cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A paradigm for protecting ecological resources following remediation as a function of future land use designations: a case study for the Department of Energy's Hanford Site.

Since the late 1980s, there has been a US federal mandate to clean up contaminated sites remaining from the Second World War, the Cold War, and abandoned industries. One determinant of cleanup standards for remediation is future land use—how will the land be used and by whom? Land use decisions may be consensus documents developed by site owners, state and federal agencies, and local stakeholders. Often there are competing views and/or claims on how remediated sites should be used, including as open or green space. Large sites are likely to have more ecological heterogeneity within similar land use designations because of differences in climate, geology, topography, and history of human use. This paper uses the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Hanford Site as a case study to examine how and whether future land use designations will protect species, species diversity, heterogeneity, and ecosystems once remediation is complete. The objective of this paper is to describe “future land use designations” on a large, complex site (DOE’s Hanford Site) and to examine the following: (1) how future land use designations were made and have changed over time, (2) how land use designations included the value of ecological resources, (3) how risk evaluations of ecological resources from remediation were made, and (4) how future land use may affect the health and well-being of ecological resources on site in the post-remediation period. The paper provides a paradigm for integrating ecological protection into future land use designations such that rare and sensitive resources are protected throughout the process. The paradigm includes the following: (1) developing future land use designations, (2) defining resource levels (values), (3) relating resource levels to land use designations and management, (4) defining risk evaluations, (5) determining the likelihood that valuable resources will occur on each land use type after remediation, and (6) evaluating the potential risk to those resources that results from activities allowed under future land use designations. The paper discusses the importance of each step, the implications for protection of ecological resources, and the importance of land use designations in the assessment of risk to ecological resources from both continued monitoring and maintenance by DOE (or other land owners) and the activities permitted by the established future land use designations.
Raising the Power of Curriculum-Based Measurement Tools in Preservice Training:

Thirty-seven preservice teachers engaged in a self-regulated learning experience proposed to increase their algebra content knowledge and to examine their use of data to make instructional decision...
The clinical application of tracheal gas insufflation

Tracheal gas insufflation is a non conventional respiratory support technology.It might avoid severe CO2 retention in lung protective ventilation strategy, reduce ventilator-associated lung injury, which was recommented recently.In this article, we made a brief introduction of the principle, classification and clinical applications of tracheal gas insufflation technique. Key words: Tracheal gas insufflation; Mechanical ventilation; Lung protective ventilation strategy,
A Pareto Algorithm for Efficient De Novo Design of Multi-functional Molecules

We have introduced a Pareto sorting algorithm into Synopsis, a de novo design program that generates synthesizable molecules with desirable properties. We give a detailed description of the algorithm and illustrate its working in 2 different de novo design settings: the design of putative dual and selective FGFR and VEGFR inhibitors, and the successful design of organic structure determining agents (OSDAs) for the synthesis of zeolites. We show that the introduction of Pareto sorting not only enables the simultaneous optimization of multiple properties but also greatly improves the performance of the algorithm to generate molecules with hard-to-meet constraints. This in turn allows us to suggest approaches to address the problem of false positive hits in de novo structure based drug design by introducing structural and physicochemical constraints in the designed molecules, and by forcing essential interactions between these molecules and their target receptor.
JSOM: Jointly-evolving self-organizing maps for alignment of biological datasets and identification of related clusters

With the rapid advances of various single-cell technologies, an increasing number of single-cell datasets are being generated, and the computational tools for aligning the datasets which make subsequent integration or meta-analysis possible have become critical. Typically, single-cell datasets from different technologies cannot be directly combined or concatenated, due to the innate difference in the data, such as the number of measured parameters and the distributions. Even datasets generated by the same technology are often affected by the batch effect. A computational approach for aligning different datasets and hence identifying related clusters will be useful for data integration and interpretation in large scale single-cell experiments. Our proposed algorithm called JSOM, a variation of the Self-organizing map, aligns two related datasets that contain similar clusters, by constructing two maps-low-dimensional discretized representation of datasets-that jointly evolve according to both datasets. Here we applied the JSOM algorithm to flow cytometry, mass cytometry, and single-cell RNA sequencing datasets. The resulting JSOM maps not only align the related clusters in the two datasets but also preserve the topology of the datasets so that the maps could be used for further analysis, such as clustering.
Fluctuations of Broadband Acoustic Signals in Shallow Water

Abstract : The long-term goal of this project is to obtain quantitative understanding of the physical mechanisms governing broadband (50 Hz to 50 kHz) acoustic propagation, reflection, refraction, and scattering in shallow water and coastal regions in the presence of temporal and spatial ocean variability. The scientific objective of this research is to understand acoustic wave propagation in a dynamic environment in two frequency bands: Low (50 Hz to 500 Hz) and Mid-to-High (500 Hz to 50 kHz). The goal for the low frequency band is to assess the effects of internal waves on acoustic wave propagation, with an emphasis on the mechanisms that cause significant temporal and spatial acoustic intensity fluctuations. The goal for the mid-to-high frequency band is to assess the effects of water column and dynamic sea surface variability, as well as source/receiver motion on acoustic wave propagation for underwater acoustic communications, tomography, and other applications.
Chaotic synchronization of semiconductor lasers

There are a number of approaches to inducing chaotic behavior in a single-mode semiconductor laser. We have investigated the following three approaches: (a) optical injection, (b) optical feedback, and (c) optoelectronic feedback. The nonlinear dynamics of a semiconductor laser depend on five intrinsic laser parameters and three operational parameters. We have studied unidirectional chaotic synchronization between two remote injection-locked semiconductor lasers to achieve chaotic communications.
Binding of Gal4p and Bicoid to Nucleosomal Sites in Yeast in the Absence of Replication

The yeast transcriptional activator Gal4p can bind to sites in nucleosomal DNA in vivo which it is unable to access in vitro. One event which could allow proteins to bind to otherwise inaccessible sites in chromatin in living cells is DNA replication. To determine whether replication is required for Gal4p to bind to nucleosomal sites in yeast, we have used previously characterized chromatin reporters in which Gal4p binding sites are incorporated into nucleosomes. We find that Gal4p is able to perturb nucleosome positioning via nucleosomal binding sites in yeast arrested either in G1, with α-factor, or in G2/M, with nocodazole. Similar results were obtained whether Gal4p synthesis was induced from the endogenous promoter by growth in galactose medium or by an artificial, hormone-inducible system. We also examined binding of the Drosophila transcriptional activator Bicoid, which belongs to the homeodomain class of transcription factors. We show that Bicoid, like Gal4p, can bind to nucleosomal sites in SWI+ and swi1Δ yeast and in the absence of replication. Our results indicate that some feature of the intracellular environment other than DNA replication or the SWI-SNF complex permits factor access to nucleosomal sites.
The importance of high-frequency audibility with and without visual cues on speech recognition for listeners with normal hearing.

AbstractObjective: To examine the impact of visual cues, speech materials, age and listening condition on the frequency bandwidth necessary for optimizing speech recognition performance. Design: Using a randomized repeated measures design; speech recognition performance was assessed using four speech perception tests presented in quiet and noise in 13 LP filter conditions and presented in multimodalities. Participants’ performance data were fitted with a Boltzmann function to determine optimal performance (10% below performance achieved in FBW). Study sample: Thirty adults (18–63 years) and thirty children (7–12 years) with normal hearing. Results: Visual cues significantly reduced the bandwidth required for optimizing speech recognition performance for listeners. The type of speech material significantly impacted the bandwidth required for optimizing performance. Both groups required significantly less bandwidth in quiet, although children required significantly more than adults. The widest bandwidth req...
Effect of Systemic Pesticide Phosphamidon on Haematological Aspects of Common Frog Rana tigrina

ABSTRACT The impact of phosphamidon toxicity on biochemical aspects of blood cells and nucleus size of RBC of Rana tigrina resulted in a significant decreased in protein level were as increased in carbohydrate and lipid level. Cell and nucleus size of RBC also exhibited a decreasing trend
Evaluation of the NIOSH draft method 5525 for determination of the total reactive isocyanate group (TRIG) for aliphatic isocyanates in autobody repair shops. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

This paper evaluates the performance of the NIOSH draft method 5525 for analysis of monomeric and TRIG aliphatic isocyanates in autobody repair shops. It was found that an optimized pH gradient enhanced noticeably the resolution and, therefore, identification of aliphatic isocyanates. Samples proved to be very stable for at least a year when stored at −13 °C in the freezer, and no major stability problems were found for the MAP reagent. The detector response factor RSD for selected MAP ureas was 40% in the fluorescence (FLD), 3% in the UV at 254 nm (UV254), and 1% in the UV at 370 nm (UV370). The mean FLD/UV254 and UV254/UV370 detector response ratios of standards were 31.7 (RSD = 37.8) and 17.1 (RSD = 5.4), respectively. The FLD/UV254 ratio in bulks varied from 0.41 to 1.97 times the HDI monomer ratio. The mean UV254/UV370 ratio in bulks was 16.1 (range 14.1 to 19.2, N = 38). Mean (range) recovery of 92 (91.2–93.2)% was found for the N3300 (isocyanurate) spiked on 25 mm quartz fiber filters in the range 0.07 to 2.2 µg NCO ml−1. Mean (range) recovery for impingers was 100.7 (91.7–106.0)% for N3300 in the concentration range of 0.018 to 2.5 µg NCO ml−1 and 81.0 (76.1–89.1)% for IPDI in the concentration range of 0.016 to 1.87 µg NCO ml−1. Analytical method precision was 3.4% and mean bias 7.4% (range = 0–25%). The NIOSH draft method 5525 provides flexibility, enhanced sensitivity and specificity, powerful resolution, and very small compound-to-compound variability in the UV254, resulting in a more reliable identification and quantification of aliphatic isocyanates.
Design considerations for the magnetic system of a prototype x-ray free electron laser

A number of difficult technical challenges need to be solved in the fields of accelerator and free-electron laser (FEL) technologies in order to build an X-ray FEL. One of the tasks well suited to the Advanced Photon Source Low Energy Undulator Test Line (LEUTL) is to take the intermediate step of solving some of the problems of single-pass FEL operation in the ultraviolet range. The existing Advanced Photon Source (APS) linac, in addition to its role of supply positrons for the APS storage ring, will also be used to generate the particle beam for the LEUTL. Here, the design of the magnetic system for the high gain soft x-ray free electron laser is described.
Caregiver stress during the first year after diagnosis of an Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract Caregiver burden and marital adjustment of mothers of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) were assessed at baseline, i.e., within six months of diagnosis ( n = 79), and again 12 months later ( n = 65), using predictors from the double ABCX family adaptation model, e.g., life demands, social support, appraisal, coping. Although there were no changes over time in burden or marital adjustment, participants reported increased positive appraisals of having a child with autism, increased support from providers and decreased use of problem focused coping. Cross-sectionally at Time 2, hypothesized predictors of marital adjustment and caregiver burden derived from the literature and from stress and coping theory (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) were largely confirmed. Longitudinally, after adjusting for baseline levels in the multiple regressions, better marital adjustment at 12 months was associated with changes over time in three predictor variables: decreased negative appraisal, decreased pile-up stress, and increased general social support. Predictors of increased caregiver burden at 12 months, after adjusting for baseline levels, were increased negative appraisal, increased avoidant coping and decreased problem focused coping.
The creation of surface damage by ion-beam bombardment

Computer simulation of ion-bombardment events has been extended to coalesce and recrystallise the target, so that the surface damage created when a single ion strikes a metal surface can now be studied directly. Qualitative and quantitative information on pit formation, other surface damage and recoil mixing can be obtained from the model. Many characteristics of the target's final condition are evident before the excess energy has been removed. Small structured and faceted surface pits are found at 1.0 keV ion energy for both low and high energy-density potential functions. Atoms are only sputtered from the first two layers of the pit region. The rest of the pit is formed by atoms displaced laterally or downward, initiating replacement collision sequences. A movie has been produced which presents the temporal development and creation of surface damage, and demonstrates surface reconstruction processes. © 1983.
Machine intelligence-the animat path to intelligent adaptive behaviour

The animat path to artificial intelligence (AI), a bottom-up approach to creating intelligent systems, is described. Using this approach, artificial creatures or agents animats are constructed in an environment. They begin simply and are gradually made more and more complex, exhibiting more and more complex behaviors at each step. The goals and accomplishments of five research projects incorporating the animat path to AI methodology are reviewed. >
Precision polarography by time-integration of the diffusion current

Abstract A new method of measuring the polarographic limiting current is described, based on integrating it over a precisely known time interval which includes 50 or more mercury drops. The averaging effect of integration minimizes the influence of small random variations in the factors which govern the diffusion current and is conducive to high precision. The electrical instrumentation, which produces the time integral as a direct readout, is relatively simple, and all components are available commercially as complete units whose assembly requires only interconnection. Provided that the correction for any preceding diffusion currents is smaller than the one being measured, and by comparison with a standard solution, substances present at concentrations 1–10 m M are determinable with a precision and accuracy of the order of ±0.1%.
The Analysis of Manufacturing Processes for Plastic Ball Grid Arrays (PBGAs)

Plastic ball grid arrays (PBGAs) have begun to gain popularity in the electronic packaging market because of their advantages over peripheral leaded devices. In addition to good electrical performance, the PBGAs offer advantages to the assembler. The development of a successful assembly process for PBGAs requires an understanding of the PBGA itself and the assembly process. The key attributes required for high yield manufacturing of PBGAs are discussed. The emphasis is placed on the PBGA assembly parameters including proper PBGA handling, printing , stencil design, placement, reflow and inspection. This paper is intended to increase the understanding of the plastic ball grid array manufacturing process.
Use of lower extremity deep veins as arterial substitutes: Functional status of the donor leg

Large veins (superior and inferior vena cava, portal vein) have been replaced successfully with lower extremity deep veins (superficial femoral-popliteal). Femoropopliteal bypass with superficial femoral-popliteal veins has been reported to give excellent long-term results. Nevertheless, this source of autogenous veins has not gained acceptance, in part because of the fear that deep vein removal will result in severe venous outflow restriction in the donor limb. To assess the clinical and functional effect of excising a deep vein, we compared a group of limbs in which the superficial femoral-popliteal vein was resected for use as a femoropopliteal bypass graft (25 legs) with a control group of 22 legs in which a saphenous vein or polytetrafluoroethylene graft was used for femoropopliteal bypass. No significant differences were found in age or sex distribution, time from surgery to the venous test, side of bypass, or the incidence of postoperative extremity swelling, either early or late. A mild but significant calf enlargement was observed in the deep vein group (p less than 0.05), and a pattern consistent with venous outflow obstruction was shown by plethysmography in 21 of 25 extremities (84%) in which a deep vein was used for femoropopliteal bypass but in only 11 of 22 (50%) control extremities (p less than 0.02). It is concluded that a lower extremity deep veins should be considered as a suitable replacement for a large vein or, when superficial vein is not available, as an infrainguinal arterial substitute.
Mass Transport from Single Droplets in Imposed Electric Fields

Abstract The influence of electric charge phenomena on mass transfer in systems involving droplets in a continuous medium is of increasing importance. The enhanced transport behavior of droplets in imposed fields on mass transfer and the influence of naturally occurring charges on droplets, particularly in the atmosphere, are both subjects of current interest. The objective of this study is to elucidate the hydrodynamic and mass transfer effect of imposed fields on charged single droplets. Investigations of both static and pulsed electric fields are reported. The experimental approach is based on the suspension of single droplets in a precisely machined expanding channel. A stationary, saturated water droplet is fluidized by the upflow of 2-ethylhexanol. This arrangement allows precise photographic monitoring of droplet size and shape as well as the hydrodynamics of both phases in the region of the interface. Baseline continuous-phase mass transfer studies with internally circulating droplets corroborate ...
The revolutionary endgame of political power: the genealogy of ‘red terror’ in Ethiopia

This article critically examines the historical genesis and distinctive features of the political violence known as the ‘red terror’ in Ethiopia in the late 1970s. The tragic process and outcome of the political violence of that period in 1977–1979 have differentia specifica features that need a closer and critical investigation. Despite the casual and general comparative references, as well as one-dimensional description with a catch-all universal concept as ‘genocide’, the political violence in Ethiopia has unique and distinguishable features. The Ethiopian ‘red terror’ is differentiable in many aspects from the Rwandan, Kampuchean, Argentinean, Chilean and Indonesian genocides. First, even though the ‘red terror’ was primarily an institutionalised violence wangled by the military derg regime, it was also a complex and intertwined process in which opposition forces had actively engaged in and contributed for; second, the antagonists and protagonists that were interlocked in power struggles were primaril...
Bivalirudin-associated intracoronary thrombosis during γ- brachytherapy and its experimental validation in acute swine model

Bivalirudin is indicated for use as an anticoagulant in patients with unstable angina undergoing percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. Cases of intracoronary thrombosis have been reported with β-radiation when bivalirudin is used as an anticoagulant. We report two cases of intracoronary thrombosis with γ-radiation when bivalirudin is used. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;62:209–213. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Immune modulation of rheumatoid arthritis.

The approval – several years ago – of the first tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) inhibitor for the management of rheumatoid arthritis launched a new era in the therapeutics of rheumatology. Since then an almost cataclysmic discovery of new treatment targets and corresponding biologic agents ensued. Nowadays, the rheumatologist and the rheumatologic patient have the luxury of several immune modulators available to successfully treat the majority of patients with RA or other inflammatory arthritides and conditions. In this review we focus on a discussion of the approved immune modulators/biologic agents available for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. We also present an overview of agents under development. For the immune modulators discussed, we describe their mechanism of action and summarise initial data and recent updates on efficacy and safety.
Hadron production in νNe and νNe interactions

Abstract The inclusive distributions of hadrons produced in ν μ ( ν μ ) Ne interactions are found to be similar to inclusive distributions in π±Ne interactions.
Contained Rupture of a Pseudoaneurysm of the Descending Thoracic Aorta Related to Remnant Outflow Graft of Left Ventricular Assist Device After Heart Transplantation

The Jarvik 2000 left ventricular assist device is inserted via a left thoracotomy with the outflow graft anastomosed to the descending thoracic aorta. Removal of the device during heart transplantation involves division of the outflow graft, resulting in a retained remnant. We describe the first reported case of a mycotic pseudoaneurysm of the descending thoracic aorta related to the remnant of a left ventricular assist device outflow graft in an immunosuppressed heart recipient complicated with systemic Pseudomonas infection. The pseudoaneurysm was temporarily treated with endovascular stent grafting followed by delayed thoracotomy, pseudoaneurysm excision, and placement of an aortic interposition graft using an aortic allograft.
Dilated cardiomyopathy and cocaine abuse. Report of two cases

Two young patients with dilated cardiomyopathies associated with long-term use of cocaine are described. A 42-year-old male cocaine abuser with normal coronary arteries experienced recurrent myocardial infarction, with development of a dilated, globally hypocontractile left ventricle. The second patient, a 28-year-old woman with a prominent history of inhaling vaporized cocaine ("free-basing"), presented with symptoms and signs of biventricular heart failure and was found to have a dilated cardiomyopathy. The clinical spectrum of cocaine cardiotoxicity is reviewed, and pathophysiologic mechanisms of cocaine-induced cardiomyopathy are discussed. Long-term cocaine use may cause dilated cardiomyopathy and recurrent myocardial infarction, even in the absence of atherosclerotic epicardial coronary artery disease.
Geriatric Neurologic Emergencies

Geriatrics is an important subspecialty within the field of emergency medicine and represents a burgeoning area of practice. The special vulnerability of elderly patients to neurologic disease and injury and the comparative subtlety of clinical presentation mean that physicians should have a lower threshold for laboratory studies, radiologic imaging, consultation, and admission. Transferring appropriate patients to tertiary centers that offer specialized trauma and neurologic and neurosurgical care greatly enhances survival and functional outcomes.
Treatment protocol for open AO/OTA type C3 pilon fractures with segmental bone loss.

Objectives:To evaluate the results in patients with open AO/OTA type C3 pilon fractures with segmental bone loss who were treated with a standard treatment protocol.Design:Retrospective case series.Setting:Level I trauma center.Patients/Participants:Of 117 acute open type C pilon fractures treated d
Tuning Zr(IV)-assisted peptide hydrolysis at near-neutral pH

Abstract The present study has compared the effects of a total of 17 ligands on Zr(IV)-assisted hydrolysis of the dipeptide Gly–Gly (60 °C, pH 6.8–7.4, t = 4 h and t = 10 h). The macrocyclic azacrown ether ligands 1,4,10,13-tetraoxa-7,16-diazacyclooctadecane and 1,4,10-trioxa-7,13-diazacyclopentadecane produced the overall highest amounts of hydrolysis, followed by the open-chain ligand 2-(2-aminoethoxy)-ethanol. While it was not necessary to have a ring structure to enhance Zr(IV) reactivity, the structural feature “ROCH2CH2OCH2CH2NR” appeared to contribute to increased levels of peptide cleavage.
Use of Propafenone in Patients With Supraventricular Tachycardia

Propafenone prolongs refractoriness and slows conduction of the atrium, atrioventricular node, and accessory atrioventricular pathway. By interfering with conduction in locations necessary to support supraventricular tachycardia, propafenone effectively treats several mechanisms of rhythm disturbance. Early experience shows that propafenone, when administered in the electrophysiology laboratory, effectively terminates or prevents reinduction of paroxysmal supraventricular reentrant tachycardia in 50% to 75% of patients. The most effective dose associated with the fewest side effects has been 2 mg/kg infused over 10 minutes. Long-term success with propafenone has been demonstrated in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, paroxysmal atrial flutter, atrioventricular node reentrant tachycardia, atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia using a concealed accessory pathway, and tachycardias associated with the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, including paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia. In 67% (range, 27% to 89%) of patients receiving long-term therapy with propafenone, episodes of supraventricular tachycardia have been either eliminated or significantly reduced in frequency and treatment has not had to be stopped because of side effects. The effective daily dose for longterm therapy has been 550 to 750 mg administered in three or four divided doses. Although the number of patients reported in the literature at this time is small, propafenone appears to be an effective agent for treating supraventricular tachycardia due to one of several mechanisms.
Expression of kinase-inactive c-Src delays oxidative stress-induced disassembly and accelerates calcium-mediated reassembly of tight junctions in the Caco-2 cell monolayer.

The activity of Src kinases appears to play a role in both assembly and disassembly of tight junction. However, the role of a specific isoform of Src kinase in regulation of tight junction is not known. In the present study the role of c-Src in regulation of epithelial tight junction was investigated in Caco-2 cell monolayers. Oxidative stress (xanthine oxidase + xanthine) induced an activation and membrane translocation of c-Src. The oxidative stress-induced decrease in transepithelial electrical resistance, increase in inulin permeability, and redistribution of occludin and ZO-1 from the intercellular junctions were prevented by PP2. The rates of oxidative stress-induced activation of c-Src, tyrosine phosphorylation of ZO-1 and -catenin, decrease in resistance, increase in permeability to inulin, and redistribution of occludin and ZO-1 were significantly greater in cells transfected with wild type c-Src, whereas it was low in cells transfected with kinase-inactive c-SrcK297R mutant, when compared with those in empty vector-transfected cells. The rates of recovery of resistance, increase in barrier to inulin, and reorganization of occludin and ZO-1 into the intercellular junctions during the calcium-induced reassembly of tight junction were much greater in Caco-2 cells transfected with c-SrcK297R as compared with those in cells transfected with empty vector or wild type c-Src. These results show that the dominant-negative expression of kinase-inactive c-Srcdelays the oxidative stress-induced disruption of tight junction and accelerates calcium-induced assembly of tight junction in Caco-2 cells and demonstrate that oxidative stress-induced disruption of tight junction is mediated by the activation of c-Src.
Biomedical micro and nanotechnology: From lab-on-chip to building systems with cells

Biomedical applications of micro and nanotechnology hold tremendous promise in diagnostics, therapeutic, and tissue engineering. Lab on chip devices can be used for the rapid and sensitive detection of biological entities including cells, bacteria, proteins and DNA. These microfluidic devices can provide for the sensitive and selective detection of CD4+ T cells for detection of HIV/AIDs for global health at point of care. Significant opportunities exist for rapid point-of-care detection of nucleic acid molecules from bacterial or viral agents of infection, for food borne pathogens. Tremendous opportunities exist in the development of cell-based bio-actuators, autonomous biological micro robots and cellular machines for a wide range of applications.
Prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome among the privately insured, United States, 2003-2008

Objective The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and its phenotypes as defined by the National Institutes of Health, Rotterdam criteria, and Androgen Society. Study Design Thomson Reuters MarketScan Commercial databases (Thomson Reuters Healthcare Inc, New York, NY) for 2003-2008 were used to calculate the prevalence of PCOS and to assess differences in demographic characteristics and comorbid conditions among women who were 18-45 years old with and without PCOS. Results The prevalence of PCOS was 1585.1 per 100,000; women with phenotype A or classic PCOS were most prevalent at 1031.5 per 100,000. Women with PCOS were more likely than those without PCOS to be 25-34 years old, be from the South, be infertile, have metabolic syndrome, have been seen by an endocrinologist, and have taken oral contraceptives. Conclusion This is the first study to use all available criteria to estimate the prevalence of PCOS. Providers should evaluate women with menstrual dysfunction for the presence of PCOS.
IVIg selectively and rapidly decreases circulating pathogenic autoantibodies in pemphigus vulgaris

Background: Intraveneous immunoglobulin (IVIg) is increasingly used to treat pemphigus vulgaris (PV). The mechanism by which it does so is not known. The following study was conducted to confirm the effectiveness of IVIg for the acute control of active PV and to elucidate the mechanism by which it does.Methods: Twelve patients with active and severe PV unresponsive to conventional therapy with high doses of systemic steroids together with or without a cytotoxic drug were treated with a single dose of IVIg (400 mg/kg/day for 5 days). All patients were concurrently given cyclophosphamide or azathioprine of not already on one of these two drugs. The primary end-points were healing of skin lesions, changes in serum levels of intercelular (IC) autoantibodies and in steroid doses one to 3 weeks after initiation of IVIg.Results: Within 1 week of initiating IVIg the activity of PV was controlled in most cases. Within 3 weeks the average baseline dose of systemic steroid was reduced by 40%. Serum levels of IC anti...
Exercise and Diet Beliefs of Overweight Women Participating in an Exercise and Diet Program: An Elicitation Study Using the Theory of Planned Behavior1

The purpose of this study was to examine the exercise and diet beliefs of overweight women using the theory of planned behavior. Participants were 104 overweight community women and university students who completed a 4-week exercise and diet program. The most salient exercise beliefs for the participants were (a) increased motivation, structure and accountability, and social support (behavioral beliefs); (b) job or school responsibilities and traveling (control beliefs); and (c) group members and the program trainer (normative beliefs). The most salient diet beliefs were (a) improved eating habits and convenience (behavioral beliefs), (b) lack of control over food preparation and inconvenience (control beliefs), and (c) family and spouse or significant other (normative beliefs). These results are discussed in comparison to beliefs held by different populations and in regard to implications for intervention design.
Integrated multi-item production-inventory systems

Abstract We study an integrated multi-item production-inventory system with stochastic demands and capacitated production. The problem is to find the base stock levels which minimize expected inventory costs per unit time, for an infinite time horizon. When unit manufacturing times are deterministic or exponentially distributed, we derive analytical expressions that lead to the optimal base stock levels. Our results provide several implications about the interaction of inventories, capacity utilization, and variation in the production environment.
Obesity-mediated association between exposure to brominated trihalomethanes and type II diabetes mellitus: An exploratory analysis

Abstract With the exception of chloroform, the rest of trihalomethanes (THM), the so-called brominated THM (Br-THM) are composed of bromine-substituted molecules with increased lipophilicity and potency to biological tissues. The THM are formed within disinfected tap water and their health effects, under research, range from cancer to adverse reproductive outcomes. However, the association between human exposures to Br-THM and the risk of developing type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and metabolic co-morbidities, such as obesity and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis has never been previously explored. The objective of this exploratory analysis was to address obesity-mediated associations between urinary concentrations of brominated THM and incidences of T2DM in a Cypriot adult population (n = 326). First morning urine voids were collected once during summer and another time during winter while a detailed questionnaire was administered to participants. Creatinine-adjusted urinary Br-THM analyte concentrations were significantly (p
Analysis of natural diatom communities reveals novel insights into the diversity of long chain polyamine (LCPA) structures involved in silica precipitation

Abstract The intricately nanopatterned siliceous frustules of diatoms are formed under the control of template organic molecules, some of which are tightly incorporated into the frustule during formation. Long chain polyamines (LCPAs) attract dissolved silicic acid species, enhance silica precipitation and play a role in frustule nanopattern formation. LCPAs thus play a central biogeochemical role, linking the cycling of organic matter with the cycling of silicic acid in the photic zone of the upper ocean. Their distribution and molecular diversity in the environment are as yet unknown. We used high performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry (HPLC–ESI–MS n ) to investigate the distribution and molecular diversity of aliphatic LCPAs extracted from the frustules of diatoms in mixed marine plankton communities collected within the euphotic zone of the northeastern Pacific coast, Bering Sea, and Puget Sound estuary. An astonishing variety of over 100 natural LCPAS with complex distribution patterns was found in each sample. Structural variation included degree of methylation, overall chain length, presence of secondary amine functionalities, incorporation of quaternary ammonium and occurrence of sulfonated derivatives. Putrescine-based LCPAs with various degrees of methylation and N -methyl propylamine repeat units were ubiquitous. Although some LCPA species overlapped between samples, there were regional differences in composition and structural characteristics. The structural variety of LCPAs employed by diatoms to produce their nanopatterned silicified exoskeleton could inform biomimetic studies of silica precipitation.
Learning about a population of agents and the evolution of trust and cooperation

Abstract Various reputation models consider how cooperation might emerge between rational adversaries in non-cooperative games. We suggest and analyze an additional determinant: uncertainty and learning about the population from which agents are selected. The analysis shows how the degrees of trust by principals and cooperation by agents can depend on the past behavior of other agents. A dramatic implication is that trust and cooperation can permanently and inefficiently break down due to revised beliefs about the population of agents. We consider lessons the theory might provide concerning the relationship between the U.S. Department of Defense and its contractors. The model suggests two explanations of events during the mid-1980s, which many interpret as a very socially costly breakdown of trust and cooperation.
English tag questions in universal grammar

Abstract The objective of this paper is to explain the existence of tag questions in English as a consequences of the principles of Universal Grammar together with the peculiar syntactic properties of English, in the spirit of the Principles and Parameters approach. The tag question must meet all requirements on Tags in general. Crucially, a Tag must contain a pro-IP that is bound by the Sentence. The tag question satisfies this requirement, in that the pronominal subject, the copied Aux and empty VP taken together constitute an instance of pro-IP bound by the Sentence. An important conclusion to be drawn from this binding requirement is that Tags involve long-distance binding of an empty category, not movement. It is shown that the general principles licensing Tags, taken together with the possibility of empty VP in English, yield the form of the English tag question.
Illinois redesigns its ambient water quality monitoring network

Illinois has been operating an ambient water quality network of almost 600 stations for several years. In 1977 changes in program emphasis toward intensive monitoring, the need for improved procedures and quality control in monitoring operations, and the desire to create a single data base of all Illinois State monitoring data, resulted in a redesign of the ambient monitoring program.
The distribution of nitrogen species in polluted Onondaga Lake, N.Y., U.S.A.

The temporal and vertical distributions of four N species, N03−, NO2−, total ammonia (T-NH3), and free ammonia (NH3), are documented for Onondaga Lake, an urban, polluted, hypereutrophic, dimictic, lake that receives a very high load of T-NH3. Nitrate and NO2− were lost rapidly from the hypolimnion, and T-NH3 accumulated to high concentrations (maximum > 10 mgN L−1), after the onset of anoxia, consistent with the lake's high level of productivity. The concentrations of T-NH3, NH3 and N03− that were maintained in the epilimnion (average concentrations at a depth of 1 m of 2.81, 0.16 and 0.91 mgN L−1, respectively), and concentrations of N02− that developed in the epilimnion (maximum of 0.48 mgN L−1), were high in comparison to levels reported in the literature. These elevated concentrations are largely a result of the extremely high loads of T-NH3, and its precursors, received by the lake. Water quality problems in the lake related to the prevailing high concentrations of N species include potential toxicity effects and severe lake-wide oxygen depletion during fall turnover.
A demonstration hybrid computer for real-time flight simulation

Abstract : A hybrid, real-time simulation facility has been designed, constructed, and demonstrated, using as a test vehicle the complete aerodynamic and engine equations for a highperformance military aircraft. The analog-digital configuration employs peripheral analog equipment to represent a linear, skeleton version of the aircraft and the PDP-1 digital computer to carry out engine simulation, decision management, and corrections for nonlinear effects. To provide an all-digital reference against which the hybrid simulation could be compared, the aircraft model, which in general scope is identical to the F-100A model used in the UDOFT studies, was also simulated on the PDP-1 alone. It was found that the solution rate of 20 per second employed in the all-digital study could be reduced to one per second without deleterious effects when the hybrid configuration was used. Such a reduction demonstrates that supplementing a digital computer by relatively inexpensive analog peripheral equipment in the manner suggested substantially increases the real-time capacity of the digital computer in complex simulation applications. Moreover, because a number of key variables are computed continuously in the analog domain, the introduction of analog equipment results in a net decrease in the complexity of the interface, particularly in the number of analog storage devices required. (Author)
Invited Talk: JML framed!

This talk will try to frame JML in two senses. The first is the sense of placing JML in the context of other specification languages and tools. This context will be provided by giving a brief introduction to JML, with small examples. The different tools that work with JML also help provide context for the language design in a different way. Another aspect of this context is provided by comparing JML with other design by contract languages, such as Eiffel.The second sense of framing in JML is the more technical one of frame axioms, also known as "modifies clauses". Such frame axioms are critical for reasoning, and are difficult to check at runtime; hence static analysis is a crucial need. We will discuss the semantics of JML's frame axioms, including datagroups, both in a naive sense and with the experimental Universe type system. Both problems in the semantics and checking, as well as some recent work will be presented. Note that some of the recent work on frame axioms in JML, especially extensions with the Universe type system, is joint work with Peter Muller (of ETH Zurich) and Arnd Poetzsch-Heffter of (U. Kaiserslautern). At Iowa State, the development of JML was partially funded by the (US) National Science Foundation under grants CCR-9503168, CCR-9803843, CCR-0097907, and CCR-0113181.
Structural Analysis of Wind-Turbine Blades by a Generalized Timoshenko Beam Model

An important aspect in wind-turbine technology nowadays is to reduce the uncertainties related to blade dynamics by the improvement of the quality of numerical simulations of the fluid-structure interaction process. A fundamental step in that direction is the implementation of structural models capable of capturing the complex features of innovative prototype blades, so that they can be tested at realistic full-scale conditions with a reasonable computational cost. To this end, we developed a code based on a modified implementation of the variational-asymptotic beam sectional (VABS) technique proposed by Hodges VABS has the capacity of reducing the geometrical complexity of the blade section into a stiffness matrix for an equivalent beam, allowing accurate modeling of the 3D structure of the blade as a 1D finite-element problem. In this paper, we report some recent results we have obtained by applying our code to full-scale composite laminate wind-turbine blades, analyzing the fundamental vibrational modes and the stress load in normal operational conditions.
The rate of cleavage ofβ-mercaptopyruvate by rapidly dividing cells

Quantitative Analysen desβ-mercaptobrenztraubensaure-spaltenden Enzyms zeigen, dass Zellen, die sich in aktivem mitotischem Prozess befinden (bzw. Krebszellen und Gewebekulturen), dieses Enzym in viel geringerem Masse enthalten als « normale » Zellen. Da dieses Enzym in dem anaeroben Stoffwechsel von Zystein eine wichtige Rolle spielt, lasst sich vermuten, dass sich der Zysteinstoffwechsel der Tumorzelle quantitativ von dem der Normalzelle unterscheidet.
Image formation using self-imaging techniques*

Two situations in which self-imaging techniques can be applied to advantage are presented: the pinhole-array camera and transmission through an optical fiber. The experimental procedure and results are presented for the case of a pinhole array illuminated with an extended incoherent object distribution. In the Fresnel-image planes, more images are formed than there are pinholes in the array, which is in contrast to the case of the pinhole-array camera. An optical fiber or thin film working in the kaleidoscope mode may form an image, provided that its length fulfills the self-imaging condition.
Stationary properties of dispersive optical bistability in a dense exciton-biexciton system: copper chloride

A semiclassical exciton-biexciton model for CuCl is used to obtain the stationary solutions for optical bistability (o.b.) by numerical integration of the second-order Maxwell equation in the limit of large Fresnel numbers. The results obtained from the calculation, which we call exact (ex.), are compared with corresponding numerical results by using the slowly varying envelope approximation (s.v.e.a.) as well as corresponding analytical results obtained by using the mean-field approximation (m.f.a.). The results obtained with the s.v.e.a. are shown to be in close quantitative (within 5%) agreement with the ex. results for each point in the parameter space considered, whereas the m.f.a. gives reasonably good qualitative results only (more than 20% quantitative discrepancy with ex.). Furthermore, o.b. is predicted from these calculations for incident laser field detunings on either side of the two-photon biexciton resonance as well as in the neighbourhood of the resonance. The nonlinearity in the dielectric function that causes o.b. is seen to be very nearly of the Kerr medium type, and consequently, the two-photon biexciton resonance contributes only weakly to the o.b. characteristics.