volume ultrasound data at specialization centers. Access to volume data and expertise at specialization centers affords more sophisticated analysis and review, further augmenting patient diagnosis and treatment.
Wildlife Conservation in Uganda in Relation to Economic Development

railroad workers on the Uganda Railway, truculent and stupid great rhinos which charged everything within smelling distance, including railroad locomotives, or elephants which terrorized native villages by night. And when the British government gradually realized the high importance of game preserves and national parks, the Africans remained understandably unconvinced. Their crops and livestock were in contant jeopardy, and the antelopes and other vegetarians were a traditional source of food to many tribes. The advent of World War II did not help. Britain at war was in no position to spend large sums of money to protect leopards and hyenas in distant Africa, a d hunting safaris and tourists were simply not abroad during those years to provide direct revenues. That wildlife has eclined rapidly in recent years has been amply documented. "Everyone, including myself, who was in East Africa a mere 30 years ago, can testify to the striking diminution of its large wildlife since then" (Huxley, 1961).
Acute Hyperglycemia Associated with Short-Term Use of Atypical Antipsychotic Medications

The prevalence of metabolic disturbances associated with long-term use of antipsychotic medications has been widely reported in the literature. The use of atypical antipsychotics for the treatment of delirium in the intensive care unit (ICU) has gained popularity due to a lower potential for adverse effects compared with conventional antipsychotics. However, current studies evaluating safety and efficacy of antipsychotics in the ICU setting do not include metabolic parameters as a potential adverse effect that requires monitoring. It is thought that long-term adverse effects of antipsychotics may be out of context for the intensive care setting. A literature review was conducted to investigate the prevalence of acute hyperglycemia associated with short-term use of antipsychotics, with the purpose of reviewing evidence that hyperglycemia may occur even with short-term use of atypical antipsychotics. A MEDLINE search for acute hyperglycemia from short-term use of antipsychotics resulted in studies involving animal models and healthy volunteers. These studies indicate that acute hyperglycemia may occur after short-term treatment. A review of the literature shows preliminary evidence to suggest that atypical antipsychotics impact glucose sensitivity and induce insulin resistance even after a single dose. Although no studies have been conducted evaluating the impact of hyperglycemia in critically ill patients from the short-term use of atypical antipsychotics for the treatment of delirium, the potential to affect clinical outcomes exist and warrants further research in this area.
Application of a novel interferometric method to investigate the relation between lipid layer thickness and tear film thinning.

According to the report of the Dry Eye WorkShop (DEWS),1 the two major classes of dry eye are aqueous deficient dry eye (ADDE) and evaporative dry eye (EDE). The DEWS Report1 also lists two core mechanisms of dry eye, tear hyperosmolarity and tear film instability. The latter was observed by reduced breakup time (BUT). The first core mechanism, hyperosmolarity, is a sensitive indicator of dry eye disease.2 It stimulates inflammation and ocular surface damage.1 Tear osmolarity depends on the ratio evaporation rate divided by tear secretion rate3 and is an increasing function of this ratio. In EDE the ratio is increased because the evaporation rate is increased, whereas in ADDE the ratio is increased because the tear secretion rate is reduced. There is evidence that the second core mechanism, tear film instability (reduced BUT), is often closely related to local evaporation from the tear surface.4,5 This would cause local hyperosmolarity of the ocular surface.6 In this case, the two core mechanisms would have a common origin—evaporation—causing both hyperosmolarity and tear film instability. Any ocular surface damage related to instability (breakup) could be caused by local hyperosmolarity induced by evaporation. We suggest that tear film instability—sudden, spontaneous breakup in models such as Holly's7—has less support from experimental evidence. Instability (measured by BUT) may therefore be an inappropriate term for a property that may depend mainly on evaporation. These considerations indicate that better understanding of both ADDE and EDE requires improved analysis of the mechanisms of evaporation. Evaporation is controlled by both extrinsic and ocular factors. Extrinsic factors include the relative humidity, temperature, and flow velocity of the ambient air.8 Ocular factors include the surface temperature of the tear film and, more important, the quality of the outer lipid layer of the tear film, which acts as a barrier to evaporation from the aqueous tear film.9 The resistance of the lipid layer to evaporation may be expected to depend on its thickness and on its structure and composition. Thus our aims were to use interferometry to measure the thinning rate of the tear film between blinks as a measure of evaporation and to compare this with simultaneous measurements of lipid thickness.
Comparison of lake trout-egg survival at inshore and offshore and shallow-water and deepwater sites in Lake Superior

We incubated lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) eggs over winter at shallow (10 m) and deep locations (20 m) on Gull Island Shoal, Lake Superior; at a shallow-water (10 m) site off the mainland (Bark Point); and in flowing Great Lakes water at two laboratories. Survival to hatch was significantly higher in the laboratories and averaged 80.9%. In Lake Superior, egg survival among incubators at all sites was significantly higher (P < 0.0001) for incubators that remained buried in spawning substrates (15.1–21.0%) than for incubators that were partially or completely exposed to water currents (1.0–12.6%). Egg survival for incubators that remained buried at the shallow-water sites was significantly higher at Bark Point (44.6%) than at Gull Island Shoal (21.0%). Egg survival among incubators that remained buried at the deep (14.4%) and shallow-water sites (21.0%) on Gull Island Shoal was not significantly different. Because incubators that were completely buried or partially exposed only appeared to differ in their degree of exposure, we concluded that survival of eggs in the lake was reduced by mechanical stress associated with water turbulence. Lower egg survival at Gull Island Shoal, a known lake trout-spawning site, was not expected and appeared to have been caused by a strong gale that occurred when these eggs were in late epiboly, a sensitive embryological stage. We present a hypothesis suggesting that lake trout recruitment in the Great Lakes is limited by availability of spawning habitat.
The genetics of albuminuria: from haplotype association mapping in mice to genetic causation in humans

Genome-wide haplotype association mapping (HAM) in inbred mouse strains emerged as an efficient method for identifying novel quantitative trait loci for disease-related phenotypes. In this issue of Kidney International, Tsaih et al. present the results of the first HAM for age-related kidney damage in mice and examine the detected loci in the context of the human genome-wide association study for diabetic nephropathy.
Path constraints on semistructured and structured data

We present a class of path constraints of interest in connection with both structured and semistructured databases, and investigate their associated implication problems. These path constraints are capable of expressing natural integrity constraints that are not only a fundamental part of the semantics of the data, but are also important in query optimization. We show that in semistructured databases, despite the simple syntax of the constraints, their associated implication problem is r.e. complete and nite implication problem is co-r.e. complete. However, we establish the decidability of the implication problems for several fragments of the path constraint language, and demonstrate that these fragments su ce to express important semantic information such as inverse relationships and local database constraints commonly found in object-oriented databases. We also show that in the presence of types, the analysis of path constraint implication becomes more delicate. We demonstrate some simple decidability results for two practical object-oriented data models.
Progress with the XCALIBIR interferometer at NIST

In response to the increasing need for the characterization of precision optics, the National Institute of Standards and Technology has initiated a program for the development of SI traceable surface and wavefront metrology. A key instrument in this program is the “eXtremely accurate CALIBration InterferometeR” (XCALIBIR). XCALIBIR is a multi-configuration phase-measuring precision interferometer for the measurement of flat, spherical, and aspheric surfaces. We describe the interferometer and the calibration of the 300 mm aperture Fizeau configuration and the spherical Fizeau configuration. An uncertainty of 0.2 nm rms was achieved in a 3-flat calibration of three 300 mm diameter optical flats. Additional recent measurement results will be presented that illustrate the capabilities of the XCALIBIR interferometer.
Macrophages and cellular immunity in experimental glomerulonephritis.

We will consider in this review the evidence that monocytes directly contribute to glomerular injury as effector cells in some forms of glomerulonephritis, and that interactions between monocytes and lymphocytes-as a manifestation of cellular immunity-may, indeed, induce immune glomerular reactions. The review will focus primarily on experimental work, since clinical studies are discussed elsewhere in this book. A complex set of interactions between monocytes and lymphocytes underlies the expression of cellular immunity-which can be conveniently divided into two phases, an induction phase and an effector phase. The induction phase consists of specific lymphocyte recognition of an antigen presented on the membrane of a phagocytic cell. As the lymphocyte becomes activated, it releases factors that attract and activate monocytes. Activated phagocytic monocytes and macrophages, releasing degradative enzymes, toxic molecules, and factors that modulate differentiation and proliferation of other cell types, constitute the effector phase of cellular immunity [57]. The possible participation of monocytes, macrophages, and lymphocytes in the pathogenesis of glomerular injury has been considered for many years without resolution of the question. Recent morphologic and functional observations have demonstrated that mononuclear phagocytes play important roles as effector cells in certain models of immunologically induced glomerular injury. The association between infiltrating monocytes and glomerular damage has stimulated interest as to the induction mechanisms whereby monocytes are recruited into the glomerulus. One of the most interesting possibilities is that lymphocytes may cause the recruitment of effector monocytes. As yet, evidence in support of this mechanism is
Acute rejection of murine bone marrow allografts by natural killer cells and T cells. Differences in kinetics and target antigens recognized.

Lethally irradiated C.B-17 +/+, C.B-17 scid/scid (severe combined immunodeficiency, SCID), BALB/c-nu/nu (nude), and C57BL/6 (B6) mice were challenged with H-2-homozygous or H-2-heterozygous totally allogeneic bone marrow cell (BMC) grafts. Some of the irradiated mice were immunized simultaneously with large numbers of irradiated marrow and spleen cells syngeneic with the viable BMC transferred. Irradiated SCID and nude mice, devoid of T cells but with normal NK cell function, were able to reject H-2-homozygous BMC grafts within 4 d. However, they were unable to reject H-2-heterozygous BMC allografts by 7 d even if they were immunized. B6 and C.B-17 +/+ mice were able to reject H-2 heterozygous BMC allografts by 7-8 d, but not as early as 4 d, if they were immunized. The rejection of H-2-homozygous BMC on day 4 was inhibited by administration of anti-NK-1.1 antibodies, but not by anti-Lyt-2 antibodies. Conversely, the rejection of H-2-heterozygous allogeneic BMC on day 8 was prevented by anti-Lyt-2 but not by anti-NK-1.1 antibodies. The data indicate that both NK cells and Lyt-2+ T cells can mediate rejection of allogeneic BMC acutely, even after exposure of mice to lethal doses of ionizing irradiation. NK cells appear to recognize Hemopoietic histocompatibility (Hh) antigens on H-2 homozygous stem cells. The inability of SCID and nude mice to reject H-2 heterozygous totally allogeneic BMC indicate that NK cells do not survey donor marrow cells for self H-2 antigens and reject those cells that express nonself H-2 antigens. The T cells presumably recognize conventional H-2 antigens (probably class I) under these conditions.
Forecasting the next major thrust into space

Abstract Patterns in societal energy use enable forecasts of the times of future events associated with important human exploration and technology programs. Discovered in 1989, the 56 year energy cycle has previously been linked with many technological, economic, and social parameters. A review of the last 200 years reveals that major human explorations (e.g. polar expeditions), macro-engineering projects (e.g. Panama Canal), and large wars (e.g. World War I) cluster together in time near energy cycle peaks approximately every 56 years. The energy cycle and several other indicators suggest that large-scale human operations in space will begin to appear around 2015. They should culminate in a space spectacular near 2025. Another window of opportunity for space exploration will not open until late in the twenty-first century.
WHAT NATURE AND ORIGINS LEAVES OUT

Abstract The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion synthesizes leading studies of public opinion from the late 1980s in a top-down model of opinion formation and change. The core feature of this synthesis, the Receive-Accept-Sample (RAS) model, remains sound, but the book overstates the importance of the form of public opinion that it explains—elite-induced survey statements of issue positions—and understates the force of opinions that elites cannot easily shape and that citizens may not be able to articulate in response to survey prompts. Moreover, there are major problems in the book's Parable of Purple Land. What, then, becomes of the top-down view of elite-mass interaction outlined in Nature and Origins? To answer this question, I begin by characterizing the kinds of opinions Nature and Origins leaves out: Converse's “group interest” voters, “nature of the times” voters, and issue publics. I then add a model of political parties as policy-motivated organizers of Converse's voter types. The upshot is an a...
Distribution of an unidentified antithyrotoxic factor in materials of plant and animal origin.

SummaryGrowth was markedly reduced in hyperthyroid rats fed a purified ration containing casein as the dietary protein and sucrose as the dietary carbohydrate. The retardation in growth was completely counteracted by the administration of a water-in-5 soluble fraction of liver, desiccated and defatted kidney and a fermentation product t derived from cultures of Streptomyces aureofaciens. Full fat soybean flour also showed considerable activity. Crystalline aureomycin HCl was inactive. Other materials of plant and animal origin showed little if any activity. The protective factor was apparently distinct from any of the known nutrients.
Environmental Taxes on Intermediate and final Goods when Both can be Imported

One of the central administrative problems that arises in implementing environ- mental excise taxes is the treatment of imports. While similar issues arise with respect to all indirect taxes, the problems associated with environmental excises are particularly complex because many environmental taxes are levied on intermediate inputs, such as fossil fuels, rather than on final goods. Many nations have border tax adjustments to complement their domestic taxes on intermediate goods, taxing imported intermediate goods at a rate equal to that on domestically produced goods. Davie (1995) describes the border tax adjustments associated with current environmental excise taxes in the United States.
Fatal agranulocytosis following sulfathiazoletherapy

Summary A case of acute and fatal agranulocytosis with toxic dermal lesionsproduced by therapeutic doses of sulfathiazole, occurring in an infant 8 weeks old, is reported. At the time of this writing, no other cases of agranulocytosis following sulfathiazole medication in infants have been recorded, although instances of extreme granulocytopenia in children due to other members of the sulfonamide group have been observed. An experience of this sort re-emphasizes the necessity of exercising the utmost care in the therapeutic use of sulfathiazole in infants and children and of making frequent blood examinations as well as of determining the concentration of the drug in the blood. Despite the fact that absolute proof of this sulfonamide being the sole cause of agranulocytosis is lacking, the circumstantial evidence in our case strongly suggests that both intoxication by and sensitization to this drug played significant roles in the production of the toxicodermatosis as well as of the agranulocytosis which resulted in the death of the patient.
Tetracycline resistance in Moraxella (Branhamella) catarrhalis : demonstration of two clonal outbreaks by using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

Two tetracycline-resistant (Tcr) Moraxella (Branhamella) catarrhalis strains from England were compared with two previously characterized Tcr Texas strains. Both pairs carried the Tet B determinant, which was nontransferable. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of their genomic DNA restriction fragments demonstrated that the strains from the same area were identical (clonal); however, the Texas and English strains differed from each other.
Assisting manual dolphin identification by computer extraction of dorsal ratio.

Marine biologists use a measurement called the “Dorsal Ratio” in the process of manual identification of bottlenose dolphins. The dorsal ratio denotes the relative distances of the two largest notches from the tip on the dorsal fin. The manual computation of this ratio is time consuming, labor intensive, and user dependent. This paper presents a computer-assisted system to extract the dorsal ratio for use in identification of individual animals. The first component of the system consists of active contour modeling where the trailing edge of the dorsal fin is detected. This is followed by a curvature module to find the characteristic fin points: tip and two most prominent notches. Curvature smoothing is performed at various smoothing scales, and wavelet coefficients are utilized to select an appropriate smoothing scale. The dorsal ratio is then computed from the curvature function at the appropriate smoothing scale. The system was tested using 296 digitized images of dolphins, representing 94 individual dolphins. The results obtained indicate that the computer extracted dorsal ratio can be used in place of the manually extracted dorsal ratio as part of the manual identification process. © 1999 Biomedical Engineering Society.
Enzymatic synthesis of carbonic anhydrases by human reticulocytes.

Abstract Human reticulocyte-rich blood incubated 4h at 37° in O 2 -CO 2 (95:5, v/v) with 3 H- or 14 C-tagged amino acids revealed incorporation of the label into carbonic anhydrase I and II, Hb A, and in one patient, into Hb S. No radioactivity could be detected in normal, nonreticulocyte-rich blood similarly treated. From this, it is concluded that the anucleate human reticulocyte synthesizes carbonic anhydrase I and II by means of a stable messenger RNA in the absence of DNA. During the course of this study, several new methods were developed for the microanalysis of proteins including (1) comparison of labeled protein components after electrophoresis by liquid scintillation counting of consecutive slices of starch gels with autoradiography, (2) isolation of 1-mg quantities of carbonic anhydrase from whole blood hemolysates followed by tryptic digestion and fingerprinting of 0.01 mg samples on thin-layer chromatography support sheets, and (3) autoradiographs of the fingerprints by apposition to AR10 film plates and recording the film reduction by light microscopy and photomicrography.
Modified Constraint-Induced Therapy in Patients With Chronic Stroke Exhibiting Minimal Movement Ability in the Affected Arm

Background and Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of a reimbursable, outpatient modified constraint-induced therapy (mCIT) protocol administered to subjects with chronic stroke who initially exhibited minimal movement ability in their affected wrists and fingers. Subjects The subjects were 4 individuals who had experienced a stroke more than 1 year prior to study entry (mean age [±SD]=60.25±1.98 years, mean time since stroke=37.5±23.2 months). Method A multiple-baseline, preintervention-postintervention, single-blinded case series design was used. The intervention consisted of structured, ½-hour therapy sessions emphasizing affected arm use in valued activities, occurring 3 times per week for 10 weeks. Subjects’ less affected arms also were restrained 5 days per week for 5 hours per day during the same 10-week period. The main outcome measures were the Action Research Arm Test (ARAT), the Motor Activity Log (MAL), and the Fugl-Meyer Assessment of Motor Recovery (FM). Results The subjects exhibited improvements in use of the more affected arm (+1.9, +1.8, +1.7, and +2.3 for subjects 1 through 4, respectively) and in quality of movement (+1.5, +2.1, +1.63, and +1.9 for subjects 1 through 4, respectively), as measured by the MAL. They also exhibited reduced impairment, as measured by the FM (+5.0, +6.5, +5.5, and +5.0 for subjects 1 through 4, respectively), and increased fine motor skill movement, as measured by the ARAT (+7.5, +7.0, +7.0, and +5.5 for subjects 1 through 4, respectively). Discussion and Conclusion The findings demonstrated that mCIT participation was efficacious because it led to increased use of the affected arm and of function and to increased ability to perform valued activities. The subjects reported some new ability to perform some valued activities. These outcomes are significant because few therapies are believed to effectively increase use of the affected arm and function in this population.
Using nursing theory in nursing education.

Please submit letters by e-mail to aornjournal@aorn.org and reference “Letter to the Editor” in the subject line, or submit letters by mail to AORN Journal, Letters to the Editor, 2170 S Parker Rd, Suite 300, Denver, CO 80231-5711. The article “Perioperative nursing competency” (Vol 88, September 2008) addresses a key issue in the practice of nursing education. Author James X. Stobinski, RN, MSN, CNOR, uses a theoretical framework to address the problems of determining perioperative competency. Benner’s Novice to Expert Theoretical Framework provides a sound basis for the author’s discussion of nursing competency in a subspecialty area. He integrates the theory well as he describes the various ways one obtains an RN license, postlicensure education, and graduate-level education. Carper’s Fundamental Patterns of Knowing in Nursing also can be applied to the findings in this article. Carper describes four patterns of knowing: empirics, ethics, personal knowing, and aesthetics. While a nurse may obtain his or her empiric and ethical knowledge in nursing school, it can be argued that personal knowing and aesthetics are learned postlicensure, beginning with subspecialty training. Chinn and Kramer expanded on Carper’s original theory to include the development of praxis, described as emancipatory knowledge.
Endocrine Regeneration Therapy using Adenoviral vector

재생요법 (regeneration therapy)은 내분비호르몬 결핍질 환의 궁극적인 치료로 미래에 널리 이용될 전망인데, 크게 시험관 내 (in vitro), 생체외 (ex vivo), 및 생체내 (in vivo) 재생요법 등 3가지 범주로 나뉜다[1]. 시험관 내 재생요법은 이미 확립된 세포주나 태아줄기세포 (embryonic stem cell) 및 조직특이성 성체줄기세포에서 분화된 세포를 생체에 이 식하는 방법이며, 대부분 면역억제제를 병용하여야 한다. 생 체외 재생요법은 환자 자신의 줄기세포를 획득하여 체외에 서 분화를 유도한 뒤 다시 환자에게 이식하는 방법으로 면 역억제제를 쓰지 않아도 되는 장점이 있다. 생체내 재생요 법은 손상된 조직을 환자 몸안에서 재생을 유도하거나 줄기 세포로부터 새롭게 분화를 유도하는 방법으로 약물요법 및 유전자치료법을 이용할 수 있다. 재생요법이 이용될 수 있는 내분비호르몬 결핍질환은 뇌 하수체호르몬결핍, 갑상선호르몬결핍, 원발성부신피질호르 몬결핍, 및 인슐린의 절대결핍에 의한 제1형 당뇨병 등이며, 위에서 열거한 방법의 단독 및 병용한 연구가 많이 진행되 고 있으며, 본문에서는 유전자치료법을 응용한 생체내 재생 요법에 대해 소개하고자 한다.
Selection of outputs for distributed parameter systems by identifiability analysis in the time-scale domain

A method of sensor location selection is introduced for distributed parameter systems. In this method, the sensitivities of spatial outputs to model parameters are computed by a model and transformed via continuous wavelet transforms into the time-scale domain to characterise the shape attributes of output sensitivities and accentuate their differences. Regions are then sought in the time-scale plane wherein the wavelet coefficient of an output sensitivity surpasses all the others’ as indication of the output sensitivity’s distinctness. This yields a comprehensive account of identifiability each output provides to the model parameters as the basis of output selection. The proposed output selection strategy is demonstrated for a numerical case of pollutant dispersion by advection and diffusion in a two-dimensional area.
Research of Portable Information Terminal Based on MIPS Processor and Windows CE

A portable information terminal(PIT) is designed and implemented for building disaster rescuing application. Based on MIPS processor Au1200, the hardware architecture and peripheral extension is expounded in details. Then the communication interfaces including ZigBee and MMS are designed respectively to acquire field information and exchange data with remote center. Based on Windows CE, the system software architecture is built up and device driver is implemented. The paper also gives some experiments related to the communication performance test. The experiment result shows that the system has strong function and high reliability.
The cumulative impact of annual coral bleaching can turn some coral species winners into losers

Mass coral bleaching events caused by elevated seawater temperatures result in extensive coral loss throughout the tropics, and are projected to increase in frequency and severity. If bleaching becomes an annual event later in this century, more than 90% of coral reefs worldwide may be at risk of long-term degradation. While corals can recover from single isolated bleaching and can acclimate to recurring bleaching events that are separated by multiple years, it is currently unknown if and how they will survive and possibly acclimatize to annual coral bleaching. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that annual coral bleaching can dramatically alter thermal tolerance in Caribbean corals. We found that high coral energy reserves and changes in the dominant algal endosymbiont type (Symbiodinium spp.) facilitated rapid acclimation in Porites divaricata, whereas low energy reserves and a lack of algal phenotypic plasticity significantly increased susceptibility in Porites astreoides to bleaching the following year. Phenotypic plasticity in the dominant endosymbiont type of Orbicella faveolata did not prevent repeat bleaching, but may have facilitated rapid recovery. Thus, coral holobiont response to an isolated single bleaching event is not an accurate predictor of its response to bleaching the following year. Rather, the cumulative impact of annual coral bleaching can turn some coral species ‘winners’ into ‘losers’, and can also facilitate acclimation and turn some coral species ‘losers’ into ‘winners’. Overall, these findings indicate that cumulative impact of annual coral bleaching could result in some species becoming increasingly susceptible to bleaching and face a long-term decline, while phenotypically plastic coral species will acclimatize and persist. Thus, annual coral bleaching and recovery could contribute to the selective loss of coral diversity as well as the overall decline of coral reefs in the Caribbean.
Meta-analysis of performance of Kings’s College Hospital Criteria in prediction of outcome in non-paracetamol-induced acute liver failure

Background & Aims Current techniques for predicting outcome and requirement for emergency liver transplantation (ELT) in acute liver failure (ALF) are imperfect, though The Kings College Criteria (KCC) are the most commonly applied tools for this purpose. Their performance in identification of patients with non-paracetamol-induced ALF (non-POD ALF), who would not survive without ELT, has recently been questioned. Using quantitative techniques, we therefore performed a meta-analysis of outcome data of the KCC for prediction of survival in non-POD ALF. Methods A systematic database search was performed and retrieved articles graded according to a pre-agreed pro-forma of methodological quality. Collated data was meta-analysed for summary sensitivity, specificity, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and ROC curve analysis. Pre-specified sub-group analysis was performed on the basis of methodological quality, the severity of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) of reported patients, timing of KCC application and exclusion of those who underwent ELT. Results Eighteen studies with data on 1105 patients were available for production of 2×2 tables. Summary sensitivity was 68 (95% CI 59–77)%, specificity 82 (75–88)% and DOR 12.6 (6.5–26.1). Heterogeneity was detected in the DOR and related to methodological quality ( I 2 =64% for all studies versus 47% for ‘good' quality studies) and was lower in studies considering high grade HE or dynamic application of KCC ( I 2 =0%). For data where ELT were excluded (13 studies) summary sensitivity was 68 (57–79)%, specificity 81 (72–90)% and DOR 12.2 (4.9–30.1) and a symmetric summary ROC curve was produced. Specificity was highest in studies of patients with high grade HE (93 (80–100)%) and where KCC were applied dynamically through the clinical course (88 (78–97)%). Sensitivity was reduced in studies published post 2005 compared with studies pre 1995 (58 (46–71)% versus 85 (76–82)%). Conclusions KCC for outcome in non-POD ALF have good specificity and more limited sensitivity. There is significant heterogeneity in the published data partially related to methodological quality. KCC perform best in groups with high grade encephalopathy and in historically earlier studies suggesting modern medical management of ALF may modify performance of KCC.
Use of Both Centerline and Shoulder Rumble Strips on High-Speed Two-Lane Rural Roadways: Impact on Lateral Lane Position and Passing Maneuvers of Vehicles

A before-and-after field evaluation assessed the impacts that centerline and shoulder rumble strips on rural two-lane roadways have on various characteristics of driver behavior. The following characteristics were assessed as part of this evaluation: passing maneuvers, lateral lane placement, and centerline and edgeline encroachments. The data were collected with video cameras temporarily installed at 18 passing zones and 12 curves on rural two-lane roadways throughout Michigan. The cameras were installed at the same locations before and after the installation of rumble strips. A manual review of the videos was performed to assess the various behavioral characteristics. Nearly 78,000 vehicles were observed during review of the passing zone videos, and more than 50,000 vehicles were observed during review of the curve videos. Centerline rumble strips were found to improve driver central lane positioning tendencies and decrease the occurrence of centerline encroachments. The inclusion of shoulder rumble strips in addition to centerline rumble strips provided incremental improvements in central lane positioning and reduced edgeline encroachments. Most notable, centerline and shoulder rumble strips greatly reduced the occurrence of drivers laterally shifting to the inside while maneuvering through curves (i.e., corner cutting). In addition, centerline rumble strips did not reduce the rate of passing maneuvers. Collectively, these results suggest that both centerline and shoulder rumble strips have a positive impact on surrogate measures for roadway safety and do not negatively affect driver behavior.
The Effect of Grape Seed Extract on Estrogen Levels of Postmenopausal Women: A Pilot Study

ABSTRACTThe role of estrogens in breast cancer (BC) development is widely accepted, leading to the development of selective estrogen receptor modulators and aromatase inhibitors for BC treatment and prevention. However, because of potential adverse effects, healthy women with high risk of BC are hesitant to take them. Preliminary evidence from animal studies shows that grapes may have an aromatase-inhibiting effect, decreasing estrogen synthesis and increasing androgen precursors. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, dose-finding early-phase trial on the effect of grape seed extract (GSE) on estrogen levels. Postmenopausal women who met study inclusion criteria (N = 46) were randomly assigned to daily GSE at a dose of 200, 400, 600, or 800 mg for 12 weeks. Primary outcome was change in plasma levels of estrogen conjugates from baseline to 12 weeks posttreatment. Thirty-nine participants (84.8%) completed the study. GSE in the 4 daily doses did not significantly decrease estrogen or increase androgen p...
Threat, Authoritarianism, and Voting: An Investigation of Personality and Persuasion

The authors examined whether the influence of persuasive messages emphasizing reward versus threat was moderated by authoritarianism. Five days before the 1996 presidential election, participants (N = 86) received either a reward-related message (emphasizing the positive benefits of voting) or a threatrelated message (emphasizing the negative consequences of failing to vote) recommending that they vote in the election. We found that high authoritarians perceived the threat message as stronger in argument quality than the reward message, and low authoritarians perceived the reward message as stronger in argument quality than the threat message. In turn, subjective perceptions of message quality exerted a direct influence on participants’ postmessage attitudes toward voting in the election. Finally, behavioral intentions mediated the influence of voting attitudes on actual voting behavior. Discussion focuses on the implications of the message frame and authoritarianism.
A dynamic-programming algorithm for reducing the energy consumption of pipelined system-level streaming applications

In this paper we present a System-Level technique for reducing energy consumption. The technique is applicable to pipelined applications represented as chain-structured graphs and targets the energy overhead of switching between active and sleep mode. The overhead is reduced by increasing the number of consecutive executions of the pipeline stages. The technique has no impact on the average throughput. We derive upper bounds on the number of consecutive executions and present a dynamic-programming algorithm that finds the optimal solution using these bounds. For specific cases we derive a quality metric that can be used to trade quality of the result for running-time.
Gender, sexuality and HIV: Making a difference in the lives of young women in developing countries

Most new HIV infections are occurring in young people, with young women hit particularly hard in parts of the developing world. This paper explores the impact of gender and sexual norms on young women's sexual experiences, expectations and vulnerability to HIV/AIDS. It argues that the power imbalance characteristic of sexual relations among men and women has many of its roots in adolescence. The data that support these findings were collected from studies conducted in Africa, Latin America, and Asia and the Pacific as part of the Women and AIDS Research Programme of the International Center for Research on Women. The paper concludes with recommendations for educators, therapists, and counsellors who work with young people and their families.
Transnational household finance: A field experiment on the cross-border impacts of financial education for migrant workers

Background and Objectives: We randomly assigned invitations to a savings-focused financial literacy workshop for migrant Indian workers in Qatar. Via surveys of migrants, as well as their wives remaining behind in India, we provide a unique window into financial decision-making in transnational households. We examine impacts on financial decision-making of the migrant workers, migrants' attempts to influence the financial decision-making of their wives in the home country, migrant beliefs about their wives' behaviors, and the wives' actual behaviors. Method: A randomized control trial approach was used to assign migrants to a control and treatment group. After completing a baseline survey, migrants were randomly offered an invitation to attend a one-time financial education workshop. A follow-up survey was administered 16 months later to all couples. Results: The treatment led to substantial changes in migrant financial practices, and more joint financial decision-making with their wives. Migrants with below-median baseline savings are most responsive to the treatment, increasing their own savings and the remittances sent to their wives. Comparison of treatment effects on financial outcomes reported separately by migrants and wives provides evidence of substantial information asymmetries within transnational households. Conclusions: The fact that a short, simple financial education invitation had identifiable and (in many cases) large effects on financial behaviors and outcomes is one of the key findings of this study. While we cannot tell whether the intervention improved the overall well-being of migrants or their families back home, we do identify a subgroup (migrants with initially low savings) who saw increases in two outcomes of significant interest to economists and policy-makers: savings and remittances. That migrants were induced by a relatively minimal intervention to change important economic behaviors suggests that this population could not have had very strong priors that their previous behaviors were optimal. From a practical standpoint, our results suggest that financial literacy interventions have real potential to change migrant financial behaviors. These findings should be an impetus for further exploration of the impacts of financial literacy interventions in different populations and contexts. Future work might also profitably explore what factors lead to suboptimal financial decision-making in transnational households.
Rubrics on the Fly: Improving Efficiency and Consistency with a Rapid Grading and Feedback System

Many learning management systems (LMS) used in higher education provide customizable rubrics that aid in the process of grading and providing feedback for many forms of assessments commonly used by educators today. Rapid Grade is a grading and feedback feature built into a non-commercialized LMS developed by a large, public, Midwestern university in the United States. In this research, Rapid Grade was compared to a grading and feedback system found in one of the most utilized LMS found in higher education. It should be noted that the name of this particular LMS is not named. Using the Technology Acceptance Model to validate that Rapid Grade empirically improves upon existing methods, survey results indicate that Rapid Grade is a significant improvement in terms of ease of use and usefulness when grading and providing feedback for a given assessment. The Rapid Grade framework as well as the specific results of the TAM is presented.
A Survey of Algorithms for Dense Subgraph Discovery

In this chapter, we present a survey of algorithms for dense subgraph discovery.The problem of dense subgraph discovery is closely related to clustering though the two problems also have a number of differences. For example, the problem of clustering is largely concerned with that of finding a fixed partition in the data, whereas the problem of dense subgraph discovery defines these dense components in a much more flexible way. The problem of dense subgraph discovery may wither be defined over single or multiple graphs. We explore both cases. In the latter case, the problem is also closely related to the problem of the frequent subgraph discovery. This chapter will discuss and organize the literature on this topic effectively in order to make it much more accessible to the reader.
Teaching Graphics To Students Struggling in Math: An Experience

Undergraduate students with a negative attitude towards Math present a unique challenge when teaching computer graphics. Most meaningful concepts in computer graphics involve directly working with Math in the classroom, and implementing tasks in programs requires a reasonable grounding in Math concepts and how to apply them. This paper presents a semester-long experience in using three strategies to address difficulties faced by computer science students who are interested in learning computer graphics, but feel less confident or uninterested in Math. Similar to how Math is taught in schools, we focus on giving students more and more practice in implementing progressively complex visual tasks. Students accomplish some tasks individually to develop a basic understanding before completing other tasks in groups. Students achieve more in a semester than before, and our preliminary observations show a higher rate of completion by students, moderate gains in performance in individual assignments and significant gains in overall class performance.
Efficiency of a fluorescent, non-extraction LAMP DNA amplification method: toward a field-based specific detection of maize pollen grains

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is rapidly being established as the preferred method for field-based, rapid and cost-effective detection of DNA sequences, but a deficiency of current methods for diagnostic purposes is the prevalence of non-specific amplification. We have previously demonstrated the applicability of the LAMP method for pollen from a variety of plant species with a resolution down to a single grain, based on the application of an extraction-free methodology. Here, we show how this method can be applied to detect pollen with sequence-specific accuracy and without the danger of false positives. We establish the lower limits of detection and efficiency of this approach, and in addition, we show that this method does not lose robustness for pollen material stored for at least 8 years.
The CH-π interactions of methyl ethers as a model for carbohydrate-N-heteroarene interactions.

CH−π interactions have been cited as an important contributor to carbohydrate recognition. To determine whether N-heterocycles form stronger CH−π interactions, the interactions of methyl ether groups with heterocyclic and nonheterocyclic aromatic surfaces were studied. Both experimental and computational experiments found that N-heterocyclic aromatic surfaces formed stronger interactions. This enhancement was attributed to attractive dipole–dipole interactions between the methyl ether C–O bond and the N-heterocyclic aromatic dipole.
The Relation between Universal Health Insurance and Cost Control

The failure of national health care reform in 1994 had too many causes to list. But surely one was doubt that costs could be controlled and coverage expanded simultaneously. That doubt became the fear that most Americans would lose as a result of reform. That fear, however, was based on a misconception of the workings of our health care system. In fact, cost control and universal coverage not only can be combined, but they should be. Last year's failure was unnecessary as well as tragic. Every nation whose economic level approaches that of the United States ensures broad health coverage . . .
Computational Investigation of High Velocity Penetration of Copper Subjected to Impact From Nickel Projectiles

A computational simulation of penetration between nickel projectile and copper plate with high velocity in macro scale has been built. It is the first time a comprehensive investigation of penetration between these two materials. A threshold velocity between a nickel projectile and a copper plate is determined by mathematical equation in this paper. ABAQUS/Explicit is used to verify this threshold velocity by setting different velocities under the same condition and displaying visual animation of penetration results. John-cook model has been chosen to represent two material plastic behaviors. The shapes of penetrator and target are shown in order to expose penetration procedure and phenomena. Stress patterns and perforation features are adopted to make a good understanding of Ni-Cu penetration mechanism from computational study.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Solid state reaction of the Fe_2O_3-TiO_2 system in argon

The diffusion couple method was used to study the solid-state reaction of the Fe2O3-TiO2system in the temperature range of 1323 K to 1473 K in argon. The microstructure of the diffusion couple and the diffusion concentration profiles of Fe and Ti were determined by electron probe microanalysis( EPMA). According to kinetic analysis,this solid-state reaction is controlled by the diffu-sion of Fe,Ti and O ions. The inter-diffusion coefficient,which increases with the increasing temperature and concentration of Ti ions,was calculated by the Boltzmann-Matano method,and its order of magnitude is in the range of 10- 13 to 10- 10cm2·s- 1. The diffusion activation energy( about 356. 06 kJ·mol- 1) of the system in argon is much bigger than that in air,which indicates that the partial pressure of oxygen in atmosphere has important effect on the reaction mechanism of the system.