cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mechanisms of Axonal Plasticity: Lessons from the Olfactory Pathway

The olfactory pathway has emerged recently as an effective model for studying general principles of axon extension and regeneration. A variety of both trophic as well as repulsive molecules are found in the olfactory pathway and are being characterized for their roles in promoting the high capacity for plasticity and growth in olfactory receptor cell axons. In addition, olfactory ensheathing cells, which line the olfactory nerve, have been shown to promote axon extension not only in the olfactory pathway but also in the injured spinal cord. This review summarizes some of our current knowledge of these mechanisms and how they may function collectively to promote axon plasticity.
Oxidation of sulfur dioxide to sulfur trioxide over supported vanadia catalysts

The objectives of this research are to establish the fundamental kinetics and mechanism of sulfur dioxide oxidation over supported vanadia catalysts and use these insights to facilitate the design of SCR DeNOx catalysts with minimal sulfur dioxide oxidation activity. A series of supported vanadia catalysts were prepared on various metal-oxide supports: ceria, zirconia, titania, alumina and silica. Raman spectroscopy was used to determine the coordination of surface species. At low vanadia loadings, vanadia preferentially exists on oxide support surfaces as isolated tetrahedrally coordinated (M‐O)3V a5 aO species. At higher vanadia loadings, the isolated (M‐O)3V a5 aO species polymerize on the oxide support surface breaking two V‐O‐M bonds and forming two V‐O‐V bridging bonds. The turnover frequency for sulfur dioxide oxidation was very low, 10 ˇ4 to 10 ˇ6 s ˇ1 at 4008C, and was independent of vanadia coverage suggesting that only one vanadia site is required for the oxidation reaction. As the support was varied, sulfur dioxide oxidation activity of the supported vanadia catalysts varied by one order of magnitude (Ce>Zr, Ti>Al>Si). The basicity of the bridging V‐O‐M oxygen appears to be responsible for influencing the adsorption and subsequent oxidation of the acidic sulfur dioxide molecule. Over the range of conditions studied, the rate of sulfur dioxide oxidation is zero-order in oxygen, first-order in sulfur dioxide and inhibited by sulfur trioxide. The turnover frequency for sulfur dioxide oxidation over WO3/TiO2 was an order of magnitude lower than that found for V2O5/TiO2, and no redox synergism between the surface vanadia and tungsten oxide species was evident for a ternary V2O5/ WO3/TiO2 catalyst. This suggests that WO3 promoted catalysts may be suitable for low-temperature SCR where minimal sulfur dioxide oxidation activity is required. # 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
3D controlled-source electromagnetic edge-based finite element modeling of conductive and permeable heterogeneities

A new 3D controlled-source electromagnetic finite element (FE) modeling algorithm is presented which is capable of handling local inhomogeneities in the magnetic permeability and electrical conductivity distribution of buried geologic and anthropogenic structures. An ungauged, coupled-potential formulation of the governing electromagnetic vector diffusion and scalar continuity equations is used. The formulation introduces magnetic reluctivity, the inverse of magnetic permeability, to facilitate a separation of secondary and primary potentials. The governing equations are solved using a tetrahedral edge-based FE method. The postprocessing steps to obtain electromagnetic fields are outlined. The code is validated for non-magnetic and permeable conductive structures by comparisons against analytic and previously published numerical solutions. Some limitations of the implementation are explored and directions are proposed for its further development.
Neuregulin-1 induces acetylcholine receptor transcription in the absence of GABPα phosphorylation

Localization of acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) to the postsynaptic region of muscle is mediated in part by transcriptional mechanisms, because the genes encoding AChR subunits are transcribed selectively in synaptic myofiber nuclei. Neuregulin-1 (NRG-1) is a synaptic signal and induces transcription of AChRs in muscle cells. Signaling by NRG-1 is thought to involve the transcription factor GA-binding protein (GABP), a heterodimer of GABPa, which is a member of the Ets family, and GABPb. Phosphorylation of certain other Ets proteins outside the Ets DNA-binding domain serves to stimulate transcriptional activation in response to extracellular signals. According to previous studies, NRG-1 stimulates phosphorylation of GABPa at threonine 280 in the N-terminal region adjacent to the Ets domain, suggesting that GABPa phosphorylation might contribute to NRG-1 responsiveness. To determine the functional importance of the N-terminal region of GABPa and whether its function is regulated by phosphorylation, we generated muscle cell lines in which the endogenous GABPa gene was deleted and replaced by variants of GABPa mutated in the N-terminal region. We found that NRG-1 can induce transcription in cells with mutated T280 phosphorylation site, indicating that T280 phosphorylation does not contribute to NRG-1 responsiveness. We also found that NRG-1-induced transcription occurs in cells missing the entire N-terminal region of GABPa. Because NRG-1 signaling is not expected to alter the function of the Cterminal region, which remains in these cells, these results suggest that GABPb, or other interacting components, rather than GABPa directly, is targeted by NRG-1 signaling. V C 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Early onset recurrent subtype of adolescent depression: clinical and psychosocial correlates.

Background: Evaluated trajectories of adolescent depression and their correlates in a longitudinal study of a community sample: early onset (by age 15) with major depression (MDE) recurrence between 15 and 20; early onset with no recurrence; later onset of major depression after age 15 with and without recurrence by 20; and never-depressed. Methods: Eight-hundred sixteen youth were studied at age 15, and 699 were included at age 20, with diagnostic evaluations and assessments of functioning in major roles. Results: Youth with early onset and recurrent MDE differed from both those with early onset but nonrecurrent MDE and those with later onset-no recurrence in terms of clinical features, adolescent social functioning, and later psychosocial adjustment. The early onset recurrent depressed youth had more severe, chronic, suicidal depressions, greater anxiety comorbidity, worse social functioning at 15, and poorer psychosocial, especially social, outcomes at 20. Conclusions: Youth with depression by 15 with recurrence by age 20 may represent a high-risk group, with likely life-course-persistent depression and maladjustment. Community youth whose early depression does not recur by age 20, or who have onset with no recurrence after age 15, may have more benign and possibly limited depressions. Later onset with recurrence is also a group at risk for dysfunctional outcomes, requiring further follow-up.
Indonesia's Law on Public Services: changing state–society relations or continuing politics as usual?

Abstract Institutional reforms introduced after the collapse of the New Order regime have brought state–society relations in Indonesia under increased scrutiny. This paper uses an evaluation of Law 25/2009 on Public Services as a means to assess whether the new political setting has increased the leverage of the citizenry over the state. Adopted in July 2009, the law introduced a range of regulations for public service providers. It also expanded the responsibilities of the Ombudsman's office and called for the establishment of citizen committees to monitor public service delivery. However, the legal quality of the law is poor and the broader institutional and political environment is not conducive to its enforcement. Overall, the law aims beyond the capacity of the current political and legal system. Ironically, in order for society to gain greater leverage in politics, state capacity must increase as well.
Relational Contexts and Aesthetics: Achieving Positive Connections with Mandated Clients

This article describes a model for group art therapy using an art-based and relational-aesthetic approach. The group was developed to address the complicated issues presented when working with survivors of abuse who are court-mandated to attend counseling. The concept of "gender entrapment" (Richie, 1996) is offered to explain the survivors' circumstances. The author explores the benefits of utilizing the relational context, clinical training in art psychotherapy with special populations, and an implicit trust in the creative process in illustrating the positive effects of artmaking and group processes with these clients. Feminist frameworks are used to describe the population and address the complexities of healing from abuse within a context of oppression.
Interrenal Disease In Bluegills (Lepomis macrochirus) Caused By A New Genus and Species of Myxozoan

Abstract A myxozoan species not matching with any described genus was encountered in a survey of fish parasites of freshwater fishes in New York. The parasite was observed in the kidney tubules of bluegill sunfish Lepomis macrochirus. A new genus is described to accommodate Acauda hoffmani n. gen., n. sp., which exhibits pyriform spores with longitudinal ridges and polar capsules perpendicular to the sutural plane. Spores measure 17.9–21.8 µm long and 6.9–11.0 µm wide, with spore valves each with 11–12 ridges. Two polar capsules measure 9.4–12.5 µm long by 2.9–4.0 µm wide and contain a filament coiled 10–15 times. Phylogenetic analysis places A. hoffmani n. gen., n. sp. as a sister to a Myxobilatus and a Hoferellus species. The clustering of these 3 similar genera in the larger ‘freshwater’ clade of myxozoans does not support their inclusion in the Sphaerosporidae but instead supports the distinct status of the Myxobilatidae Shulman 1953.
Differences in reporting serious adverse events in industry sponsored clinical trial registries and journal articles on antidepressant and antipsychotic drugs: a cross-sectional study

Objective To examine the degree of concordance in reporting serious adverse events (SAEs) from antidepressant and antipsychotic drug trials among journal articles and clinical trial summaries, and to categorise types of discrepancies. Design Cross-sectional study of summaries of all antidepressant and antipsychotic trials included in an online trial registry and their first associated stand-alone journal articles. Setting Clinicalstudyresults.org, sponsored by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America; clinicaltrials.gov, administered by the US National Institutes of Health. Main outcome measure 3 coders extracted data on the numbers and types of SAEs. Results 244 trial summaries for six antidepressant and antipsychotic drugs were retrieved, 142 (58.2%) listing an associated article. Of 1608 SAEs in drug-treated participants according to trial summaries, 694 (43.2%) did not appear in associated articles. Nearly 60% of SAEs counted in articles and 41% in trial summaries had no description. Most cases of death (62.3%) and suicide (53.3%) were not reported in articles. Half or more of the 142 pairs were discordant in reporting the number (49.3%) or description (67.6%) of SAEs. These discrepancies resulted from journal articles’ (1) omission of complete SAE data, (2) reporting acute phase study results only and (3) more restrictive reporting criteria. Trial summaries with zero SAE were 2.35 (95% CI, 1.58 to 3.49; p Conclusions Substantial discrepancies exist in SAE data found in journal articles and registered summaries of antidepressant and antipsychotic drug trials. Two main scientific sources accessible to clinicians and researchers are limited by incomplete, ambiguous and inconsistent reporting. Access to complete and accurate data from clinical trials of drugs currently in use remains a pressing concern.
Toward a Real-Time Cloud Auditing Paradigm

The amount of computing done in the cloud is greatly increasing. The decentralized nature of the cloud, however, makes it difficult for individuals to ensure that the computation is being done correctly. Thus, the concept of "cloud auditing" has appeared. As applications in the cloud become more sensitive, the need for auditing systems to provide rapid analysis and quick responses also increases. Machine learning algorithms can be employed for the purposes of providing audit data. Few of these algorithms can be done in an online fashion, however. In this work, we examine one such online machine learning algorithm, and describe how it might be employed in a distributed computing environment.
Who is IT? Inferring role and intent from agent motion

We present a system which observes humans interacting in the real world and infers their goals and intentions through detecting and analyzing their spatiotemporal relationships. Given the motion trajectories of human agents and inanimate objects within a room, the system attempts to characterize how each agent moves in response to the locations of the others in the room -towards an object, say, and away from the other agent. Each of these calculations leads to an estimate of the agent's current intentional state. Taken together with the other agents in the room, and paying particular attention to the moments when the various agents' states change, the system can construct a coherent account of the action similar to the stories humans tell. We illustrate this approach with a robot that watches people playing a game of tag, works out for itself the roles and intentions of the various players, and then attempts to join in the fun. The robot's interpretation of events agrees with human observers on average 70.8% of the time -nearly as good as the agreement between two humans (78.5%).
Potential Adverse Effects of Phytoestrogens

Evaluation of the potential benefits and risks offered by naturally occurring plant estrogens requires investigation of their potency and sites of action when consumed at natural dietary concentrations. Our investigations have examined the effects of a range of natural dietary concentrations of the most potent plant isoflavonoid, coumestrol, using a rat model and a variety of estrogen-dependent tissues and endpoints. Treatments of immature females demonstrated agonistic action in the reproductive tract, brain, and pituitary at natural dietary concentrations. Experiments designed to test for estrogen antagonism demonstrated that coumestrol did not conform to the picture of a classic antiestrogen. However, coumestrol did suppress estrous cycles in adult females. Developmental actions were examined by neonatal exposure of pups through milk of rat dams fed a coumestrol, control, or commercial soy-based diet during the critical period of the first 10 postnatal days or throughout the 21 days of lactation. The 10-day treatment did not significantly alter adult estrous cyclicity, but the 21-day treatment produced in a persistent estrus state in coumestrol-treated females by 132 days of age. In contrast, the 10-day coumestrol treatments produced significant deficits in the sexual behavior of male offspring. These findings illustrate the broad range of actions of these natural estrogens and the variability in potency across endpoints. This variability argues for the importance of fully characterizing each phytoestrogen in terms of its sites of action, balance of agonistic and antagonistic properties, natural potency, and short-term and long-term effects.
Bork and Microsoft: Why Bork Was Right and What We Learn About Judging Exclusionary Behavior

In 1998, twenty years after publishing The Antitrust Paradox, Robert Bork wrote: “The antitrust case brought by the Department of Justice against Microsoft is rock solid.” How could Robert Bork, who had labored for his whole professional life to cut antitrust down, come out in support of an aggressive monopolization suit against a leading high-technology firm, indeed, an innovating firm that had arguably generated huge benefits for those consumers whose welfare Bork thought should be antitrust’s only concern? Had Bork undergone some sort of conversion that led him to see the need to protect small competitors from the depredations of dominant firms? Or had Bork been bought? This paper explores this episode in Bork’s writing about antitrust. The paper argues that Bork was neither converted nor bought, but, rather, was applying the principles he set out in the Antitrust Paradox. The paper further argues that this episode illuminates Bork’s approach to exclusionary behavior and provides some valuable lessons on how to judge exclusionary conduct. The paper begins with a discussion of what Bork wrote about exclusionary conduct in The Antitrust Paradox. The second part of the paper discusses Bork’s views on Microsoft and his rebuttal of his critics at the time. The third part shows how Bork was basically correct in his analysis and sets out four “lessons learned.” The paper concludes by reminding us of the overtly political content of Bork’s approach to antitrust and argues that Bork’s political emphasis on free entry and open markets can help support more vigorous enforcement today against exclusionary conduct.
A Method for Comparing the Reflecting Power of Concave Gratings in the Soft X-Ray Region

Calculation of spectral line intensity produced by concave grating with given monochromatic radiant power source
Turbulent Surface Flow and Wall Function

The asymptotic solutions, described by Tennekes and Lumley (1972), for surface flows in a channel, pipe or boundary layer at large Reynolds numbers are revisited. These solutions can be extended to more complex flows such as the flows with various pressure gradients, zero wall stress and rough surfaces, etc. In computational fluid dynamics (CFD), these solutions can be used as the boundary conditions to bridge the near-wall region of turbulent flows so that there is no need to have the fine grids near the wall unless the near-wall flow structures are required to resolve. These solutions are referred to as the wall functions. Furthermore, a generalized and unified law of the wall which is valid for whole surface layer (including viscous sublayer, buffer layer and inertial sublayer) is analytically constructed. The generalized law of the wall shows that the effect of both adverse and favorable pressure gradients on the surface flow is very significant. Such an unified wall function will be useful not only in deriving analytic expressions for surface flow properties but also bringing a great convenience for CFD methods to place accurate boundary conditions at any location away from the wall. The extended wall functions introduced in this paper can be used for complex flows with acceleration, deceleration, separation, recirculation and rough surfaces.
Neurological picture. An eye of hemicrania continua.

Hemicrania continua is a recognised form of primary chronic daily headache manifested by daily one-sided head pain of mild to moderate intensity, with intermittent pain exacerbation periods marked by migrainous and cranial autonomic symptoms (conjunctival injection, lacrimation, nasal congestion, rhinorrhoea, eyelid oedema, ptosis and/or miosis).1 Hemicrania continua is one of the indomethacin-responsive headaches, thus, once a patient is given the correct dose of indomethacin they will become pain-free and remain so as long as they are on this particular non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent (NSAID). Basically, all other treatments, including other NSAIDs, will provide minimal or no relief. Hemicrania continua is often missed as a diagnosis. The probable leading cause for …
Relative Effectiveness of HZE Iron-56 Particles for the Induction of Cytogenetic Damage In Vivo

One of the risks of prolonged manned space flight is the exposure of astronauts to radiation from galactic cosmic rays, which contain heavy ions such as (56)Fe. To study the effects of such exposures, experiments were conducted at the Brookhaven National Laboratory by exposing Wistar rats to high-mass, high-Z, high-energy (HZE) particles using the Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS). The biological effectiveness of (56)Fe ions (1000 MeV/nucleon) relative to low-LET gamma rays and high-LET alpha particles for the induction of chromosome damage and micronuclei was determined. The mitotic index and the frequency of chromosome aberrations were evaluated in bone marrow cells, and the frequency of micronuclei was measured in cells isolated from the trachea and the deep lung. A marked delay in the entry of cells into mitosis was induced in the bone marrow cells that decreased as a function of time after the exposure. The frequencies of chromatid aberrations and micronuclei increased as linear functions of dose. The frequency of chromosome aberrations induced by HZE particles was about 3.2 times higher than that observed after exposure to (60)Co gamma rays. The frequency of micronuclei in rat lung fibroblasts, lung epithelial cells, and tracheal epithelial cells increased linearly, with slopes of 7 x 10(-4), 12 x 10(-4), and 11 x 10(-4) micronuclei/binucleated cell cGy(-1), respectively. When genetic damage induced by radiation from (56)Fe ions was compared to that from exposure to (60)Co gamma rays, (56)Fe-ion radiation was between 0.9 and 3.3 times more effective than (60)Co gamma rays. However, the HZE-particle exposures were only 10-20% as effective as radon in producing micronuclei in either deep lung or tracheal epithelial cells. Using microdosimetric techniques, we estimated that 32 cells were hit by delta rays for each cell that was traversed by the primary HZE (56)Fe particle. These calculations and the observed low relative effectiveness of the exposure to HZE particles suggest that at least part of the cytogenetic damage measured was caused by the delta rays. Much of the energy deposited by the primary HZE particles may result in cell killing and may therefore be "wasted" as far as production of detectable micronuclei is concerned. The role of wasted energy in studies of cancer induction may be important in risk estimates for exposure to HZE particles.
Animal Extrapolation and the Challenge of Human Interindividual Variation

There are a number of biological factors which may enhance one’s susceptibility to experience adverse health effects from exposure to toxic substances, including car cinogens. These include one’s age, sex, genetic composition, nutritional status, and preexisting disease conditions (Calabrese, 1978, 1984, 1985, 1986; Propping, 1978).
Nonlinear studies of liquid interfaces

Some results of studies on liquid interfaces using second-harmonic and sum-frequency generation methods will be reported. Among the subjects to be presented are polarization of water and the interface potential at charged interfaces, including charged-monolayer air-water interfaces and the charged silica-water interface. Other areas to be included are the chemical environment and structure at liquid interfaces and the dynamics of molecular rotation and excited-state structural changes at liquid interfaces.
Should methotrexate be a first-line treatment for rheumatoid arthritis?

The evidence is in: Methotrexate is safe and effective as a first-line treatment for rheumatoid arthritis for many patients.
SIMPLE ALGORITHMS FOR CREATING RANDOM-ELEMENT STEREOGRAMS ON THE MACINTOSH

Traditionally, the creation of random-element stereograms is a computation-intensive process. However, by taking advantage of routines built into the Macintosh operating system, multiple-depth stereogram anaglyphs can be easily created from any black-and-white or grayscale image. Any complex shape can be selected from the pattern and offset in one eye’s view relative to the other’s to create the illusion of depth, without the need to calculate offsets on an element-by-element basis.
Pentadionate: An Alternate Sol-Gel Method for the Synthesis of Ferroelectric Ba1−xSrxTiO3

Sol-gel synthesis of transitional metal oxides is one of the important technique to obtain the pure and homogenous materials at low temperature. In this work, Barium strontium titantate (BST) was synthesized by sol-gel processing using 2,4-pentadionate as the precursors of metal oxides. The Ba1−xSrxTiO3 was prepared for four values of x i.e. 0.2, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6. The obtained powders were heated from 400 °C to 800 °C at the interval of 100 °C to determine the temperature of crystallization. The phase of the final products was investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD). Two particle sizes (< 100 nm and 200-400 nm) were observed under the scanning electron microscope (SEM) of the heat treated xerogel. The dielectric properties were determined by impedance analyzer at the frequency of 1MHz and explained in detail for the different values of x.
Empathy from the client's perspective: A grounded theory analysis

AbstractAlthough empathy is one of most robust predictors of client outcome, there is little consensus about how best to conceptualize this construct. Objective: The aim of the present research was to investigate clients’ perceptions and in-session experiences of empathy. Method: Semi-structured, video-assisted interpersonal process recall interviews were used to collect data from nine clients receiving individual psychotherapy at a university psychology clinic. Results: Grounded theory analysis yielded a model consisting of three clusters: (1) relational context of empathy (i.e., personal relationship and professional relationship), (2) types of empathy (i.e., psychotherapists’ cognitive empathy, psychotherapists’ emotional empathy, and client attunement to psychotherapist), and (3) utility of empathy (i.e., process-related benefits and client-related benefits). Conclusions: These results suggest that empathy is a multi-dimensional, interactional process that affects—and is affected by—the broader relati...
A flexible sutureless intraluminal graft that becomes rigid after placement in the aorta.

A new sutureless intraluminal graft has been developed with a ring made of a coiled, overlapping, stainless steel spring with ratchets in one overlapping end. This graft is flexible during insertion but becomes rigid after proper intraaortic placement as the spool is dilated and the ratchets lock into position. The new graft was implanted in 10 dogs and was evaluated histologically and angiographically at various intervals. No ring dislodgment, aortic rupture, stenosis, or aneurysmal dilation was observed. The flexible component of this graft allows it to be introduced and secured in place easily and provides a technical advantage compared with the clinically used rigid intraluminal graft
Automated sample cleanup for pesticide multiresidue analysis. III. Evaluation of complete system for screening subtolerance residues in vegetables.

Description et mise en oeuvre d'un systeme a flux continu de purification de produits alimentaires, en particulier des legumes (haricots verts, tomates, courges)
A Study of Concept Extraction Across Different Types of Clinical Notes.

Our research investigates methods for creating effective concept extractors for specialty clinical notes. First, we present three new “specialty area” datasets consisting of Cardiology, Neurology, and Orthopedics clinical notes manually annotated with medical concepts. We analyze the medical concepts in each dataset and compare with the widely used i2b2 2010 corpus. Second, we create several types of concept extraction models and examine the effects of training supervised learners with specialty area data versus i2b2 data. We find substantial differences in performance across the datasets, and obtain the best results for all three specialty areas by training with both i2b2 and specialty data. Third, we explore strategies to improve concept extraction on specialty notes with ensemble methods. We compare two types of ensemble methods (Voting/Stacking) and a domain adaptation model, and show that a Stacked ensemble of classifiers trained with i2b2 and specialty data yields the best performance.
Source mechanisms of Colombia aftershocks using digital surface-wave data

Love- and Rayleigh-wave signals recorded at stations of the Global Digital Seismograph Network were used to retrieve focal-mechanism information for moderate-magnitude ( mb ≧ 5.0) aftershocks that followed the large ( M S = 7.7) Colombia earthquake of 12 December 1979. Source mechanisms compatible with the observed Love/Rayleigh spectral amplitude ratios were identified following a comparison against theoretical values calculated for a suite of source models. P -wave first motions observed at worldwide stations were then used to remove ambiguities in the sense of slip and strike orientation for most of the events examined. The focal depths of the events were fixed at values determined from depth-phase arrival times. In the surface-wave comparison, a reference earthquake with known focal mechanism and depth was used to calibrate the procedure and to minimize the path and size effects. Aftershocks whose epicenters lie within the asperity region from which most of the moment release originated during the large Colombia earthquake denote thrust faulting similar to that of the main shock, consistent with occurrence along the interplate zone. The few near-trench events in the vicinity of the asperity may have resulted from secondary deformation away from the major plane of rupture rather than from a propagation of interplate rupture seaward to the trench axis. These near-trench aftershocks, which are seaward of the region of maximum energy release, do not provide strong evidence for seismogenic failure of the plate interface. At least one of the events is a normal-faulting earthquake that occurred either above the interplate boundary or in the subducting Nazca plate. Source mechanisms computed for aftershocks located northeast of the asperity but within the length of the rupture reported for the main shock are also consistent with interplate slip. The aftershock activity observed north of this distance is associated with a separate, and perhaps offset, segment of the Nazca-South America plate boundary.
Power Amplifier Reliability

This chapter talks about power amplifier reliability subjected to voltage stress and thermal effect. Both class AB and class E power amplfiiers are discussed. In addition, the class E power amplifier is fabricated using 0.18 micron CMOS process and experimental data of power amplifier performance before and after stress are presented.
Restricted most powerful Bayesian tests for linear models

Uniformly most powerful Bayesian tests (UMPBTs) are a new class of Bayesian tests in which null hypotheses are rejected if their Bayes factor exceeds a specified threshold. The alternative hypotheses in UMPBTs are defined to maximize the probability that the null hypothesis is rejected. Here, we generalize the notion of UMPBTs by restricting the class of alternative hypotheses over which this maximization is performed, resulting in restricted most powerful Bayesian tests (RMPBTs). We then derive RMPBTs for linear models by restricting alternative hypotheses to g priors. For linear models, the rejection regions of RMPBTs coincide with those of usual frequentist F-tests, provided that the evidence thresholds for the RMPBTs are appropriately matched to the size of the classical tests. This correspondence supplies default Bayes factors for many common tests of linear hypotheses. We illustrate the use of RMPBTs for ANOVA tests and t-tests and compare their performance in numerical studies.
Federal Bureaucracy and the Administrative Reform Project

Mexicans frequently use the term ‘political bureaucracy’ (burocracia politica) to refer to the federal government administration and party bureaucracy that constitute an organic part of the regime that emerged from the Revolution and took form during the late 1930s. The term stands in useful contrast to ‘public’ or ‘civil’ because it stresses the close integration of the bureaucracy with the dominant PRI and the myriad activities designed to keep current elites in power. In a highly centralised presidential system marked by the weakness of the national congress and judiciary, the political bureaucracy is arguably the most significant arena of decision-making taken in the sense of both formulating and implementing programmes.
The feasibility strategy to enhance rate of emergency rescue dispatch with optimized way of dressing

Rescue mission against the clock. When people are in urgent distress, the shorter the response time of rescue personnel, the faster the people who need help would be away from dangerous situation. It also means that the smaller loss of victims, the shorter time the rescue workers are exposed to hazardous environments. Take plane crash for example, the average time to escape is only 90 seconds. Between a few seconds, it may cause the difference between life and death. In the emergency procedure, time of departure is controlled factor. In practice, it is bound to delay the whole rescue mission since the time for dressing is about 30 seconds and to complete the deployment of combat power is more than 180 seconds (Time includes Fire trucks to the scene). Therefore, how to shorten the time to mobilize and salvage is one of the most urgently addressed problems of the rescue mission. This study was to review the rescuers manner of dress. Propose the use of the new-style protective equipment racks which can effectively compress the time to dress and rush to the scene to rescue the victims as soon as possible, put out the fire to complete a high-performance relief operation. Through practical simulation test of the fire service personnel in a military base, it is found that compared to the current common dressing procedures the time of dressing with the new-style protective equipment racks could be saved about 50% to 57%. Thus, a fire clothes racks has high application potential benefits in the emergency mobilization. It is worth to actively promote by the related units to improve the significant persisting problem of rescue.
Driver Performance in a Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control String

Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control (CACC) has been proposed as a method to increase highway capacity and possibly enhance safety. Two experiments were conducted in a driving simulator to verify that drivers with CACC would effectively monitor the system’s longitudinal control and override the system in the event that greater braking authority was needed than the system was designed to provide. In the first experiment, the emergency response of drivers with the CACC was compared with that of drivers who manually controlled following distance within a string of vehicles. The CACC group experienced markedly fewer crashes and had longer mean time-to-collision. The second experiment examined whether the CACC safety benefit was the result of the CACC system’s limited automatic braking authority, an auditory alarm, or both. The results suggest that both auto-braking and an auditory alarm are necessary to achieve a crash reduction benefit, although the alarm alone may promote less severe collisions.
Prevalence of postnatal depression and associated risk factors among South Asian mothers living in a newly developing country

Abstract Introduction Postnatal Depression (PND) is a major health problem affecting mother, her child and family. Its prevalence and associated risk factors among South Asian mothers (SAM) living in Qatar remain unknown. The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of PND among (SEAM) in Qatar and to correlate risk factors contributing to the development of PND. Materials and methods A total of (285 ) (SAM)females who were six months postpartum were interviewed as part of a prospective study conducted in primary health care centers in Qatar. PND symptoms were defined as present when subjects had an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale score of 10 or higher. Descriptive statistics were used for summarizing the study and outcome variables. The χ 2 test and ORs with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used for observation and quantifying the association between different variables. Multivariate binary logistic regression was used to identify the independent associated factors of PPD. P ≤0.05 was considered significant. Variables included were age , occupation, education level ,previous psychiatric history ,comorbidities , ,history of depression during current pregnancy, history of anxiety during current pregnancy, number of previous pregnancies, strong social support, husband support, marital problem before pregnancy and ongoing marital problems during current pregnancy. Results The prevalence of postnatal depression among 285 respondents was 33.2% . several psychosocial risk factors were significantly associated with postnatal depression and, after multiple regression analysis, a history of depressive illness ,anxiety ,marital problems before delivery ,a history of diabetes and asthma ,history of congenital malformations ,and lack of mother support.Other variables, including age, parity, education, occupation, and delivery type, were not significantly correlated ( P =0.15–0.95), but marginally indicative of the risk of depressive symptoms. Conclusion This study showed a high rate of depressive symptoms among(SAM) six months Postpartum . Future screening protocols must be employed at primary care level and hospital based clinics in Qatar to detect and treat post natal depression. Keywords: postnatal depression, South Asians, primary health care ,Doha, EPDS
Skin testing and drug challenge outcomes in antibiotic-allergic patients with immediate-type hypersensitivity

Abstract Background The evaluation of antibiotic immediate-type hypersensitivity is intricate because of nonstandardized skin testing and challenge method variability. Objective To determine the safety outcomes and risk factors for antibiotic challenge reactions in patients reporting a history of antibiotic immediate-type hypersensitivity. Methods A 5-year retrospective review of patients evaluated for immediate-type antibiotic allergy was conducted. Data analyzed included patient demographics, index reaction details, and outcomes of skin testing and challenges, classified as single-step or multistep. Results Antibiotic hypersensitivity history was identified in 211 patients: 78% to penicillins, 10% to fluoroquinolones, 7.6% to cephalosporins, and 3.8% to carbapenems. In total, 179 patients completed the challenges (median age 67 years, range 50–76 years, 56% women), and compared with nonchallenged patients, they reported nonanaphylactic ( P P = .003) reactions. Sixteen patients (8.9%) experienced challenge reactions (5 of 28 for single-step challenge, 11 of 151 for multistep challenge), and 11 of these patients had negative skin testing results before the challenge. Challenge-reactive patients were significantly younger ( P = .007), more often women ( P = .036), and had additional reported antibiotic allergies ( P = .005). No correlation was detected between the reported index and observed challenge reaction severities (κ = −0.05, 95% confidence interval −0.34 to 0.24). Anaphylactic rates were similar during single-step and multistep challenges (3.6% vs 3.3%). Conclusion In the present population, younger women with multiple reported antibiotic allergies were at greatest risk for challenge reactions. Negative skin testing results did not exclude reactions, and index severity was not predictive of challenge outcome. The multistep and full-dose methods demonstrated a comparable reaction risk for anaphylaxis.
Drug-Associated Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura-Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (TTP-HUS): Frequency, Presenting Features, and Clinical Outcomes.

The Oklahoma TTP-HUS Registry enrolled 360 consecutive patients, 1989–2006, who had a clinical or renal biopsy diagnosis of an initial episode of TTP-HUS and a request for plasma exchange treatment (PEX). 47 (13%) appeared to have a drug-associated etiology determined by the use of a drug previously reported to be associated with TTP or HUS. Calcineurin inhibitors were cyclosporine (3) and tacrolimus (2); chemotherapy agents were mitomycin C (11), gemcitabine (2), gemcitabine/taxotere (1), pentostatin (1), and BCNU (1). 32 patients, including patients in all 5 drugs categories, had ADAMTS13 activity measured; all were ≥ 25%. Patients were predominantly women (81%), similar to patients with severe ADAMTS13 deficiency, and almost all white (94%), distinct from patients with severe ADAMTS13 deficiency (J Thromb Haemost2005;3:1432). The short interval between exposure to quinine, ticlopidine, and clopidogrel and the diagnosis of TTP-HUS was consistent with an acute, immune-mediated mechanism, while the long interval between chemotherapy exposure and diagnosis of TTP-HUS was consistent with a cumulative dose-dependent toxicity. Calcineurin inhibitor-induced TTP-HUS has previously been described as dose-dependent toxicity. Although PEX was requested for all patients, 5 were not treated: 3 died before PEX was begun (quinine, ticlopidine, cyclosporine); 1 responded to plasma infusion (ticlopidine); 1 refused treatment and died (mitomycin C). Response to PEX, defined as achieving a platelet count ≥150,000/mL, occurred in 96% of patients following quinine or clopidogrel compared to 42% of patients following calcineurin inhibitors or chemotherapy. Death within 30 days, attributed to TTP-HUS, occurred with all drugs except clopidogrel; death at 1 year increased only among patients treated with chemotherapy, caused by their metastatic malignancy. Conclusions: Quinine was the most common drug associated with TTP-HUS. Drug-associated TTP-HUS appears to have 2 distinct etiologic mechanisms: acute and potentially immune-mediated reactions (quinine, ticlopidine, clopidogrel) and cumulative, dose-dependent toxicity (calcineurin inhibitors, chemotherapy agents). Although the role of PEX in the recovery of patients with drug-associated TTP-HUS is unclear, PEX may be appropriate initial treatment since some patients appear to respond and since a drug-associated etiology cannot be certain when patients initially present.
A Comparison of Urinary Tract Lesions Evaluated by Computerized Tomography and Ultrasonography

The value of gray-scale ultrasonography in the evaluation of pathologic processes involving the urinary tract is well documented. Recently, computerized tomography has captured the attention of the medical community as a new imaging modality capable of producing graphic demonstrations of normal and pathologic anatomy in transverse planes. Serious questions have been raised however, especially by health planners and consumers, concerning the proper role of computerized tomography in the evaluation of non-cranial lesions. The purchase price of the unit is high as are the costs of maintenance and daily operation. Computerized tomography requires the use of ionizing radiation and there is growing concern about the health hazards of ever increasing exposures to x-radiation. This presentation will attempt to determine if computerized tomography adds useful clinical information not available with ultrasonography and if the price to be paid is justified.
Gifted Students’ Conceptions of Their High School STEM Education:

This qualitative study was conducted to explore gifted students’ conceptions of their high school science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. Participants were seven male an...
Future Directions in Endometriosis Research and Therapeutics.

Background Endometriosis is a disease common among women of reproductive age characterized by pain, anxiety and infertility. Defined as the growth of endometrial tissue in ectopic locations, endometriosis remains an enigmatic disease for which current treatments are less than ideal. Much of these shortcomings to current therapy stem from our incomplete understanding on the pathogenesis of the disease. It is generally accepted that endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent disease and, as such, the majority of treatment approaches aim at reducing estrogen action and/or production. Unfortunately, this approach is not effective in all women with endometriosis and in those women where success is achieved with their use, there is potential for health-comprising side effects. Objective The objective of this review is to summarize current approaches for treatment of endometriosis, discuss their limitations and potential reasons for lack of progress towards better therapeutics for this disease. Results In this review we summarize the current approaches for treatment of endometriosis, discuss their limitations and potential reasons for lack of progress towards better therapeutics for this disease. Conclusion Based upon the current state of knowledge, there is a strong necessity for through assessment at the level of the genome, miRNAome and proteome as well as the importance of integrating clinically-relevant endpoints in future studies which evaluate potential endometriosis therapies in experimental models of endometriosis.
Theoretical investigations of electrical transport properties in CoSb3 skutterudites under hydrostatic loadings

CoSb3-based skutterudites have been a benchmark mid-temperature thermoelectric material under intensive experimental and theoretical studies for decades. Doping and filling, to the first order, alter the crystal lattice constant of CoSb3 in the context of “chemical pressure.” In this work, we employed ab initio density functional theory in conjunction with semiclassical Boltzmann transport theory to investigate the mechanical properties and especially how hydrostatic loadings, i.e., “physical pressure,” impact the electronic band structure, Seebeck coefficient, and power factor of pristine CoSb3. It is found that hydrostatic pressure enlarges the band gap, suppresses the density of states (DOS) near the valence band edge, and fosters the band convergence between the valley bands and the conduction band minimum (CBM). By contrast, hydrostatic tensile reduces the band gap, increases the DOS near the valence band edge, and diminishes the valley bands near the CBM. Therefore, applying hydrostatic pressure provides an alternative avenue for achieving band convergence to improve thermoelectric properties of N-type CoSb3, which is further supported by our carrier concentration studies. These results provide valuable insight into the further improvement of thermoelectric performance of CoSb3-based skutterudites via a synergy of physical and chemical pressures.
Ruptured hepatic aneurysm as first presenting symptom of polyarteritis nodosa

Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is an inflammatory vasculitis that creates regions of stenosis and aneurysm formation. The authors describe a 66-year-old female with hepatic artery rupture as the first presentation of undiagnosed PAN, presenting with abdominal pain followed by hemorrhagic shock. This aneurysm was suture ligated with a successful outcome. A mesenteric arteriogram demonstrated lesions consistent with PAN including aneurysms of the left gastric branches, right and left hepatic arteries, and beaded appearance of the iliac artery. However, she developed massive pulmonary embolism from which she did not recover after discharge. Postmortem examination confirmed left hepatic artery aneurysm rupture and changes consistent with PAN on gross anatomical examination and histology. This report provides a unique overview of the disease process through imaging, gross anatomic specimen and pathology. Life-threatening hepatic artery aneurysm rupture is an uncommon presentation of PAN which may benefit readers in creating a more robust differential diagnosis.