cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
1069 HEMOLYTIC UREMIC SYNDROME(HUS). COMPARISON OF SUPPORTIVE CARE AND ASPIRIN(ASA) AND DIPYRIDAMOLE(D)THERAPY

13 patients (pts) with HUS were studied.All were treated in the last 2.5 years.5 were treated with ASA (1 pt.,6mg/kg/day for 28 days),or with ASA (6 to 16 mg/kg/day)and D(2 to 5 mg/kg/day) for 9 to 49 days and 8 received supportive therapy only.There were no significant differences between the 2 groups in age,sex, prevalence of extrarenal manifestations,lowest hematocrit and platelet count,number of transfusions needed,duration of thrombocytopenia or number of pts requiring dialysis.The treated pts were oligurlc and required dialysis for a shorter period of time than the untreated pts(days with urinary output<200ml/m2/day:1.6 ±0.89,range 1-3 compared to 5.63±5.83,range 0-19;days between admission and last dialysis 2.15±2.47,range 0-6 compared to 4.8± 8.76,range 0-26). The differences however were not significant. After periods of follow-up ranging from 3.5 to 18.25 months,all pts had grown normally and had GFR's ranging from 90 to 196ml/min/1.73m2. None had hematuria.One of the untreated pts had mild proteinuria (7mg/m2/hr on overnight specimen). We conclude that ASA and D do not alter the long term prognosis of HUS.The shorter duration of oliguria and of dependence on dialysis in our treated pts,though not statistically significant, suggests a larger study is warranted.
Two-component Fermi-liquid theory: Equilibrium properties of liquid metallic hydrogen

It is reported that the transition of condensed hydrogen from an insulating molecular crystal phase to a metallic liquid phase, at zero temperature and high pressure, appears possible. Liquid metallic hydrogen (LMH), comprising interpenetrating proton and electron fluids, would constitute a two-component Fermi liquid with both a very high component-mass ratio and long-range, species-dependent bare interactions. The low-temperature equilibrium properties of LMH are examined by means of a generalization to the case of two components of the phenomenological Landau Fermi-liquid theory, and the low-temperature specific heat, compressibility, thermal expansion coefficient and spin susceptibility are given. It is found that the specific heat and the thermal expansion coefficient are vastly greater in the liquid than in the corresponding solid, due to the presence of proton quasiparticle excitations in the liquid.
“Profits to the Danes, for us – Hog stench?” The campaign against Danish swine CAFOs in rural Lithuania

Abstract The paper analyzes a grass-roots campaign to limit the expansion of Danish-owned industrial hog operator Saerimner in Lithuania. The industrialization of livestock production as well as local responses to the restructuring of meat production are interpreted within the broader context of the incorporation of peripheral regions into global agro-food markets. Unlike in Western Europe and North America where the industrialization of hog production is proceeded by the displacement of small hog producers, in Eastern Europe the expansion of multinational corporations is occurring by the buying up, retrofitting and modernizing of factory-farms inherited from the socialist-era. It is argued that the bitter environmental legacy of Soviet-era factory farming has shaped rural population responses to the new wave of multinational acquisitions in the region. Anti-corporate hog campaigning is analyzed within the context of growing activism among rural constituencies displaced from commercial agriculture. The importance of effective organization and leadership in grass-roots activism is emphasized as well as the growing role of non-farming interests is shaping the rural policies of the country.
Seminal vesicle fistula following abdominoperineal resection for recurrent adenocarcinoma of the rectum : report of a case

PURPOSE: Fistula formation between the seminal vesicles and a pelvic abscess after abdominal perineal resection for recurrent rectal cancer is reported in a 32-year-old male previously treated with low anterior resection, chemotherapy, and radiation. METHODS: The case history was reviewed for clinical presentation, radiologic studies, and laboratory data. RESULTS: Successful management of this previously unreported complication included percutaneous abscess drainage, antimicrobial therapy, and oral administration of Proscar® (Merck, Sharpe & Dohme, Rathway, NJ). CONCLUSION: Multiple factors predisposed this patient's development of a seminal vesicle fistula. These include extensive scarring from previous surgery, pelvic radiation, and an immunologically depressed status. The efficacy of Proscar® in the successful management of this case remains unknown.
Molecular testing and cervical screening: will one test fit all?

Introduction Cervical screening has undergone significant changes in recent years, with molecular human papillomavirus (HPV) testing for HPV 16 and 18 at the forefront of clinical practice. But is molecular testing more effective than morphologic testing for cervical screening? Does current information on HPV hold true across all populations? As a public health laboratory serving high-risk, underserved populations, these remain important considerations for our practice. Materials and methods The subject population largely consisted of young women within 200% or less of the poverty line. Correlation of Papanicolaou and HPV results was performed via retrospective review, focusing on Papanicolaou cases with high-grade diagnoses and an associated HPV test using the cobas 4800 HPV test. Secondary HPV testing and typing was performed via PCR at an outside laboratory for 205 cases with sufficient residual material and negative for HPV 16/18 by cobas. Results Of 20,211 cytology tests reviewed from July 2013 to May 2015, 521 were diagnosed as high-grade; 387 had concurrent HPV tests. Of those with concurrent HPV tests, 58% (225 of 387) of the high-grade Papanicolaou cases were not HPV 16/18 positive; furthermore, no HPV was detected in 14% (55 of 387) of these cases. Secondary testing revealed the presence of 25 unique genotypes. Conclusions With recent emphasis on molecular HPV testing, the results of this review are concerning. As we move forward with evolution of cervical screening practices, it will be important to explore these questions for the continued quality and integrity of women’s health services.
Membrane filtration for removal of fine solids from aquaculture process water

Abstract In recirculating aquaculture systems (RASs), fine solids (diameters 94% TSS rejection and 76% biochemical oxygen demand rejection. In cross-flow membrane filtration using a 0.05 μm pore size hollow fiber membrane, permeate flux increased with increasing feed temperature. Flux also increased with and transmembrane pressure up to a limit after which a pressure independent flux was observed. On average, pressure independent flux was found to increase with cross-flow rate approximately linearly. Based on a preliminary assessment of process economics, it was determined that membrane filtration was not a cost effective alternative to coarse solids removal processes such as microscreen clarification. However, membrane filtration for fine solids removal has potential niche applications in areas such as rearing high-value products.
Deactivation of small-diameter fused-silica capillary columns for gas and supercritical fluid chromatography

In order to prevent plugging during deactivation of small diameter (50 μm i.d.) capillary columns for gas and supercritical fluid chromatography, various high temperature deactivation methods were employed. Pure hexamethyldisilazane and hexamethyldisiloxane (a substitute for D4) were dynamically coated on the column, while a film (0.05 μm) of OV-101 was statically coated, before high temperature (450°C) treatment. Excellent deactivated columns were obtained, and no significant difference in column activity was observed using any of these three methods.
Consensus versus Disagreement in Disease-Related Stigma: A Comparison of Reactions to Aids and Cancer Patients:

Theories about disease-related stigma may be classified in two categories: the behavioral model, which compares diseases or statuses of different types, assumes that stigmas arise from the actions ...
Changes in health-related quality of life following coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

Abstract Background . There are limited data to help clinicians identify patients likely to have an improvement in quality of life following CABG surgery. We evaluated the relationship between preoperative health status and changes in quality of life following CABG surgery. Methods . We evaluated 1,744 patients enrolled in the VA Cooperative Processes, Structures, and Outcomes in Cardiac Surgery study who completed preoperative and 6-month postoperative Short Form-36 (SF-36) surveys. The primary outcome was change in the Mental Component Summary (MCS) and Physical Component Summary (PCS) scores from the SF-36. Results . On average, physical and mental health status improved following the operation. Preoperative health status was the major determinant of change in quality of life following surgery, independent of anginal burden and other clinical characteristics. Patients with MCS scores less than 44 or PCS scores less than 38 were most likely to have an improvement in quality of life. Patients with higher preoperative scores were unlikely to have an improvement in quality of life. Conclusions . Patients with preoperative health status deficits are likely to have an improvement in their quality of life following CABG surgery. Alternatively, patients with relatively good preoperative health status are unlikely to have a quality of life benefit from surgery and the operation should primarily be performed to improve survival.
Cumulative versus transient shoreline change: Dependencies on temporal and spatial scale

Using shoreline change measurements of two oceanside reaches of the North Carolina Outer Banks, USA, we explore an existing premise that shoreline change on a sandy coast is a self-affine signal, wherein patterns of change are scale invariant. Wavelet analysis confirms that the mean variance (spectral power) of shoreline change can be approximated by a power law at alongshore scales from tens of meters up to ∼4–8 km. However, the possibility of a power law relationship does not necessarily reveal a unifying, scale-free, dominant process, and deviations from power law scaling at scales of kilometers to tens of kilometers may suggest further insights into shoreline change processes. Specifically, the maximum of the variance in shoreline change and the scale at which that maximum occurs both increase when shoreline change is measured over longer time scales. This suggests a temporal control on the magnitude of change possible at a given spatial scale and, by extension, that aggregation of shoreline change over time is an important component of large-scale shifts in shoreline position. We also find a consistent difference in variance magnitude between the two survey reaches at large spatial scales, which may be related to differences in oceanographic forcing conditions or may involve hydrodynamic interactions with nearshore geologic bathymetric structures. Overall, the findings suggest that shoreline change at small spatial scales (less than kilometers) does not represent a peak in the shoreline change signal and that change at larger spatial scales dominates the signal, emphasizing the need for studies that target long-term, large-scale shoreline change.
Federated Databases and Supported Decision Making

Currently, information required to make informed choices of appropriate assistive technology products is scattered among broad, general-purpose databases and narrow, focused databases. The vocabulary used to describe features has not been standardized, and can be very hard to interpret by end-users of assistive technology. The described project will create a federated Unified Listing of assistive technologies for information and communication technologies, and develop a Shopping Aid, using information provided by the individual to filter products and services from the Unified Listing to those that are relevant to the individual. By examining needs information across users, the Shopping Aid will be able to suggest additional needs that are common among people like the user, and to make recommendations for upgrading choices when the probably benefit exceeds the individual’s cost of change.
Object-dependent performance comparison of two iterative reconstruction algorithms

Iterative algorithms are of interest for both positron-emission tomography (PET) and single-photon-emission computed tomography (SPECT) because they permit accurate modeling of the imaging system, and they can be derived to satisfy certain statistical performance criteria. The convergence process, however, is influenced by the object distribution and noise level, so that different algorithms demonstrate a wide range of convergence phenomena. This object dependence is described for two widely accepted image-reconstruction algorithms; ART and maximum-likelihood estimation. >
Lower-leg Kinesio tape reduces rate of loading in participants with medial tibial stress syndrome

Context: Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) is an overuse injury occurring among the physically active. Linked to increased strain on the medial tendons of the ankle, studies emphasize controlling medial foot loading in the management of this condition. Kinesio taping (KT) has gained popularity for treating musculoskeletal pathologies; however, its effect on MTSS remains uninvestigated. This study aimed to determine if healthy participants and patients with current or previous history of MTSS differ in the rate of loading, and if KT affects plantar pressures in these participants. Methods: Twenty healthy participants and 20 participants with current or previous history of MTSS were recruited and walked across a plantar pressure mat prior to KTapplication, immediately after application, and after 24-h of continued use. Time-to-peak force was measured in 6 foot areas and compared across groups and conditions. Results: ANOVA revealed a significant interaction between group, condition, and foot area (F ¼ 1.990, p ¼ 0.033). MTSS participants presented with lower medial midfoot time-to-peak force before tape application (95%CI: 0.014e0.160%, p ¼ 0.021) that significantly increased following tape application (p < 0.05). Conclusions: These results suggest that KT decreases the rate of medial loading in MTSS patients. Future research might assess mechanisms by which this effect is achieved.
In Defense of Introspectionism: A Response to DeBellis

DEBELLIS (2009) ARGUES THAT INTROSPECTIONIST music theory, as represented in my book The Cognition of Basic Musical Structures ( CBMS ; Temperley, 2001), makes an ungrounded assumption that the intuitions of the author are shared by other theorists and by experienced listeners generally. But this inductive leap is motivated by experimental and corpus evidence showing that, with regard to basic structures such as meter, listeners largely do hear things in the same way; and this assumption is confirmed in CBMS by corpus tests in which my analyses are compared to those of other listeners. DeBellis suggests that what I was doing in CBMS was not accessing unconscious representations, but rather bringing new representations into existence. But this implies either that experienced listeners in general do not represent meter at all, or that they arrive at metrical analyses by a pre-theoretic process that is not available to music theorists; neither of these options is plausible.
Acute Kidney Injury: Not Just Acute Renal Failure Anymore?

Until recently, no uniform standard existed for diagnosing and classifying acute renal failure. To clarify diagnosis, the Acute Dialysis Quality Initiative group stated its consensus on the need for a clear definition and classification system of renal dysfunction with measurable criteria. Today the term acute kidney injury has replaced the term acute renal failure, with an understanding that such injury is a common clinical problem in critically ill patients and typically is predictive of an increase in morbidity and mortality. A classification system, known as RIFLE (risk of injury, injury, failure, loss of function, and end-stage renal failure), includes specific goals for preventing acute kidney injury: adequate hydration, maintenance of renal perfusion, limiting exposure to nephrotoxins, drug protective strategies, and the use of renal replacement therapies that reduce renal injury.
Nonverbal Asymmetry in Interracial Interactions

This study examined the role of Blacks' level of racial identification in understanding how Blacks and Whites behaved, both verbally and nonverbally, toward each other in interracial interactions. The more Blacks identified with their racial group, the more nonverbally friendly they behaved toward their White partners. Paradoxically, Whites behaved less nonverbally friendly toward Blacks who were strongly racially identified relative to those who were weakly identified. Thus, Blacks who tried the hardest in these interactions were treated the worst by Whites. Blacks' racial identification did not predict Whites' and Blacks' verbal behavior, suggesting that Whites' biases emerge only on behaviors that are difficult to control and not on behaviors that are more amenable to control.
Shock analysis and optimization of two-layered cellular materials subject to pulse loading

Abstract We present the method of characteristics with mass, momentum, and energy conservation to solve the nonlinear wave equation with shock formation in a two layer one-dimensional rod made of cellular material. We show that the rigid-perfectly-plastic-locking model cannot predict shock formation at a material interface, so we propose an elastic–plastic-densifying model to describe the stress–strain behavior of the cellular materials. The conditions for shock formation at a material interface are provided. We conduct a two-layer analysis to gain insights into the behavior of two layer cellular systems and to determine which material properties are most important for design. Finally, we optimize the significant parameters to reduce the length of one and two layered cellular systems with impulse and mass constraints subject to pulse loading. The results reinforce the concept of sandwich structures and show that two layer systems can achieve a 30% reduction in length over single layer ones.
A Bayesian approach to image-based visual hull reconstruction

We present a Bayesian approach to image-based visual hull reconstruction. The 3D (three-dimensional) shape of an object of a known class is represented by sets of silhouette views simultaneously observed from multiple cameras. We show how the use of a class-specific prior in a visual hull reconstruction can reduce the effect of segmentation errors from the silhouette extraction process. In our representation, 3D information is implicit in the joint observations of multiple contours from known viewpoints. We model the prior density using a probabilistic principal components analysis-based technique and estimate a maximum a posteriori reconstruction of multi-view contours. The proposed method is applied to a dataset of pedestrian images, and improvements in the approximate 3D models under various noise conditions are shown.
Bioreversion and Oral Bioavailability of the l‐Valine Dipeptide Ester Prodrug of Acyclovir, Val‐Valacyclovir, in Sprague‐Dawley Rats

The overall objective of this study was to compare bioavailability of acyclovir (ACV) in Sprague‐Dawley (SD) rats following oral administration of the ACV prodrugs valacyclovir and val‐valacyclovir (10 mg/kg body weight ACV equivalent). ACV, valacyclovir and val‐valacyclovir were estimated using a high pressure liquid chromatography system equipped with a fluorescence detector. Intact prodrugs, valacyclovir and val‐valacyclovir could not be detected in the plasma. Differences in Cmax (4.47 ± 1.68 µg/ml and 2.92 ± 0.90 µg/ml), Tmax (51.66 ± 27.14 and 27.14 and 25.83 ± 11.14 min) and AUC (366.02 ± 146.78 and 231.3 ± 90.88 min. µg/ml) achieved for ACV derived from valacyclovir and val‐valacyclovir, respectively, were not statistically significant. Val‐valacyclovir was rapidly hydrolyzed in rat enterocyte and whole intestinal homogenates (half‐lives of 6.5 and 15 min respectively) and plasma (half‐life of 8.4 min). Valacyclovir demonstrated comparatively longer half‐lives in plasma (half‐life 466.9 min) and w...
The Role of Host Genetics in the Pathogenesis of Coxsackievirus Infection in the Pancreas of Mice

The susceptibility of mice to the diabetogenic effect of the M variant of encephalomyocarditis (MEMC) virus is probably inherited as a recessive trait. Three strains of mice that were susceptible to MEMC virus, three strains that were not susceptible to MEMC virus, and three types of F, hybrid strains were infected with the common human coxsackie virus, group B, type 4 (CB4). They were examined to determine the titer of virus and histochemistry in the pancreas, levels of blood glucose, urinalysis, glucose tolerance, and levels of plasma amylase and insulin. There was a positive correlation between MEMC virus-susceptibility (diabetes-prone) and CB4-induced beta cell degranulation with concurrent hyperinsulemia and hypoglycemia. Also, as for MEMC virus, the titer of CB4 in the pancreas was not genotype-dependent. However, there was an inverse relation between destruction of the exocrine pancreas and the effect on the endocrine pancreas. These results suggest that the genetic factors responsible for the effect of MEMC virus on the endocrine pancreas are also responsive to CB4, and the proposed recessive nature of these factors is maintained for both viruses. In contrast, these factors, which are operatively recessive traits for the effect of CB4 on the endocrine pancreas, appear to be expressed as dominant traits with respect to the exocrine pancreas. Heritable factors play a role in the pathogenesis of
Isentropic compression studies at the Los Alamos National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

A single-turn magnet pulsed power system at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (NHMFL) at Los Alamos was originally designed to study actinide samples in extremes of high magnetic field (to 300 Tesla) [1, 2]. A simple modification to the single-turn magnet has converted it to a fast turnaround dynamic high pressure measurement system for Isentropic Compression Experiments (ICE). This paper details the work done including design, theory, modeling and results. The NHMFL system has the advantage of a relatively long-duration current with a ∼2.3-µs rise time, which allows for large sample dimensions, i.e., up to 5 mm thickness, see II.D. The maximum stress is ∼50GPa (0.5 Mbar) at the maximum bank voltage (60 kV); higher stresses may be obtained with modifications to the load design.
Political Culture Resurgent

Political Culture in Post-Communist Europe: Attitudes in New Democracies. Edited by Detlef Pollack, Jorg Jacobs, Olaf Muller, Gert Pickel. Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing, 2003. 286 pp., $89.95 (ISBN: 0-7546-1969-9). Interest in political culture has waxed and waned in the mainstream political science literature since its heyday during the 1960s (Almond and Verba 1963; Pye and Verba 1965), largely fading from view as scholars gravitated to a more economics focused perspective on politics. But now, a group of European based scholars has produced a most remarkable book, breathing new life into the application of political culture to an especially salient context: the ongoing democratic consolidation of postcommunist states. Political Culture in Post-Communist Europe is a tour de force in many respects. It is rich in theory, sound in its methodologies, and broadly relevant across the discipline. The central question that editors Detlef Pollack, Jorg Jacobs, Olaf Muller, and Gert Pickel ask concerns the role of political culture in the democratic transitions in Eastern and Central Europe. Yet, the book develops much more in its execution, and it deserves a prominent place in political science scholarship generally and in the study of new democracies specifically. The studies in Political Culture in Post-Communist Europe rely on a variety of survey data, drawn from throughout the first postcommunist decade. Their common goal, however, is to assess attitudinal change, which has usually been ignored by scholars studying citizens' attitudes in the former communist states, in part because of the obvious time commitment required. More to the point, the book takes a specifically noneconomic and noninstitutional perspective in linking attitudinal change to democratic consolidation. The first postcommunist decade has produced a cornucopia of studies assessing the impact of either institutional choice (Crawford and Lijphart 1995; Waldron-Moore 1999), or macro- and microeconomic fluctuations on the long-term health of democracy in the region (Duch 1995; Bahry and Lipsmeyer 2001). This long overdue collection is extremely welcome because it fills a crucial gap in this …
Meeting Recommended Dietary Allowances

Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) are the best known and most widely used nutrition standards in the United States. They are estabHshed by the Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) of the National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council (NAS/NRC) as guidelines for assessing the adequacy of intakes of essential nutrients. Such standards are needed for evaluating the nutritional adequacy of diets both for maintenance of health and for treatment of disease. They are needed as guides for recommendations for modification of the diets of persons who may be at risk of nutritional inadequacy owing to inappropriate food selection. They serve as the basis for recommendations for modification of the national food supply when some type of nutritional inadequacy is identified as a public health problem.
Literacy learning in secondary school science classrooms: A cross-case analysis of three qualitative studies

The purpose of this cross-case analysis is to illustrate how and why literacy was incorporated into science teaching and learning in three secondary classrooms. Research questions guiding the analysis include: (a) How were literacy events shaped by the teachers' philosophies about teaching science content and teaching students? and (b) How was literacy (reading, writing, and oral language) structured by the teachers and manifested in science lessons? The methodology of ethnography and the theoretical framework of symbolic interactionism were employed in the three studies on which the cross-case analysis was based. The researchers assumed the role of participant observers, collecting data over the period of 1 year in each of the three classrooms. Data, in the form of fieldnotes, interviews, and artifacts, were collected. In each study, data were analyzed using the constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) to determine patterns in the teachers' beliefs about learning and how these influenced their choice of literacy activities. The cross-case analysis was conducted to determine patterns across the three teachers and their classrooms. The findings from this analysis are used to compare how the teachers' philosophies of teaching science and their beliefs about how students learn influenced their use of literacy practices during lessons. Specifically, each teacher's use of literacy activities varied based on his or her beliefs about teaching science concepts. Furthermore, reading, writing, and oral language were important vehicles to learning science concepts within daily classroom activities in the three classrooms.
Use of biographical and case history data in the assessment of malingering during examination for disability

This study examine the relationship of biographical and case history data thought to be associated with malingering to known indices of malingering based on MMPI and sentence-completion test data. Subjects were 65 patients who had undergone formal psychiatric evaluations in connection with ongoing litigation over injury-related disability. Biographical/case history data were reduced to six factors, which were correlated with six MMPI and five sentence completion test variables. Of the 66 correlations, 24 were significant, supporting the relevance of biographical and case history data in assessing malingering under these circumstances.
Binding Objects to Locations: The Relationship Between Object Files and Visual Working Memory

The relationship between object files and visual working memory (VWM) was investigated in a new paradigm combining features of traditional VWM experiments (color change detection) and object-file experiments (memory for the properties of moving objects). Object-file theory was found to account for a key component of object-position binding in VWM: With motion, color memory came to be associated with the new locations of objects. However, robust binding to the original locations was found despite clear evidence that the objects had moved. This latter binding appears to constitute a scene-based component in VWM, which codes object location relative to the abstract spatial configuration of the display and is largely insensitive to the dynamic properties of objects.
Mobile Agent Computing Paradigm for Building a Flexible Structural Health Monitoring Sensor Network

Wireless structural health monitoring research has drawn great attention in recent years from various research groups. While sensor network approach is a feasible solution for structural health monitoring, the design of wireless sensor networks presents a number of challenges, such as adaptability and the limited communication bandwidth. To address these challenges, this paper explores the mobile agent approach to enhance the flexibility and reduce raw data transmission in wireless structural health monitoring sensor networks. An integrated wireless sensor network consisting of a mobile agent-based network middleware and distributed high computational power sensor nodes is developed. These embedded computer-based high computational power sensor nodes include Linux operating system, integrated with open source numerical libraries, and connected to multimodality sensors to support both active and passive sensing. The mobile agent middleware is built on a mobile agent system called Mobile-C. The mobile agent middleware allows a sensor network moving computational programs to the data source. With mobile agent middleware, a sensor network is able to adopt newly developed diagnosis algorithms and make adjustment in response to operational or task changes. The presented mobile agent approach has been validated for structural damage diagnosis using a scaled steel bridge.
Optimal Alternative Selection in The Face of Evidential Knowledge

We discuss the problem of selecting an optimal alternative in the face of uncertain knowledge about the state of nature. We then introduce a general framework for representing the knowledge about the state of nature. This general framework is based upon the use of fuzzy sets, possibility theory and the Dempster-Shafer mathematical theory of evidence. We then suggest an approach to the selection of an optimal alternative in this more general framework.
Cosolvency effects on copolymer solutions at high pressure

Cloud-point data to 180°C and 2800 bar are presented for polyethylene, poly(methyl acrylate), and two poly (ethylene-co-methyl acrylate) copolymers (10 and 31 mol % methyl acrylate) in propane and chlorodifluoromethane with two cosolvents, acetone and ethanol. The addition of small amounts of either cosolvent to the copolymer-solvent mixtures shifts the cloud-point curve to lower pressures and temperatures, as both cosolvents provide favorable polar interactions with the acrylate group in the backbone of the copolymer. Ethanol has a larger effect than acetone since ethanol hydrogen bonds to the acrylate group
On the Evolution of Neurochemical Transmission

A discussion of the evolution of neurochemical transmission is divided into three main topics: evolution of biochemical signalling devices, evolution of neurotransmitter substances, and evolution of signal meaning. Models of signalling devices are developed from a primitive chemoceptive process through open and closed loop communications to a neuronal commications network and to its development into a symbolic logic exchange. The evolution of neurotransmitter substances is extrapolated from experimental evidence which has been obtained under primitive earth atmosphere conditions. Examples from comparative biology suggest that the evolution of transmitter use was not unidirective and that purine derivatives may well have been the primordial transmitter substances. The classical neurotransmitters, such as acetylcholine and norepinephrine have a limited information content in their molecular structure, whereas inherent message content of peptidergic transmitters is potentially significant. If there are mnemotypic genes, they may be expressed as informational macromolecules which specify behavioral patterns. Such information transfer would represent a second order of neurochemical transmission and its evolution would be closely coupled to that of molecules which contain a universal meaning.
Lipoblastoma: A rare soft palate mass

Lipoblastomas are rare benign tumors originating from embryonic fat cells that continue to proliferate in the postnatal period. Most tumors occur around age three and are found predominantly in the extremities and trunk. Less than fifteen cases have been reported in the head and neck region. We present a case of lipoblastoma arising in the soft palate, a site that has not been previously reported. By doing so, we hope to promote awareness of this pathology and emphasize the importance of using histological and cytogenetic analysis to obtain the correct diagnosis.
Physicochemical and sensory properties of restructured beef steaks containing beef heart surimi

Summary Restructured beef steaks containing beef heart surimi were prepared. Changes in flavour, texture, thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS), and compression force of the restructured steaks were evaluated after frozen storage (−29 °C) for 1, 30, and 90 days. Incorporation of propyl gallate-washed beef heart surimi improved the steak flavour score by 7%, texture score by 30%, and cooking yield by 4%, compared to non-surimi control steaks. Addition of water-washed surimi (without propyl gallate) also improved physical properties of restructured steaks, but it induced off-flavour and rancidity development.
EFFECTS OF SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE STERILIZATION AND DRY COLD STORAGE ON GERMINATION OF JUNCUS EFFUSUS L

Effects of dry cold storage and sterilization of Juncus effusus seeds were assayed, with seeds stored dry in the dark at 4°C for 2 and 52 weeks compared with freshly collected seeds. At 28–29°C, with a 14-hour photoperiod, germination of non-sterilized, 2-week-stored seeds lagged considerably behind similarly treated seeds stored for 0 or 52 weeks (52%, 75%, and 81% final germination, respectively). Additional germination trials at 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, and 24 weeks indicated that reduced germination in non-sterilized, cold-stored seeds persisted through 24 weeks of cold storage. Sterilization with sodium hypochlorite stimulated germination to almost 100%, irrespective of the length of dry cold storage in seeds stored for 0, 2, or 52 weeks. Results of these studies support the general stimulation of seed germination by sodium hypochlorite treatment and indicate that while short periods of dry cold storage may depress germination percentages somewhat, long periods of storage impose no significant germination deterrence in J. effusus.
Development of Diagnostic Concentrations for Monitoring Bacillus thuringiensis Resistance in European Corn Borer (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)

Two candidate diagnostic concentrations of the Cry1Ab and Cry1Ac toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis corresponding to the LC99 and EC99 (effective concentration that causes 99% growth inhibition) for European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hubner), were determined based on previously obtained baseline data. Validation experiments using field-collected European corn borer populations from across North America showed that for Cry1Ab, a concentration corresponding to the upper limit of the 95% confidence interval of the LC99, produced mortality >99% for all populations tested. However, for Cry1Ac, adjustments and further validation are probably necessary. Development of B. thuringiensis resistance monitoring programs that rely on diagnostic techniques are discussed.
Sex-specific antipredator response to auditory cues in the black spiny-tailed iguana

The selective pressures exerted by predation can have considerable influence on the behavior of prey species across a wide range of taxa. Within a species, this force may differ between the sexes, leading to sex-specific behavioral responses to predators. We tested whether the black spiny-tailed iguana Ctenosaura similis is able to use auditory cues to detect an avian predator and whether antipredator responses differ in a sex-dependent fashion. We conducted behavioral assays in which a food item was used as bait while iguanas were subjected to a recording of a Harris's hawk or white noise as a control. We found that a significantly greater percentage of individuals of either sex responded to the hawk call than to the white noise. We also found that a significantly greater percentage of females than males responded to either sound. These results suggest that not only do black spiny-tailed iguanas incorporate auditory cues into predator detection, but that antipredator behavioral responses differ between the sexes as well. Such sex-specific behaviors can be attributed to morphological and endocrine differences between male and female iguanas. These findings may also lend insight into how behavior can influence the evolution of sexual dimorphism within a species.
The Release of 5-Fluorouracil from Dextran and Xylan Systems

As part of a continuing study on the controlled release of anticancer agents, 5-fluorouracil:poly(saccharide) adducts were synthesized and their release profiles were determined. The poly(saccharides) studied included dextran (15,000 and 60,000 molecular weight), xylan and chitosan. The 5-FU was attached to the poly(saccharides) using 1,6-diisocyanatohexane as the coupling agent. In all cases, the release of the 5-FU was rapid and was essentially complete within a few days, when the adducts were prepared using a triethylamine catalyst system. The kinetic patterns were neither true Higuchi style plots, which are typical of monolithic systems, nor were they zero-order profiles like previously described methacrylate-type copolymers. When a tin catalyst was used, however, the 5-FU was released over a much longer time period, and the release profile was linear when plotted against the square root of time. Only these tin catalyzed adducts are potentially useful in controlled release of 5-FU.
An Analytic and Experimental Investigation of the Aerodynamic Performance Enhancements of Multiple Winglet Configurations

An experimental effort was undertaken to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of three winglets mounted chordwise to the tip of a rectangular wing (NACA 0018 section). The winglets, with an aspect ratio of 3.6, were mounted on a half-span wing having an aspect ratio of 3.1. Twenty configurations of varying dihedral arrangements were analyzed with a vortex lattice method and tested in a low-speed wind tunnel at a Reynolds number of 600,000. In general, the arrangements involving high dihedral angles had lower performance increments, due to lower lift and higher interference drag. More specifically, the results showed that the winglets placed at 60, 45, and 30 degrees, respectively, produced nominal 4% higher lift and 46% lower drag. The most dramatic findings from this study show that positioning the winglet dihedral angles had the result of adjusting the point of maximum L/D and the magnitude of the pitching moment coefficient. These observations suggest that multiple winglet dihedral changes affect the lift, drag, and pitching moment in such a way that they are feasible for use as actively-controlled surfaces to improve the performance of aircraft at various flight conditions and to “tune” the longitudinal stability characteristics of the wing.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Design and Performance Validation of a Fuel Cell Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

This paper describes methods for design of an unmanned aerial vehicle which uses a proton exchange membrane fuel cell as its primary powerplant. The proposed design methods involve the development of empirical and physics-based contributing analyses to model the performance of the aircraft subsystems. The contributing analyses are collected into a design structure matrix which is used to map aircraft performance metrics as a function of design variables over a defined design space. An exhaustive search within the design space is performed to identify optimal design configurations and to characterize trends within the design space so as to inform lower-level design decisions. The results of the design process are used to construct a demonstration fuel cell-powered aircraft. Test results from the demonstration aircraft and its subsystems are compared to predicted results to validate the contributing analyses and improve their accuracy in further design iterations.
Ethanol-induced conditioned place aversion in mice.

Previous studies have shown that ethanol produces conditioned place preference (CPP) in mice when injections are given immediately before exposure to the conditioned stimulus (CS). Paradoxically, however, injection of ethanol immediately after the CS produces conditioned place aversion (CPA). Four e
Deficiency in both type I and type II DNA topoisomerase activities differentially affect rRNA and ribosomal protein synthesis in Schizosaccharomyces pombe

The synthesis of rRNA and r-proteins was studied in temperature-sensitive topoisomerase mutants of the fisson yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. To reduce the severity of heatshock response seen in the wild type strain, slow temperature shift-up of the cultures was used to inactivate the mutant topoisomerases. It was found that the temperature shift caused a large preferential reduction of rRNA synthesis in the top1top2 double mutant. In contrast, no preferential inhibition of rRNA synthesis was observed in top1 or top2 single mutants, although some reduction in the total RNA synthesis was observed in the top2 mutant. Thus, as observed with Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Brill et al. 1987), relaxation of supercoiled DNA structures by either topoisomerase I or II appears to be essential for efficient transcription of rRNA genes. Analysis of r-protein synthesis indicated that there were small decreases in the differential synthesis rates of r-proteins after temperature shift-up in the top1top2 mutant, but the observed negative effects on r-protein synthesis was much smaller than that on rRNA synthesis, and degradation of the newly synthesized r-proteins was observed. These observations indicate the apparent lack of tight coupling between rRNA and r-protein synthesis in S. pombe under these experimental conditions.
Review of the reproductive endocrinology of the pregnant and parturient mare.

Analytical advancements, especially methods using gas or liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, have allowed more specific and reliable measurement of multiple steroid hormones in the plasma of mares throughout gestation and the periparturient period. Data such as these will form the central focus of this review. The comprehensive analyses possible with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry illuminate the key physiological and developmental transitions that make equine gestation unique. Weeks 6 to 20 encompass endometrial cup formation and equine chorionic gonadotropic secretion that stimulates primary corpora lutea and induces formation of secondary luteal structures. The period is defined by increased progesterone, 17OH-progesterone, and androstenedione secretion, providing substrate feeding the rise in estrone sulfate that can be used as an aid in the diagnosis of pregnancy. The 5α-reduced metabolite of progesterone, dihydroprogesterone (DHP), parallels progesterone secretion during this period at less than half the concentration. After week 12, progesterone declines, but DHP concentrations continue to increase, exceeding progesterone by week 16, thereby defining the luteo-placental shift in pregnane synthesis from ovarian to primarily placental thereafter. The growth of fetal gonads begins around week 14 and is defined by increasing dehydroepiandrosterone, among other androgens, which fuels placental estrogen secretion, functioning as a true fetoplacental unit. Metabolites of DHP (including allopregnanolone) dominate in late gestation, some exceeding DHP by 10-fold near term. However, all major pregnanes decrease from 3 days before foaling, when fetal cortisol is reportedly rising. Though unique, equine pregnancy and parturition share many features in common with those seen in human pregnancy and birth.
The research progress of Radon in Cancer Risk

Radon is a widely distributed inert gas,will changed into progeny in the process of decay released alpha,beta,gamma particles..Today,increasingly importance has been attached to the hazard,,particularly,radon and its progeny in lung cancer and leukemia.Therefore,a great deal of concerned study has been made at home and abroad.This article summarizes the progress in the study on the role of radon and its,progeny in tumor.
Technical Considerations on an Integrated Space-Air-Ground TT&C and Communication Network for Air and Space Vehicles

In the future,the existing special-purpose TTC and communication systems for near earth spacecraft will evolve to a complex communication and TTC architecture for vehicles in air,near space,space and deep space.Based on requirements of an integrated space-air-ground TTC and communication network,a method using wideband communication and navigation link for networking is proposed,and its system architecture and related key technologies are discussed.
Effects of betaine and heat stress on lactation and postweaning reproductive performance of sows

ABSTRACT This study was conducted to evaluate the underlying physiological changes during heat stress and the effect of betaine supplementation in lactating sows. Twenty sows were housed in 2 rooms (each with 10 sows) to simulate heat stress (HS: 31°C from 0800 to 1600 h and 26°C for the rest of the day) or thermoneutral (TN: 22°C during the entire trial) conditions. Treatments were randomly allotted to each sow to receive 0.00% or 0.22% of a betaine supplement in their diets. Sows were blocked by parity as they entered the farrowing rooms at d 110 to 112 of gestation. Sows housed in the HS condition had ad libitum access to feed. Sows housed in the TN condition were pair fed with sows in the HS room. Follicle size was measured every 12 h with a real time ultrasound from weaning to ovulation. Betaine supplemented sows had 0.23°C lower rectal temperature than control sows (P = 0.048). Respiration rates and rectal and skin temperatures were 36 breaths/min and 0.44 and 3.55°C greater under HS than TN conditions, respectively (P 0.44) or environments (P > 0.25). The mean follicle diameter was smaller under HS than TN conditions (P = 0.003). Betaine supplemented sows had greater follicle diameter than control sows (P = 0.043). The time to ovulation from weaning was 2.1 d longer in HS sows than TN sows (P = 0.005).