cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Maternal vitamin B12 deficiency and perinatal outcomes in southern India.

Background Vitamin B12 deficiency during pregnancy has been associated with adverse maternal and infant health outcomes. Few prospective studies have investigated vitamin B12 status early in pregnancy, and its links to infant vitamin B12 status, particularly in India where the burden of vitamin B12 deficiency is estimated to be the highest globally. The objective of this study was to examine the associations of maternal vitamin B12 biomarkers with neonatal vitamin B12 status. Methods Pregnant women (~12 weeks’ gestation) were enrolled in a perinatal cohort study in Bangalore, India. Total vitamin B12, methylmalonic acid (MMA), and homocysteine concentrations were evaluated in maternal samples at enrollment and in neonates at birth using cord blood. Linear and binomial regression models were used to evaluate the associations of maternal vitamin B12 biomarkers with neonatal vitamin B12 status and perinatal outcomes. Results A total of 63.2% of women had vitamin B12 deficiency ( 0.26μmol/L) at enrollment; 40.8% of neonates had vitamin B12 deficiency, 65.6% were insufficiency, and 38.1% had impaired vitamin B12 status at birth. Higher maternal vitamin B12 concentrations at enrollment were associated with increased neonatal vitamin B12 concentrations (β(SE): 0.40 (0.05); p<0.0001) and lower risk of neonatal vitamin B12 deficiency (Risk Ratio [RR]: 0.53; 95% CI: [0.43, 0.65]; p<0.0001). Maternal vitamin B12 deficiency (RR: 1.97 [1.43, 2.71]; p<0.001), insufficiency (RR: 2.18 [1.23, 3.85]; p = 0.007), and impaired vitamin B12 status (RR: 1.49 [1.13, 1.97]; p = 0.005) predicted a two-fold increase in the risk of neonatal vitamin B12 deficiency at birth. Conclusions The prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency was high early in pregnancy and predicted neonatal vitamin B12 status. Future research is needed to determine the role of vitamin B12 in the development of pregnancy and infant outcomes, and to inform screening and interventions to improve maternal and child health.
Compositional effects on cure kinetics, mechanical properties and printability of dual-cure epoxy/acrylate resins for DIW additive manufacturing

Abstract Interest in 3D printing of thermoset resins has increased significantly in recent years. One approach to additive manufacturing of thermoset resins is printing dual-cure resins with direct ink write (DIW). Dual-cure resins are multi-component resins which employ an in situ curable constituent to enable net-shape fabrication while a second constituent and cure mechanism contribute to the final mechanical properties of the printed materials. In this work, the cure kinetics, green strength, printability, and print fidelity of dual-cure epoxy/acrylate thermoset resins are investigated. Resin properties are evaluated as a function of acrylate concentration and in situ UV exposure conditions. The acrylate cure kinetics are probed using photo-differential scanning calorimetry and the impacts of resin composition and UV cure profile on the acrylate extent of conversion are presented. Continuous and pulsed UV cure profiles are shown to affect total conversion due to variances in radical efficiency at different UV intensities and acrylate concentrations. The effects of acrylate concentration on the kinetics of the epoxy thermal cure and the final mechanical properties are also investigated using dynamic mechanical analysis and three-point bend measurements. The glass transition temperature is dependent on formulation, with increasing acrylate content decreasing the Tg. However, the room temperature shear moduli, flexural moduli, strength, strain-to-failure, and toughness values are relatively independent of resin composition. The similarity of the final properties allows for greater flexibility in resin formulation and in situ cure parameters, which can enable the printing of complex parts that require high green strength. We found that the in situ UV print intensities and exposure profiles that are necessary to achieve the best print quality are not, in most cases, the conditions that maximize conversion of the acrylate network. This highlights the importance of developing optimized resin compositions which enable complete cure of the acrylate network by promoting acrylate dark cure or thermal cure.
Exact Support Recovery Under Dependence

This chapter describes some of the core contributions of this work. It focuses on the exact support recovery problem for a sparse signal observed with additive noise. The noise is assumed to be light-tailed with potentially arbitrary dependence structure and the general class of thresholding estimators for the signal support is considered. In this setting, a universal phase-transition result for the exact support recovery is established when the dimension of the signal diverges to infinity. Namely, when the (suitably parameterized) signal strength is above the so-called classification boundary (a certain function of the signal sparsity parameter), then thresholding estimators are shown to recover the signal support exactly with probability converging to one, as the dimension goes to infinity. This is so regardless of the dependence of the errors. Conversely, when the signal is below the classification boundary function, all thresholding estimators fail to recover the support with probability converging to one. This is so provided that the error array is uniformly relatively stable—a type of concentration of maxima condition. The URS condition is optimal and characterized further in Chap. 6.
Conclusion: Darkness to Light

Close readings of art works create personal meaning that may elicit ethical formation. The still life fish paintings of William Merritt Chase challenge the idea that traditional as well as contemporary artists have given moral consideration to an animal’s intrinsic presence through subject matter and style. Chase has attended to these fishes in their deaths, and his glazes and paints evoke the colors of their lives.
Identification of Escherichia coli O157:H7 meat processing indicators for fresh meat through comparison of the effects of selected antimicrobial interventions.

Fresh meat products can become contaminated with the pathogen Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the slaughter process; therefore, an E. coli O157:H7 indicator to verify the effectiveness of process controls in slaughter establishments would be extremely useful. The hides of 20 beef cattle were sampled, and 113 bacterial isolates were obtained. Thirteen of these isolates representing four genera, Escherichia, Enterobacter, Providencia, and Serratia, were selected based on growth and biochemical characteristics similar to those of five clinical strains of E. coli O157:H7. The temperature sensitivity was determined for the individual isolates and the five E. coli O157:H7 strains at 55 and 65°C. D65-values for all 13 isolates were not significantly different from D65-values of the E. coli O157:H7 strains. E. coli isolates were the only isolates whose D55-values were not significantly different from those of the E. coli O157:H7 strains. E. coli isolates P3 and P68 were more resistant to the effects of 55°C than ...
From cross-cultural management to global leadership: Evolution and adaptation

We provide a quasi-historical review of how the field of global leadership evolved. In doing so, we conceptually map an overall trajectory of the field of global leadership, discussing the nature of its origins in the field of cross-cultural management. We trace evolutionary trends in the field of cross-cultural management from 1960 to the present, and explore how these trends influenced the formation of the global leadership literature. After reviewing the primary domains of the global leadership field, we conclude with a discussion of the implications of our analysis for future research and managerial practice.
Reproductive Rights in Latin America: A Case Study of Guatemala and Nicaragua

The lack of access to contraceptives and legal abortion for women throughout Nicaragua and Guatemala creates critical healthcare problems. Moreover, rural and underprivileged women in Guatemala and Nicaragua are facing greater limitations to birth control access, demonstrating a classist aspect in the global struggle for female reproductive rights. Some efforts have been made over the past half-century to initiate dialogue on the failure of medical care in these nations to adequately address issues of maternal mortality and reproductive rights. The women’s reproductive health movements of Nicaragua and Guatemala have struggled to reach an effective solution to this problem. As a result, women of Nicaragua and Guatemala are falling below the human development goals of organizations such as Planned Parenthood and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to ensure universal access to birth control and a subsequent reduction in each nation’s maternal mortality rate.
Transverse Vibrations and Stability of Systems with Gyroscopic Forces

Abstract It is well known that third order elastic constants in bulk materials can be determined from acoustoelastic measurements. Modifications are needed to these techniques to obtain higher order,e.g fourth order elastic constants. In this paper, methods will be suggested 10separate second order nonlinearities (related to fourth order elastic constants) from the stronger first order nonlinearities. These methods include modifications of acousto-elastic results by appropriate choice of polarization and harmonic analysis. It hasbeen shownthat second order nonlinear measurements are more sensitive to detect weak boundary layers in an adhesive joint than linear measurements.
Prolog at IBM: an advanced and evolving application development technology

Prolog is a powerful programming language, based on logic, that originated and matured in Europe. This paper aims to show that Prolog is becoming one of the key tools for the entire application development community. First explained is how the unique properties of Prolog give it many advantages over classical languages. Then we show that the language is sufficiently mature technically so that numerous industrial Prolog products are now available. In particular, IBM offers the Systems Application Architecture® (SAA™) AD/Cycle™ Prolog product family, which provides a combination of logic programming and object programming facilities. Many industrial applications are written in Prolog. Examples of 15 outstanding operational applications, developed by IBM or major IBM customers, are presented. There is a potential for future growth in the types of applications enabled by improving the language. The simplicity and elegance of the theoretical basis of Prolog allow a number of extensions to be defined. Here, three European projects are briefly presented. In conclusion it is shown that Prolog, possibly extended in many directions, is one of the tools that could help solve the long-standing quality and cost problems in application development.
A parametric approach to theory of competing risks when the time of death from each cause follows a change-point hazard rate model

The paper a t tempts t o make i n f e r e n c e about the component parameters, based on data from a series system, when the components each follow a different changepoint hazard r a t e model.The paper extends the result of Nattbews and Farewell (1982) to the competing risk framework.
Automated design space exploration with Aspen

Architects and applications scientists often use performance models to explore a multidimensional design space of architectural characteristics, algorithm designs, and application parameters. With traditional performance modeling tools, these explorations forced users to first develop a performance model and then repeatedly evaluate and analyze the model manually. These manual investigations proved laborious and error prone. More importantly, the complexity of this traditional process often forced users to simplify their investigations. To address this challenge of design space exploration, we extend our Aspen (Abstract Scalable Performance Engineering Notation) language with three new language constructs: user-defined resources, parameter ranges, and a collection of costs in the abstract machine model. Then, we use these constructs to enable automated design space exploration via a nonlinear optimization solver. We show how four interesting classes of design space exploration scenarios can be derived from Aspen models and formulated as pure nonlinear programs. The analysis tools are demonstrated using examples based on Aspenmodels for a three-dimensional Fast Fourier Transform, the CoMD molecular dynamics proxy application, and the DARPA Streaming Sensor Challenge Problem. Our results show that this approach can compose and solve arbitrary performance modeling questions quickly and rigorously when compared to the traditional manual approach.
Electric-Driven Rotation of Silicon Nanowires and Silicon Nanowire Motors

In this work, the first highly controllable assembly and rotation of silicon nanowires and nanomotors in suspension are reported. Si and Si composite nanowires are fabricated with precisely controlled dimensions via colloidal assisted catalytic etching. The nanowires can be rotated with deterministic speed and chirality. The rotation speed and orientation not only depend on the applied AC electric frequency, but also on the electronic type, geometry, surface coating, as well as the electric conductance of suspension mediums. Theoretical analysis is used to understand the rotation of Si nanowires, and also the electric resistivity of Si nanowires is determined from their mechanical rotation. The Si nanowires are precisely assembled into nanomotors that can be rotated with controlled speeds and orientations at prescribed locations. This work provides a new paradigm for designing and actuating various Si-based nanoelectromechanical system (NEMS) devices, which are relevant to man-made nanomotors, nanorobots, and nanoengines.
Rural economy, environmental degradation and economic disparity: a case study in Deryabuyi, Xinjiang

Deryabuyi, a small isolated town in the Takla Makan desert in Xinjiang, China, is viewed from the perspective of its rural economy. The minority Uyghur inhabitants are similar to other rural minority communities in China. In particular, focus is placed on the digging of rabbit carrots, a medicinal herb that grows on the roots of mesquite trees. Just as the Tibetan caterpillar-fungus collection has brought cash, and problems, to rural Tibetans, the collection of rabbit carrots has brought cash to Deryabuyi. However, the loss of the ability to engage in sustainable economic activities due to environmental degradation, loss of grazing land, overharvesting of scarce resources, diversion of water resources, government neglect along with scarce and/or inadequate social services such as health care and education, and job discrimination among others, may mean the destruction of this unique cultural community. As such, Deryabuyi can be seen as a microcosm of the challenges facing rural minorities in Xinjiang and i...
Small popliteal artery aneurysms: are they clinically significant?

Abstract Objective: We undertook this study to determine whether popliteal artery aneurysm diameter correlates with initial symptoms and presence of associated occlusive disease. Methods: Duplex arteriography before infrainguinal revascularization in 500 lower extremities enabled diagnosis of 34 popliteal aneurysms in 25 patients (24 male, 1 female) over the last 4 years. Fourteen patients (41%) had no symptoms (group 1) and 20 (59%) had symptoms (group 2) of severe claudication (n = 8), acute ischemia (n = 6), rest pain (n = 2), and tissue loss (n = 4). We compared clinical presentation with popliteal artery diameter, prevalence of thrombosis, and presence of associated occlusive disease. Results: Popliteal artery aneurysm diameter averaged 2.8 ± 0.7 cm (range, 1.8-4.5 cm) in group 1 and 2.2 ± 0.8 cm (range, 1.3-4.0 cm) in group 2 ( P Conclusions: Smaller popliteal artery aneurysm was associated with higher incidence of thrombosis, clinical symptoms, and distal occlusive disease. Liberal use of duplex scanning in this setting may have accounted for the increased awareness that small popliteal artery aneurysms can thrombose and present with severe ischemia. (J Vasc Surg 2003;37:755-60.)
Evaluation of a commercially available focused aCGH platform for the detection of constitutional chromosome anomalies.

Microarray-based comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) allows for simultaneous high-resolution analysis of multiple genomic loci. Recently, focused aCGH platforms have emerged allowing for analysis of numerous clinically relevant chromosome loci. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the Spectral Genomics Constitutional Chip™ 1.0 (CC) for use in the clinical laboratory. The CC consisted of 429 BAC clones for 41 known genetic deletion/duplication syndromes, subtelomeric regions, and chromosomal backbone clones. We conducted a blinded study of 48 samples including 46 patients (one sample was run in triplicate) with previously determined constitutional chromosome anomalies and two negative controls. Patient samples included 31 microdeletions, four duplications, three derivative chromosomes, three trisomies, and five sex chromosome aneuploidies. Our results show that the CC identified the expected gains and/or losses in 46 of 48 samples. The two negative controls were considered to be normal and the three replicates of the same patient sample were concordant. Two samples yielded false-negative results; however, repeat analysis produced acceptable results for one of them. One sample ultimately had an insufficient amount of DNA precluding aCGH analysis. While promising, the results suggest that further studies are needed to reduce protocol variability and to establish standard analysis and interpretation criteria. Further, this study verifies the importance of extensive validation studies prior to clinical implementation of new clinically available methodologies. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Sorting and Intracellular Trafficking of a Glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored Protein and Two Hybrid Transmembrane Proteins with the Same Ectodomain in Madin-Darby Canine Kidney Epithelial Cells (∗)

We compared the trafficking of the glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) and two chimeric transmembrane proteins containing the PLAP ectodomain in stably transfected Madin-Darby canine kidney epithelial cells to determine whether different mechanisms might be used in apical sorting of GPI-anchored and transmembrane proteins. PLAP-G, which contained the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of the vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein, was delivered directly to the basolateral surface. PLAP-HA contained the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of influenza hemagglutinin. Both PLAP and PLAP-HA were delivered directly to the apical membrane. PLAP becomes insoluble in Triton X-100 during biosynthetic transport, as it associates with detergent-resistant membranes. Neither hybrid protein was detergent insoluble, though the small amount of PLAP that was missorted to the basolateral surface was insoluble. We examined the effects of three drugs known to interfere with membrane trafficking on sorting and delivery of PLAP and the hybrid proteins. Monensin had no effect on sorting or surface expression of any of the proteins. Nocodazole affected the sorting of both PLAP and PLAP-HA but not of PLAP-G. Brefeldin A appeared to disrupt the sorting of PLAP and PLAP-HA but not of PLAP-G. This conclusion was tempered by the observation that this drug affected the distribution of proteins at the cell surface. Thus, sorting and transport of GPI-anchored and apical transmembrane proteins are similar in a number of respects.
Search for Enhancement of the Isobaric Thermal Expansion Coefficient of Superfluid 4He near Tλ by a Heat Current

We report an experimental search for the enhancement of the isobaric thermal expansion coefficient (β P ) of superfluid 4He near the superfluid transition by a heat current (Q). The experiment was carried out using the hot volume technique at constant sample pressure of 1 bar. Liquid helium was contained in a thermal conductivity cell, and a constant heat current, Q=10 or 100 μW/cm2, was supplied from below through the sample column. We performed a sample density calculation based on existing helium properties known in the literature and a proposed enhancement Δβ P (Q). Both calculations, with or without the β P enhancement, agree qualitatively with the measurement. The lack of definitive differentiation indicates that the β P enhancement cannot be definitively resolved by our measurement in spite of applications of high-resolution thermometry and pressure regulation.
Simulation of Antibiotic Pharmacodynamic Exposure for the Empiric Treatment of Nosocomial Bloodstream Infections: A Report from the OPTAMA Program

Abstract Objective: We developed a model to predict the phar macodynamic exposure of antibiotics against bacteria commonly implicated in nosocomial bloodstream infections to determine which dosage regimens would provide the greatest likelihood of obtaining a bactericidal effect. Methods: Pharmacodynamic exposures were simulated for 5000 subjects receiving standard doses of ceftazidime, cefepime, piperacillin/tazobactam, meropenem, imipenem, or ciprofloxacin. Exposures were indexed to the MICs of bacteria weighted by their prevalence in causing nosocomial bloodstream infections, derived from 2002 SENTRY data. Enterococci were excluded. MIC data were derived from the 2003 Meropenem Yearly Surveillance Test Information Collection resistance study. The probabilities of achieving bactericidal exposures (ie, target attainment) for each antibiotic regimen were compared. The effect of increasing prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) on attainment of bactericidal targets was tested. Results: All dosage regimens except ciprofloxacin and ceftazidime 1 g q8h achieved >90% likelihood of bactericidal exposure. The rank order of target attainment was as follows: imipenem 500 mg q6h, 100.0%; imipenem 1 g q8h, 99.9%; cefepime 2 g q12h, 99.4%; meropenem 1 g q8h, 98.4%; cefepime 1 g q12h, 98.2%; piperacillin/tazobactam 3.375 g q6h, 97.9%; piperacillin/tazobactam 4.5 gq8h, 95.0%; ceftazidime 2 g q8h, 94.2%; ceftazidime 1 g q8h, 71.7%; ciprofloxacin 400 mg q8h, 63.3%; and ciprofloxacin 400 mg q12h,63.0%. Target attainments dropped to Conclusions: The results of this model analysis suggest that standard doses of the carbapenems, piperacillin/tazobactam, and cefepime, and higher doses of ceftazidime, may provide optimal likelihood of achieving bactericidal exposure against pathogens implicated in nosocomial bloodstream infections, excluding MRSA and enterococci. When MRSA rates are ≥10%, therapy with an antibiotic that has activity against this phenotype should be empirically initiated.
ES cells overexpressing microRNA-1 attenuate apoptosis in the injured myocardium

MicroRNAs (miRs) are small, single-stranded, noncoding RNA’s involved in post-transcriptional negative gene regulation. Recent investigations have underscored the integral role of miRs in various biological processes including innate immunity, cell-cycle regulation, metabolism, differentiation, and cell death. In the present study, we overexpressed miR-1, a muscle-specific miR, in embryonic stem cells (miR-1-ES cells), transplanted them into the infarcted myocardium, and evaluated their impact on cardiac apoptosis and function. We provide evidence demonstrating reduced apoptosis following transplantation of miR-1-ES cells 4 weeks post-myocardial infarction as compared to respective controls assessed by TUNEL staining and a capsase-3 activity assay. Moreover, we show significant elevation in p-Akt levels and diminished PTEN levels in hearts transplanted with miR-1-ES cells as determined by enzyme-linked immunoassays. Finally, using echocardiography, we reveal mice receiving miR-1-ES cell transplantation post-myocardial infarction had significantly improved fractional shortening and ejection fraction compared with respective controls. Our data suggest transplanted miR-1-ES cells inhibit apoptosis, mediated through the PTEN/Akt pathway, leading to improved cardiac function in the infarcted myocardium.
The Role of Mentors in Developing and Implementing High-Quality Field-Based Placements

Teacher preparation programs (TPP) rely on school-based mentor teachers and university mentors to assist their teacher candidates with bridging the information presented in courses to the “real wor...
Coping with the stress of jet-lag

Abstract In the present age of multi-national corporations, it is not uncommon for business executives and other decision-makers to find themselves faced with the need to perform at their best, soon after a flight across several time zones. This brief article comprises a ‘self-help’ guide that executives might find useful in helping them co cope with that stressful situation.
A theory of thermo-visco-elastic-plastic materials: thermomechanical coupling in simple shear

Abstract The constitutive relations of a theory of thermo-visco-elastic-plastic continuum have been formulated in Lagrangian form. The Lagrangian strains, strain rates, temperature, temperature rate and temperature gradients are considered as the independent constitutive variables. Three internal state variables (plastic strain tensor, back strain tensor and a scalar hardening parameter) are also incorporated. The axioms of objectivity and equipresence are followed. The Clausius–Duhem inequality is taken as the second law of thermodynamics. Several special theories are deduced based on material symmetries and/or conventionally adopted assumptions. The applications to the formation of shear bands and dynamic crack propagation are discussed.
Data-Parallel Techniques for Agent-Based Tissue Modeling on Graphics Processing Units

Agent-Based Modeling has been recently recognized as a method for in-silico multi-scale modeling of biological cell systems. Agent-Based Models (ABMs) allow results from experimental studies of individual cell behaviors to be scaled into the macro-behavior of interacting cells in complex cell systems or tissues. Current generation ABM simulation toolkits are designed to work on serial von-Neumann architectures, which have poor scalability. The best systems can barely handle tens of thousands of agents in real-time. Considering that there are models for which mega-scale populations have significantly different emergent behaviors than smaller population sizes, it is important to have the ability to model such large scale models in real-time. In this paper we present a new framework for simulating ABMs on programmable graphics processing units (GPUs). Novel algorithms and data-structures have been developed for agent-state representation, agent motion, and replication. As a test case, we have implemented an abstracted version of the Systematic Inflammatory Response System (SIRS) ABM. Compared to the original implementation on the NetLogo system, our implementation can handle an agent population that is over three orders of magnitude larger with close to 40 updates/sec. We believe that our system is the only one of its kind that is capable of efficiently handling realistic problem sizes in biological simulations.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Stimulation of the cyclooxygenase activity of prostaglandin H synthase by salicylate-derived quinhydrones

Abstract Two novel salicylate-derived quinhydrones were evaluated for their effect on the kinetics of cyclooxygenase activity of sheep seminal vesicle prostaglandin H synthase. These quinhydrones, which form semiquinone radicals in solution, were designed to resemble oxidized intermediates of salicylic acid metabolism. Although initially investigated for their potential role in irreversible inactivation of cyclooxygenase, these derivatives were found to give three-fold stimulation of this activity. In the absence of arachidonic acid, preincubation of the enzyme with these quinhydrones did not lead to inactivation of the cyclooxygenase activity. These compounds thus resemble the phenolic antioxidants in their effects on the cyclooxygenase activity of the synthase.
Corrosion Behavior of Friction-Stir-Welded AA7050-T7651

Abstract The corrosion properties of friction-stir-welded (FSW) AA7050-T7651 have been investigated. Immersion in a modified exfoliation corrosion (EXCO) solution showed that the grain boundaries in the nugget, partially recrystallized zone (PRZ), and heat-affected zone (HAZ) were sensitized. The most heavily sensitized region was the nugget/PRZ interface. Pitting potentials were determined potentiodynamically in 0.6 M sodium chloride (NaCl). The nugget had the lowest pitting potential, which was 75 mV less than the parent material. The pitting potential of the HAZ was 50 mV less than the parent material. In results from the slow strain rate test, the percent elongation in 0.6 M NaCl for the slowest strain rate used was ∼20% that in air, indicating susceptibility to stress corrosion cracking. Metallography showed that the fracture was intergranular and that the crack path was on the nugget side of the nugget/PRZ interface. Analytical electron transmission microscopy (ATEM) does not conclusively identify a...
Thyroxine and succinate oxidation.

Abstract 1. 1. Thyroxine preserves the activity of succinate-cytochrome c reductase activity in preparations from rat heart homogenate, but does not increase the original activity. 2. 2. The preservation appears to be a chemical rather than physical effect. 3. 3. At least one site of action is in the succinic dehydrogenase complex where sulfhydryl groups are protected from oxidation.
Migration status, socioeconomic status, and mortality rates in Mexican Americans and non-hispanic whites: The San Antonio heart study☆

It has been claimed that Mexican Americans have a favorable mortality experience despite their low socioeconomic status (SES). The present study compared all-cause mortality of non-Hispanic whites with that of United States-born and foreign-born (i.e., born in Mexico) Mexican Americans. Subjects were 3735 residents of San Antonio, TX, who were followed-up for 7-8 years. The sex-age adjusted death rates per 1000 person-years were higher for United States-born Mexican Americans (5.7) than for non-Hispanic whites (3.8) or for foreign-born Mexican Americans (3.6). Foreign-born Mexican Americans had the lowest socioeconomic status (SES), and non-Hispanic whites had the highest SES. After adjustment for SES, the mortality ratio for United States-born Mexican Americans compared with foreign-born Mexican Americans was 1.9 (95% confidence interval, 1.0-3.5), while the ratio for United States-born Mexican Americans compared with non-Hispanic whites was 1.0 (95% confidence interval, 0.7-1.6). Stratified analysis revealed that those in the lowest SES tertiles had threefold greater risk of death than those in the highest tertiles among both United States-born Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites (test for trend, P < 0.001). These data suggest that lower SES is strongly associated with increased mortality. After adjustment for SES, mortality rates were similar for United States-born Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites. Foreign-born Mexican Americans had the lowest mortality rates of the three groups.
Studies on Contaminant Biodegradation in Slurry, Wafer, and Compacted Soil Tube Reactors

A systematic experimental approach is presented to quantitatively evaluate biodegradation rates in intact soil systems. Knowledge of bioremediation rates in intact soil systems is important for eva...
Using a viewing window and the Hausdorff-Voronoi Network (HAVNET) neural network for the recognition of words within a document

A substantial portion of research and applications for visual image recognition have been limited to the recognition of large, isolated, non-variant images. Performing a visual search for focusing on, locating, and recognizing smaller details within the context of a larger image has proven more difficult. This paper presents a system that is capable of learning words of various lengths, and then locating and recognizing a previously trained word within a noisy document. This system utilizes a fitness function, search routine and viewing window to identify possible word candidates, and then employs the Hausdorff-Voronoi network (HAVNET) for word recognition. After 330 searches of 30 different words, with document noise ranging from 0 - 20%, the system recognition and location accuracy were 97.3%. © (1995) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Sulfur Melting and Polymorphism under Pressure: Outlines of Fields for 12 Crystalline Phases

The polymorphism of sulfur has been investigated by static and dynamic methods up to 500°C at 35 kilobars and up to 350°C at 100 kilobars. The melting curve of sulfur to 31 kilobars and phase boundaries of the so-called "4.04-angstrom phase" have been determined. Evidence has been obtained for phase fields of nine new high-pressure forms of sulfur.
Enhanced and stable green emission of ZnO nanoparticles by surface segregation of Mg.

The effects of Mg addition on the emission of green photons from ZnO nanoparticles were studied. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) data demonstrated that ZnO nanoparticles with surface segregation of MgO (ZnO:MgO) were precipitated from colloidal reactions between Zn2+,Mg2+ and OH− ions suspended in ethanol. The photoluminescence emission spectra showed stronger green emission from suspended ZnO:MgO versus ZnO nanoparticles. ZnO:MgO also exhibited a stable green emission colour, which was slightly red-shifted from 495 to 520 nm with 168 days of ageing. It was postulated that the presence of MgO on the surface of ZnO prevented both the aggregation of ZnO nanoparticles via electrostatic stabilization of the suspension, and the formation of non-radiative recombination states on the surface, resulting in more intense, stable photoemission from ZnO. The red shift of the green emission from suspended ZnO nanoparticles with extended ageing was attributed to filling of radiative surface trap states in the bandgap.
Costs and benefits of group living for pholcid spiderlings: losing food, saving silk

Abstract Holocnemus pluchei (Scopoli) spiderlings may either live alone or share webs with larger conspecifics. Three lines of evidence indicate that group-living spiderlings capture less food than do solitary spiderlings: (1) in field surveys, spiderlings in group webs were seen feeding less often than those living alone; (2) spiderlings in group webs had relatively smaller abdomens than did solitary individuals, indicating that recent foraging success had been poorer; and (3) when prey were introduced into group webs, the largest spider in the web that detected the prey won the prey approximately 77% of the time. In spite of this cost, spiderlings were found in groups more often than expected by chance. This observation may be explained by the high energy cost of constructing solitary webs, as demonstrated by (1) bomb calorimetry and (2) a web-removal experiment, which showed that spiders forced repeatedly to rebuild webs grew more slowly and were smaller than controls. The main benefit of group living is likely to be the reduction of the cost of web building when spiderlings take advantage of webs built by larger conspecifics.
New Advances in Preventing and Treating Serious Surgical Infection: Introduction

© E.I.F.T. srl Firenze ISSN 1120-009X As is true in all of medicine, prevention is the ultimate solution to surgical infection. It is therefore not surprising that a major and consistent effort in the development of surgery has been, and continues to be, an extensive attempt to achieve surgery without complicating infection. It is also true that the wide and ever expanding use of surgical management in medicine today speaks to the success achieved. Our ability to deal with infection has been substantially improved, particularly over the last decades. This improvement was made possible by extensive research. As examples: post operative wound infection has been markedly reduced through studies providing a more exact understanding of the mechanisms of natural host defenses. These investigations have developed the concept of an “effective period of preventive antibiotic activity” which when utilized clinically insures the timely use of preoperative antibiotics and a marked reduction in postoperative infection 1,2. Further, with a more exact knowledge of the altered physiology of injury it is possible to carry out highly effective resuscitation of injured patients. The use of recent advances in diagnostic ability through computed tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) allows the immediate, accurate recognition and definitive surgical repair of visceral, soft tissue or bony injuries or abnormalities, remarkably reducing the incidence of serious sepsis following both injury or problems produced by disease. Never the less, although reduced, infection complicating treatment remains a limiting factor in the further development of surgery as a therapeutic tool. This limitation is particularly marked in the application of surgery to presently unsolved medical problems; especially those involving: patients with serious physiologic or immunologic defects, patients requiring immunosuppression and patients best treated by the use of tissue engineered medical devices. Progress in these areas is, to a considerable extent, dependent on the development of more effective methods of preventing or dealing with infection. Therefore, throughout the history of modern surgery there has been a substantial effort to eliminate infection. As an extension of these efforts research over the past decade has concentrated on methods to restore or supplement host defense. In evaluating this work it is important to recognize that there are two basic clinical situations where infection interacts with surgery to limit its effectiveness as a therapeutic New Advances in Preventing and Treating Serious Surgical Infection: Introduction
To Build A “Harmonious World”: China’s Soft Power Wielding in the Global South

This study attempts to answer a new but important question in China’s foreign policy— how Beijing has wielded its soft power to construct its ideal of international order in the age of China’s rise. Before empirical analyses, this study tries to set up a conceptual framework on the relations between the idea of “harmonious world” and China’s soft power wielding in its rising process. Within this framework, this study examines a rising China’s foreign policies towards three targeted regions in the global south—Africa, East Asia, and Latin America. On the one hand, due to Beijing’s carefully-designed and soft power-based foreign policies, the global south has become an increasingly harmonious environment for Beijing to cultivate a favorable national image, exert its political influence on regional affairs, benefit its own domestic economic developments, etc. On the other hand, some problems such as the so-called “China’s New Colonialism” and the increased vigilance from the other powers have already began to challenge Beijing’s harmony in those regions.
Profile models of the diffuse attenuation coefficient

Abstract Profiles of the downwelling diffuse attenuation coefficient, k, are needed for prediction of performance of electro-optical systems, for phytoplankton research, and for global environmental monitoring. The present work provides models of k profiles given the surface water optics. The requisite surface water optics can be acquired by the use of satellite imagery. The models are discussed in the context of earlier work performed by other researchers in the field. The model results are compared to field data profiles from St. Croix and the AUTEC range. Error estimates are given for the models developed.
Preparations of Nickel, Cobalt, and Iron Nanoparticles through the Rapid Expansion of Supercritical Fluid Solutions (RESS) and Chemical Reduction

A method based on the rapid expansion of supercritical fluid solutions (RESS) coupled with chemical reduction was developed to produce nickel, cobalt, iron, and iron oxide nanoparticles of reasonably narrow size distributions. Under the protection of a polymer stabilization agent, the largely amorphous metal nanoparticles form stable suspensions in room-temperature solvents.
Raw versus relative scores in the assessment of coping strategies

Raw scores (frequency of efforts) versus relative scores (percentage of efforts) were compared on the five scales of the revised Ways of Coping Checklist. It was hypothesized that, conditional on the source of and appraisal of a stressor, problem-focused coping should be inverselyrelated and Wishful Thinking should be positively related to depression when relative scores were used but that raw problem-focused scores would be less clearly related to depression in such a way. It was further hypothesized that these relationships would hold for very diverse samples: psychiatric outpatients (n=145), spouses of patients with Alzheimer's disease (n=66), and medical students (n=185). Given the maladaptive status of the psychiatric outpatients, it was hypothesized that they would report more emotion-focused strategies and less problem-focused coping than the nonclinical samples and that these differences would be better observed using relative rather than raw scores. The hypotheses were generally supported.
On the metrizability number and related invariants of spaces, II

Abstract This is a continuation of the study of the metrizability number and the first countability number for various classes of compact Hausdorff spaces started by Ismail and Szymanski (1995). It is shown that if X is a compact LOTS, then w ( X ) ⩽ ω · m ( X ). Also, if X is the one-point compactification of an uncountable discrete space, then ω 1 ⩽ m ( X ω ) ⩽ 2 ω . Furthermore, under the singular cardinals hypothesis, for a large class of spaces of cardinality > 2 ω , the first countability number, the metrizability number and the cardinality coincide.
Killing normality with a Cohen real

Abstract We describe a machine that inputs a normal space X and outputs a normal superspace T such that T becomes nonnormal after adding one Cohen real if and only if X is a Dowker space. A similar construction applied to Rudin's box product Dowker space yields a collectionwise normal space that becomes nonnormal after the addition of one Cohen real.
Main predictions of the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicidal behavior: empirical tests in two samples of young adults.

The interpersonal-psychological theory of suicidal behavior (Joiner, 2005) makes two overarching predictions: 1) that perceptions of burdening others and of social alienation combine to instill the desire for death; and 2) that individuals will not act on the desire for death unless they have developed the capability to do so – a capability that develops through exposure and thus habituation to painful and/or fearsome experiences, and which is posited by the theory to be necessary to overcome powerful self-preservation pressures. Two studies test these predictions. In Study 1, the interaction of (low) family social support (cf. social alienation or low belonging) and feeling like one does not matter (cf. perceived burdensomeness) predicted current suicidal ideation, beyond depression indices. In Study 2, the three-way interaction between a measure of low belonging, a measure of perceived burdensomeness, and lifetime number of suicide attempts (viewed as a strong predictor of the level of acquired capability for suicide) predicted current suicide attempt (vs. ideation) among a clinical sample of suicidal young adults, again beyond depression indices and other key covariates. Implications for the understanding, treatment, and prevention of suicidal behavior are discussed.
The development of an identified subpopulation of avian sensory neurons is regulated by interaction with the periphery

Abstract The monoclonal antibody, SN1, binds to the cell surface of a subpopulation of avian sensory neurons. Dorsal root ganglia (DRG) that innervate different peripheral fields contain significantly different proportions of SN1(+) neurons. Morever, the developmental time of appearance of these neurons suggests that they normally express SN1 immunoreactivity only after they have made contact with their normal peripheral targets (Marusich et al., 1986). In the present paper, we test the hypothesis that the proportion of SN1(+) neurons within DRG is regulated by interactions between the developing neurons and their peripheral targets. Thus, immature DRG explanted into a defined medium show an age-dependent increase in the proportion of cells able to become SN1(+), but fail to show the large increase in number of immunoreactive neurons that occurs in vivo . Moreover, unilateral wing bud extirpations performed at E3 (prior to wing innervation) resulted in a dramatic selective decrease in the number of SN1(+) neurons within DRG that normally innervate the wing. These results support the hypothesis that peripheral targets regulate the appearance of SN1(+) neurons.
Pulsed Critical Field Measurements in Magnetic Systems

Pulsed field magnetic moment measurements in several magnetic systems are briefly summarized. Particularly high sensitivity is attained for systems which exhibit a nonlinear variation of magnetization versus applied field, e. g., “spin-flop.” Changes of magnetization as small as 0.1 gauss could be observed with applied fields of over 100 kgauss under favorable circumstances. Critical fields for Cr2O3 and (Cr2O3)0.9 · (Al2O3)0.1 from 4.2°K to about 0.95 T N and the corresponding calculated values of (2λK)1/2 are presented, where λ is the exchange constant and K is the anisotropy energy. The values of (2λK)1/2 agree with earlier antiferromagnetic resonance measurements in similar crystals. Results of measurements in antiferromagnetic MnF2, CoF2, and FeTiO3, and in metamagnetic FeCl2 and CoCl2 are briefly discussed. Application of the method to paramagnets is also indicated.
Incremental light bundle adjustment for robotics navigation

This paper presents a new computationally-efficient method for vision-aided navigation (VAN) in autonomous robotic applications. While many VAN approaches are capable of processing incoming visual observations, incorporating loop-closure measurements typically requires performing a bundle adjustment (BA) optimization, that involves both all the past navigation states and the observed 3D points. Our approach extends the incremental light bundle adjustment (LBA) method, recently developed for structure from motion [10], to information fusion in robotics navigation and in particular for including loop-closure information. Since in many robotic applications the prime focus is on navigation rather then mapping, and as opposed to traditional BA, we algebraically eliminate the observed 3D points and do not explicitly estimate them. Computational complexity is further improved by applying incremental inference. To maintain highrate performance over time, consecutive IMU measurements are summarized using a recently-developed technique and navigation states are added to the optimization only at camera rate. If required, the observed 3D points can be reconstructed at any time based on the optimized robot's poses. The proposed method is compared to BA both in terms of accuracy and computational complexity in a statistical simulation study.