cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Quantitative single breath-hold renal arterial spin labeling imaging at 7T.

Purpose To evaluate the feasibility of quantitative single breath-hold renal arterial spin labeling (ASL) imaging at 7T. Methods A single-shot fast spin echo FAIR (flow-sensitive alternating inversion recovery) method was used to perform two studies. First, a multi-delay perfusion study was performed to estimate the spin labeling temporal bolus width achievable with a local transceiver array coil at 7T. Second, with a conservatively defined bolus width, a quantitative perfusion study was performed using the single subtraction approach. To address issues of B1+ inhomogeneity/efficiency and excessive short-term specific absorption rates, various strategies were used, such as dynamic radiofrequency shimming and optimization. Results A conservative temporal bolus width of 600 ms determined from the multi-delay study was applied for single-subtraction imaging to measure the renal blood flow in the cortex and medulla: 303 ± 31.8 and 91.3 ± 15.2 (mL/100 g/min), respectively. The estimated spatial and temporal signal-to-noise ratios of renal perfusion measurements were 3.8 ± 0.7 and 2.4 ± 0.6 for the cortex, and 2.2 ± 0.6 and 1.4 ± 0.2 for the medulla. Conclusion With proper management of field strength specific challenges, quantitative renal ASL imaging can be achieved at 7T within a single breath-hold. Magn Reson Med, 2017. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.
New insights into rare earth element (REE) particulate generated by cigarette lighters: an electron microscopy and materials science investigation of a poorly understood indoor air pollutant and constraints for urban geochemistry

Cigarette smoking is a well-recognized cause of lung cancer and other diseases and is a major contributor to indoor air pollution in numerous settings worldwide. Most cigarette lighters use rare earth element (REE) mischmetal in their flints in order to aid ignition, and these lighters thus have pyrophoric properties. REE particulate emitted from these lighters presents a complexity in the role of health of smokers that has yet to be explored fully. Furthermore, these particles are likely present in numerous urban settings and contribute to the complexities of urban geochemistry. Details of the material properties of rare earth element (REE) particulate derived from smoking lighters are determined first the first time. Particulate was investigated using back-scatter detection scanning electron microscopy techniques and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Several particle types were observed and demonstrate a diverse range of size and textures, many of which are previously not documented and are much smaller than previous basic scanning electron microscopy investigations. These include irregularly shaped fragments of mischmetal, micrometer-scale spherules, aggregates of nanospherules, and platy sponge-like nanoparticles. All of these particles have significant REE content, and most are of a particle size that can be deposited deep in the lung. The available literature regarding toxicity of REEs and the material science data presented here argues very strongly for cause for concern.
Robust front-end processing for Speech Recognition in noisy conditions

In this paper, we investigate the applicability and effectiveness of advanced feature compensation techniques in devising a robust front-end for Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR). First, the Vector Taylor Series (VTS) equations are altered by bringing in the auditory masking factor. The resultant VTS approximation is used to compensate the parameters of a clean speech model and a Minimum Mean Square Error (MMSE) estimate is used to estimate the clean speech features from noisy features. Second, we apply root-compression instead of conventional log-compression to the mel-filter banks energy. Third, we apply a frame selection method to eliminate the noise dominated frames to improve the performance in high noise scenarios. The proposed algorithms are validated on noise corrupted Librispeech and TIMIT speech recognition databases and are shown to provide significant gain in performance.
Working Conditions in the United States: Results of the 2015 American Working Conditions Survey

This report presents detailed findings about the prevalence and distribution of working conditions across the American workforce by age, gender, and education from the 2015 American Working Conditions Survey (AWCS). The AWCS was fielded on the RAND American Life Panel, a nationally representative (when weighted) sample of U.S. individuals.
Fire-mediated patterns of habitat use by male moose (Alces alces) in Alaska

Fire severity is an important control over regeneration of deciduous species and can influence the overall quality of habitat for herbivores, such as moose (Alces alces (Linnaeus, 1758)), but the r...
Asymptotic Approaches to Discovering Cancer Genomic Signatures

Abstract We discuss a new nonparametric approach which employs chi-squared distance statistic to identify differentially expressed genes using high-throughput sequencing data. For illustration, we analyze RNA-seq data from matched cancer-control liver tissues in three human subjects. Despite a small number of subjects our method appears to perform very well on this dataset, identifying in particular some well-known molecular pathways for the liver cancer.
The Social Construction of Reading Lessons: Resistance and Social Reproduction.

Classroom observations and interviews with students, their teacher, principal, and former teachers are used to understand how reading lessons and classroom situations more generally were socially c...
Microvillous lymphomas are B-cell neoplasms that frequently express CD56

Microvillous lymphomas (MVLs) are rare, poorly defined, large transformed cell lymphomas characterized by a cohesive sinus growth pattern and ultrastructural cytoplasmic processes. Most MVLs express B-cell antigens and have been compared ultrastructurally to transformed follicular center cells and follicular dendritic cells. For additional definition of the immunophenotype of these unusual B-cell lymphomas, we evaluated eight cases of MVL for B-cell-associated antigens (CD21, CD35, CDw75, DBA.44, bcl-2) using paraffin immunoperoxidase. CD56, the neural cell adhesion molecule, was tested because of the unusual, cohesive, sinus pattern of tumor cell growth seen in MVL. Molecular analysis for immunoglobulin heavy chain and bcl-2 gene rearrangements was performed to confirm B-cell clonality and to evaluate cases for possible follicular origin. All of the cases were marked as B cells (CD20 positive), and the clonal nature confirmed by immunoperoxidase in five cases (63%) of eight and polymerase chain reaction for immunoglobulin heavy chain in seven cases (88%) of eight. CDw75 staining was present in six cases and CD74 in seven. DBA.44 and CD21 and CD35 were negative in all of the cases, and four cases (50%) of eight expressed CD56. bcl-2 protein expression was seen in seven of eight cases; bcl-2 gene rearrangement was present in one case (33%) of three studied. In conclusion, MVLs are B-cell lymphomas demonstrating clonal immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangement. The neoplastic cells express CDw75 and bcl-2 protein. The presence of bcl-2 rearrangements in a limited number of cases implies that at least some MVLs have a follicular origin. Fifty percent of MVLs express CD56, suggesting a role for adhesion molecules in the distribution of this lymphoma.
Breaking the Zuckerberg Myth: Successful Entrepreneurs Have 10 Years of Prior Employment

With the advancement of Big Data technologies, and the creation of new, open source Machine Learning and Data Science tools, we now have new methods and approaches to obtain quantitative entrepreneurship research results. This approach benefits from a seemingly inexhaustible source of information, i.e. data. In this paper, we apply data science techniques from UC Berkeley's Data-X framework to research socio-economic characteristics and traits, related to successful entrepreneurs, and their link to early stage venture success. Such techniques include the use of web scraping scripts, data cleaning, the creation of data pipelines, and visualization using open source Python libraries (e.g. Scikit-learn, Pandas) as well as other tools commonly used in the Machine Learning development stack. This paper offers two types of results of the performed quantitative study, that is in the intersection between Machine Learning and Entrepreneurship Research (Fig 1.). First that the Machine Learning development stack offers powerful tools to produce entrepreneurship research results, and this might be a new paradigm in this field of research. Second, we can now quantitatively verify from public data sources that, contrary to popular belief, a successful entrepreneur is not a young, college drop-out that had a genius idea in their dorm room. Instead, the most predictive trait of entrepreneurial success is the work experience of the founder, i.e., the number of years the founder has been employed before starting their company. Optimally they will have been employed for 10 to 12 years.
Tools of the trade: A commentary

Constructing and validating measures of human settings, like the HOME Inventory, is complicated because settings contain so many social and physical affordances. To evaluate the usefulness ...
Kratom-Induced Cholestatic Liver Injury and Its Conservative Management:

Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a common cause of hepatotoxicity associated with prescription-based and over-the-counter exposure to medications and herbal supplements. Use of unapproved and inadequately tested herbal supplements can cause DILI. Therefore, thorough history-taking on exposure to herbal supplements must be an integral part of clinical evaluation of DILI. Kratom is an herbal supplement or remedy that has been known for its analgesic effects and has also been used for self-treatment of opiate withdrawals. A 52-year-old man was seen for evaluation of yellow discoloration of the eyes and skin. He reported taking kratom for right shoulder strain for at least a couple of months. On workup, his total bilirubin was noted to be 23.2 mg/dL, which peaked at 28.9 mg/dL. He was noted to have mild elevation of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase. Extensive laboratory tests were ordered and known causes of chronic liver disease ruled out. Magnetic resonance imaging of the abdomen was unremarkable without stigmata of portal hypertension or signs of chronic liver disease. He demonstrated no evidence of coagulopathy or hepatic encephalopathy during his illness. He underwent liver biopsy, which demonstrated histologic evidence of acute cholestatic hepatitis highly suspicious of DILI. He was advised to avoid kratom or other herbal supplements in future and prescribed ursodeoxycholic acid with significant improvement in his liver chemistries. Kratom is associated with significant liver enzymes derangements leading to DILI. Kratom is not approved for use in the United States and should be avoided.
Use of rhodizonic acid for rapid detection of root border cell trapping of lead and reversal of trapping with DNase.

Premise of the study Lead (Pb) is a contaminant whose removal from soil remains a challenge. In a previous study, border cells released from root tips were found to trap Pb, alter its chemistry, and prevent root uptake. Rhodizonic acid (RA) is a forensic tool used to reveal gunshot residue, and also to detect Pb within plant tissues. Here we report preliminary observations to assess the potential application of RA in exploring the dynamics of Pb accumulation at the root tip surface. Methods and results Corn root tips were immersed in Pb solution, stained with RA, and observed microscopically. Pb trapping by border cells was evident within minutes. The role of extracellular DNA was revealed when addition of nucleases resulted in dispersal of RA-stained Pb particles. Conclusions RA is an efficient tool to monitor Pb-root interactions. Trapping by border cells may control Pb levels and chemistry at the root tip surface. Understanding how plants influence Pb distribution in soil may facilitate its remediation.
Characterization of the human central nucleus of the inferior colliculus.

Abstract The inferior colliculus (IC) is a major relay station for both ascending and descending auditory pathways. The IC is divided into three major regions, the external cortex (ECIC), the dorsal cortex (DCIC) and the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus (CNIC). While the ECIC and DCIC receive many non-auditory inputs, the CNIC receives predominantly auditory input ascending within the lateral lemniscus and descending input from the cerebral cortex. Recent work in animal models emphasizes the complexity of the CNIC and provides evidence for multiple ascending informational streams reaching this nucleus. Despite an abundance of research on the CNIC in laboratory animals, the microscopic anatomy and neurochemistry of the human CNIC is poorly understood. Herein, we utilize a combination of gross morphology, myelin staining, Nissl staining, histochemistry, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence to characterize the human CNIC. Our results indicate that the human CNIC occupies a volume of approximately 22.4 mm3 and includes over 420,000 neurons. The human CNIC is dominated by round/oval neurons arranged with their long axis parallel to fibrodendritic lamina. Additionally, the vast majority of CNIC neurons are associated with a perineuronal net, there is an abundance of tyrosine hydroxylase immunoreactive axons and puncta and neurons immunoreactive for glutamic acid decarboxylase. These results are largely consistent with observations in laboratory animals.
Birth Seasonality of Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder? A Review of Inpatient Records.

Abstract Background Numerous studies on seasonality of birth for mood disorders and schizophrenia have been published but findings are inconsistent 1. We aim to test the hypothesis of lack of seasonal birth differences in hospitalized Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia patients. Methods 15969 inpatient records in UTHealth Harris County Psychiatric Center between 2012-2014 were enrolled (HSC-MS-14-0274). Patients birth months that were diagnosed as Schizophrenia (n=4178) and Bipolar Disorder (n=5303) according to the DSM IV Criteria were tabulated including admitting diagnosis. Texas Birth statistics between 1903-1997 were obtained as control group (n= 17096471). Results There was no significant difference for winter births between schizophrenia patients and control group (P=0.738) and there was no significant difference for winter births between bipolar patients and control group either (P= 0.862). Mann Kendall Trend Analysis showed no significant trends of birth months for schizophrenia, bipolar and control groups. Limitations The study limitations include being a retrospective study, inability to control for environmental factors, and recruiting from a single location. Conclusions Our large sample showed no association between birth season or months with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Severe schizophrenia that requires admission may not be related with birth seasonality.
The Other Army: United States Forces in Japan Employees in Okinawa

To accomplish the mission of the United States Forces in Japan, civilian employees, called USFJ employees, are employed by the Japanese government to work on these U.S. military bases. USFJ employees “are employees who are hired by the Government of Japan for the purpose of accomplishing the mission of the United States Forces in Japan and work on the USFJ facilities”. There are around 26,000 USFJ employees working throughout Japan to “support the activities of the USFJ”. These employees work in a wide range of positions such as clerks, technicians, security guards, waiters/waitresses, cooks, and sales clerks. A large number of these USFJ employees are Nisei who landed in these coveted jobs in large part due to their English proficiency.
On the Yuan: The Choice between Adjustment under a Fixed Exchange Rate and Adjustment under a Flexible Rate

Fixed and flexible exchange rates each have advantages, and a country has the right to choose the regime suited to its circumstances. Nevertheless, several arguments support the view that the de facto dollar peg may now have outlived its usefulness for China. (i) Although foreign exchange reserves are a useful shield against currency crises, by now China’s current level is fully adequate, and US treasury securities do not pay a high return. (ii) It may become increasingly difficult to sterilize the inflow over time. (iii) Although external balance could be achieved by expenditure reduction, e.g. by raising interest rates, the existence of two policy goals (external balance and internal balance) in general requires the use of two independent policy instruments (e.g. the real exchange rate and the interest rate). (iv) A large economy like China can achieve adjustment in the real exchange rate via flexibility in the nominal exchange rate more easily than via price flexibility. (v) The experience of other emerging markets points toward exiting from a peg when times are good and the currency is strong, rather than waiting until times are bad and the currency is under attack. (vi) From a longer-run perspective, prices of goods and services in China are low—not just low relative to the US (0.23), but also low by the standards of a Balassa–Samuelson relationship estimated across countries (which predicts 0.36). In this specific sense, the yuan was undervalued by � 35 percent in 2000, and is by at least as much as that today. The study finds that, typically across countries, such gaps are corrected halfway, on average, over the subsequent decade. These six arguments for increased exchange rate flexibility need not imply a free float. China is a good counter-example to the popular ‘‘corners hypothesis’’ prohibition on intermediate exchange rate regimes. However, the specific changes announced by the Chinese authorities in July 2005 have not yet resulted in a de facto abandonment of the
Transcatheter arterial embolisation of a haemorrhagic renal cyst.

An 86-year-old woman with a history of orthotopic liver transplantation from non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, stage 4 chronic kidney disease secondary to calcineurin inhibitor toxicity and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation on apixaban presented to the emergency department with sudden right-sided
Elastic impact of a spherical particle with a long, stationary, fixed Timoshenko beam

Abstract This study presents an analysis of the transient response of a beam subjected to transverse impact by a spherical particle. The beam is modeled as a long Timoshenko beam with clamped boundaries. A numerically stable solution to the dispersion relation is developed, which allows the deflection to include the effects of high-frequency waves. Time history of contact force, transverse deflection, velocity and acceleration provide insight into the interactions between the two objects after impact. Comparison with the Euler-Bernoulli beam model demonstrates the advantage of the Timoshenko beam in capturing the dispersive features of wave propagation. The group and phase velocities of bending waves due to impact are presented and show a good correlation with the time-domain analysis. The dependence of the coefficient of restitution on the mass ratio of the particle and the beam is discussed. Results show that the mass ratio divides the contact behavior of the particle and beam to a single-contact regime and multiple-contact regime and influences the coefficient of restitution (COR) value in different ways.
How is “Knowledge” Constructed During Science Activities? Detaching Instructional Effects of “Playing” and “Telling” to Optimize Integration of Scientific Investigations

Despite recommendations from science educational standards which claim that science teaching should engage students in scientific investigations the same way scientists practice their profession to discover the unknown, thereby allowing students to actively construct their own knowledge, a growing body of empirical evidence suggests that this may not be the most effective approach. The present research tests the separate effects of two instructional elements that often co-occur when characterizing scientific investigations in science activities: the role of interacting with investigation materials and the role of telling in teacher guidance. Kindergarten and first-grade students participated in one of four versions of a lesson on light in their classrooms: (1) students were either asked to physically interact with scientific investigations themselves or to watch the instructor perform them and (2) students were either directly told the concepts the investigations were designed to teach or they only heard neutral guidance. Learning was assessed through change in scores from the pretest to posttest. Results show that answers in teacher guidance resulted in more learning than neutral guidance. There was no effect from manipulating materials. Implications of these results for future research and real-world classroom practice are discussed.
Cystic dystrophy of the duodenal wall: case report and literature review

Abstract Cystic dystrophy of the duodenal wall (CDDW) is an uncommon pathological condition that may be a cause of symptomatic duodenal mass in some patients. CDDW and closely related conditions that involve the duodenal wall and the pancreatoduodenal groove have gone by a variety names in the literature. Though their pathophysiology is not fully understood, they are thought to be due to the presence of heterotopic pancreatic tissue that undergoes a degenerative process. A multimodal imaging approach paired with biopsy is often employed to rule out malignancy in these patients. This case report provides an account of the radiological and pathological findings that helped lead to the diagnosis of CDDW. A review of relevant literature and a discussion of the presented case are provided.
A Health Detection Model Based on Facial Data

The purpose of this study is to develop a model which employs the facial expressions and features of people to predict their health. Our objective is to find the best Machine learning approaches to develop a health model which utilizes the facial features. This report also discusses the available datasets of facial expressions. Here, we utilize such machine learning techniques as regression, neural network, and clustering to predict symptoms of sickness. To construct the model, we train our model with the healthy people images acquired from JAFFE database. After that, we ran the test dataset that includes an equal amount of sick and healthy people images. Utilizing the CCN (convolutional neural network) approach, our model has been able to predict the health of a person based on the facial features with an accuracy of 70%. This model could be utilized as the first level of diagnosis and can be implemented to distinguish between a healthy and sick person at the entrance of the public facilities. Such information could be crucial in the prevention and control of infectious diseases.
Use of Khorana score to predict VTE in patients undergoing chemotherapy for uterine cancer.

5589Background: Gynecologic cancers are associated with a high risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). The Khorana score is a clinically-validated tool to assess risk of VTE in cancer patients (using...
Towards Designing Enactment-Scaffolded Narrative Authoring Tools for Elementary-School Children

Many story authoring tools have been designed to support children’s creativity through story enactment. However, at school, children are encouraged to engage in formal modes of expression, such as writing. This paper aims to explore how we may design tools that support children in writing using body-based enactment as a scaffold. In our study, 17 children used an interactive story authoring system to enact and record stories as videos and then write the stories while viewing them. We compared the story enactment videos and the corresponding written story essays in terms of the narrative structure, content, and coherence. Our results show a significant difference in story structure in the two formats and a marginally significant difference in the coherence ratings. We present our findings in terms of learned lessons for designing children’s enactment-based authoring tools to encourage more substantial written outcomes.
Work in Progress: Heart Disease Detection Methodology using E-Stethoscope

Detecting heart diseases has been a research interest for centuries. Many of these approaches are based on heartbeat analysis using a stethoscope and some of these are digitally analyzed. In an ordinary system, doctors use an acoustic stethoscope to detect any aberration in the heartbeat and predict atypical conditions of the human heart. One major problem is that the frequency range and intensity of the heart sounds are flat as well as the sound may contain noise. Hence, even a cardiac specialist doctor may encounter difficulties to analyze the heart sound perfectly. This paper describes a new methodology to detect heart diseases by examining heart sounds in real-time. We consider the guts sound as our input data. Our methodology uses a deep learning approach to determine whether a patient has any disease or is healthy. To achieve that, we integrated an electronic stethoscope and a software solution known as a heartbeat audio classifier. Our proposed system solution should be able to differentiate normal heartbeats and heart murmurs with a prediction of probable heart problem type in real-time. We believe our approach assists in reducing the cardiac arrest rate.
Habitat use by Long-tailed Weasels in a Fragmented Agricultural Landscape

Long-tailed weasels (Mustela frenata) have an extensive North American geographic range and tolerate a wide range of life zones, excluding some desert ecosystems. However, little is known of their habitat use in landscapes fragmented by agriculture, despite the fact that long-tailed weasel populations may be declining in these landscapes. During late winter-spring and late summer-autumn 1998–2000, we monitored 11 long-tailed weasels (seven males, four females) via radio telemetry to examine patterns of habitat use in an Indiana landscape fragmented by agriculture. Long-tailed weasels exhibited scale-dependent patterns of habitat selection (i.e., habitat selection within a landscape and selection of habitats within home ranges). Weasels selected forest patches, fencerows, and drainage ditches, whereas agricultural fields were avoided. Forest patches and fencerows provided suitable den sites and refuge cover from other predators and exhibited an abundant and diverse prey community. Drainage ditches provided movement corridors and access to free-standing, drinking water. The resource selection patterns and limited dispersal ability of long-tailed weasels compared to other carnivores are consistent with the notion that long-tailed weasels appear sensitive to agriculturally induced fragmentation of habitat.
CpG Oligonucleotides Are Potent Adjuvants for the Activation of Autoreactive Encephalitogenic T Cells In Vivo

The mechanism of action of microbial adjuvants in promoting the differentiation of autoimmune effector cells remains to be elucidated. We demonstrate that CpG-containing oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN) can completely substitute for heat-killed mycobacteria in the priming of encephalitogenic myelin-reactive T cells in vivo. The adjuvanticity of the CpG ODN was secondary to their direct ability to induce IL-12 or to act synergistically with endogenous IL-12 to promote Th1 differentiation and encephalitogenicity. T cells primed in the absence of CpG with Ag and IFA alone appeared to be in a transitional state and had not undergone differentiation along a conventional Th pathway. Unlike Th2 cells, they expressed low levels of the IL-12Rβ2 subunit and retained the ability to differentiate into encephalitogenic effectors when reactivated in vitro under Th1-polarizing conditions. These results support the use of CpG ODN as adjuvants but also suggest that they could potentially trigger autoimmune disease in a susceptible individual.
Legionella pneumophila zinc metalloprotease is structurally and functionally homologous to Pseudomonas aeruginosa elastase.

The sequence of the structural gene encoding the Legionella pneumophila extracellular zinc metalloprotease has been determined and was found to possess a single large open reading frame (ORF) of 1,629 nucleotides (nt). This ORF was preceded by consensus promoter (TTAACT . . . 17 nt . . . TATAAC) and ribosome-binding (TAAGGAG) sequences. The deduced polypeptide contained a putative signal sequence and a total of 543 amino acid residues with a computed molecular size of 60,775 daltons, substantially larger than the observed 38,000 daltons of the native and recombinant proteins. A homology search revealed extensive amino acid identity with Pseudomonas aeruginosa elastase, a protein that is also encoded by an ORF substantially larger than that predicted for the mature size of the protein. The structural identity between the L. pneumophila protease and P. aeruginosa elastase was most pronounced in the regions forming the enzymatic active site of elastase. Amino acid residues constituting the active-site cleft of elastase were greater than 75% conserved. Elastase residues that interact with and mediate proteolysis of substrate peptides were 100% conserved. Competitive inhibitors of elastase and the structurally and functionally related thermolysin (phosphoramidon and a phosphoramidate analog, Z-GlyP(O)Leu-Ala), were shown to be equally potent at inhibiting the proteolytic activity of the L. pneumophila protease. These inhibitor studies along with the amino acid sequence similarities provide strong evidence that the L. pneumophila protease and P. aeruginosa elastase share a similar molecular mechanism of proteolysis.
Transplant Center Management and Leadership

Introduction An entrepreneur is an individual who translates innovation into economic goods using financial and business acumen. Such an initiative may require forming a new organization, or alternatively, the revitalization of an existing organization in response to an opportunity. Although the term has traditionally referred to business initiatives, it has taken on broader applications; social, political, and more recently, knowledge entrepreneurships have emerged. The study of entrepreneurship reaches back to Richard Cantillon and Adam Smith in the late 17th and 18th centuries, but a resurgence of interest in the dynamics of business and economics in the past few decades has refocused our attention on the significance of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is a process by which a new idea or invention is converted into a successful, and typically profitable, innovation. Innovations, in this context, are more likely to represent incremental improvements, rather than quantum discoveries. Entrepreneurs may bear risk, putting their financial security or careers on the line in the name of an idea, demonstrating initiative in the face of uncertainty. The role for innovation and entrepreneurship in transplantation stems from the fact that no other viable alternatives to end-stage organ failure, particularly kidney failure, existed. The first successful kidney transplant was performed at a time when dialysis was so primitive as to be considered ineffective. Perhaps because surgical solutions to the technical challenges of transplantation preceded effective immunosuppression by several decades, surgeons are considered to be the original innovators in transplantation, while immunologists and scientists were concomitantly defining the very essence of transplantation immunology. It took the entrepreneurial spirit and perseverance of surgical pioneers to incrementally convince primarily academic institutions (medical schools and partnering hospitals) to become laboratories for these unprecedented experiments. Surgeons took personal risk by putting their careers on the line in the name of an idea, and institutions aligned themselves with the surgeons by putting both reputational and financial security at risk. As it became clearer that transplantation was a viable therapeutic option for end-stage organ failure, more institutions joined the ranks of those with existing transplant programs, demonstrating a commitment to the transplant initiative in the face
Abortive infection by bacteriophage BF23 due to the colicin Ib factor. II. Involvement of pre-early proteins.

Abstract The mechanism by which the growth of phage BF23 is arrested in cells carrying colicinogenic factor Ib involves certain phage-specific pre-early proteins. BF23 induces the extensive formation of proteins lc and ld, but very little formation of protein le, whereas BF23h− (a mutant that is not arrested in cells carrying colicinogenic factor Ib) induces very small amounts of proteins lc and ld, but extensive amounts of protein le. Proteins lc and ld may be oligomers of protein le, and it is the presence of these putative oligomers that is necessary for the arrest of phage growth.
Technical development of PubMed Interact: an improved interface for MEDLINE/PubMed searches

The project aims to create an alternative search interface for MEDLINE/PubMed that may provide assistance to the novice user and added convenience to the advanced user. An earlier version of the project was the 'Slider Interface for MEDLINE/PubMed searches' (SLIM) which provided JavaScript slider bars to control search parameters. In this new version, recent developments in Web-based technologies were implemented. These changes may prove to be even more valuable in enhancing user interactivity through client-side manipulation and management of results. PubMed Interact is a Web-based MEDLINE/PubMed search application built with HTML, JavaScript and PHP. It is implemented on a Windows Server 2003 with Apache 2.0.52, PHP 4.4.1 and MySQL 4.1.18. PHP scripts provide the backend engine that connects with E-Utilities and parses XML files. JavaScript manages client-side functionalities and converts Web pages into interactive platforms using dynamic HTML (DHTML), Document Object Model (DOM) tree manipulation and Ajax methods. With PubMed Interact, users can limit searches with JavaScript slider bars, preview result counts, delete citations from the list, display and add related articles and create relevance lists. Many interactive features occur at client-side, which allow instant feedback without reloading or refreshing the page resulting in a more efficient user experience. PubMed Interact is a highly interactive Web-based search application for MEDLINE/PubMed that explores recent trends in Web technologies like DOM tree manipulation and Ajax. It may become a valuable technical development for online medical search applications.
Electrochemical oxidation of adsorbed terminal alkenes as a function of chain length at Pt (111) electrodes : studies by cyclic voltammetry, EELS, and Auger spectroscopy

Abstract Studies are reported of the surface packing density, vibrational spectroscopy and electrochemical oxidation of a series of straight-chain terminal alkenes adsorbed from the vapor at a Pt (111) electrode surface. Compounds studied were: ethene (ETE), propene (PPE), 1-butene (BTE), 1-pentene (PTE), 1-hexene (HXE), 1-octene (OCE) and 1-decene (DCE). Vibrational spectra of the adsorbed layers were obtained by use of electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS). Molecular packing densities (nmol/cm2) in the adsorbed layer were measured by use of Auger spectroscopy. Electrochemical oxidation of each adsorbed layer in aqueous inert electrolyte (KF+ HF) was investigated by means of linear potential scan voltammetry. Attachment to the surface is through the CC bond. Based upon molecular packing densities, the aliphatic chains are pendant; regardless of its chain length, each chemisorbed alkene molecule occupies an area similar to that of chemisorbed PPE. The packing densities of ETE and PPE indicate an average orientation in which the CC moiety is parallel to the Pt (111) surface. EELS spectra indicate that the CC double bond is preserved in the adsorbed state of each 1-alkene studied. Measurement of the average number of electrons, nox, required to desorb an adsorbed 1-alkene molecule electro-oxidatively reveals that the catalytic electrochemical oxidation process involves primarily the CC double bond and one adjacent saturated carbon atom.
Wedged and free hepatic venous pressure measured with a balloon catheter

The accuracy and reliability of a balloon catheter for measuring wedged hepatic venous pressure (WHVP) were evaluated in 82 simultaneous determinations using the balloon catheter technique and the direct measurement of portal venous pressure. These measurements showed a close positive correlation (r = 0.97) over a wide range of pressures in 12 normal and 4 cirrhotic dogs. Studies were then performed in 13 cirrhotic patients in whom the balloon catheter was introduced using the Seldinger technique. Free hepatic venous pressure (FHVP) was measured with the balloon undistended. By distending the balloon to occlude the hepatic vein, the WHVP was recorded. Comparison of FHVP and WHVP with the conventional and balloon techniques revealed a close positive correlation (r = 0.89 and 0.93, respectively). The correlation was virtually perfect for the hepatic venous pressure gradient (WHVP-FHVP, r = 0.98). The balloon technique offers many advantages over the conventional approach, including the ease of achieving and demonstrating the wedged position from the femoral approach, the ability to measure the free and wedged pressure repeatedly without manipulating the catheter, and the measurement of pressure in a larger, more representative segment of the liver.
Hybrid methods: Combining density functional and wavefunction theory

Hybrid methods of density-functional and wavefunction theory have proven to be powerful tools in electronic structure theory. The Kohn-Sham scheme is already a hybrid scheme, since part of the kinetic energy of the system is calculated from the Kohn-Sham wavefunction. In the empirical hybrid methods a fraction of exact exchange, also calculated from the Kohn-Sham wavefunction, is mixed with density functional approximations to exchange and correlation. These methods give a significant improvement in accuracy over local- and gradient-corrected approximations to the exchange-correlation energy. We show how insight into the nature of exchange and correlation in molecules and atoms can be used to construct nonempirical hybrid schemes. We review density-functional perturbation theory and incorporate second-order density-functional perturbation theory into the nonempirical hybrid scheme. The relation between the nonempirical- and the empirical hybrid methods is analyzed.
Chromatin remodeling enzymes: taming the machines. Third in review series on chromatin dynamics.

Members of the ATP-dependent family of chromatin remodeling enzymes play key roles in the regulation of transcription, development, DNA repair and cell cycle. Each of these enzymes are multi-subunit assemblies that hydrolyze thousands of molecules of ATP in order to change nucleosome positions, disrupt DNA–histone interactions and perhaps destabilize chromatin folding. Here I review recent studies that suggest these potent machines can be ‘tamed’ by one of several mechanisms: targeting their activity to localized regions, blocking their chromatin binding activity or inhibiting their remodeling activity.
Improved Bayesian image reconstruction in positron emission tomography

We extend the Bayesian model (Johnson, Chen, et al., 1990, 1991), previously developed for image reconstruction and restoration, by the introduction of diagonal line sites and the use of symmetrical neighborhood configurations. A computer simulation study was performed to examine the effect of the hyperparameters, the diagonal line sites, and the size of the neighbourhood configuration on the performance of the Bayesian method. We show that for optimal performance, distinct hyperparameters should be used for the intensity sites and line sites. The results also suggested the use of a larger configuration. By comparing the near-optimal restored images, we also demonstrate that the use of diagonal line sites, along with the symmetrical configurations thus made possible, can effectively remove the blocky edge artifacts and produce images of better quality. For image reconstruction applications, in addition to the use of diagonal line sites and symmetrical neighborhood configurations, we suggested using the area-weighted projection/backprojection technique to improve the accuracy of the system response function. Quality of reconstructed images were shown to be improved for both computer simulated and real patient PET data.
Response Mechanism of Ion-Selective Electrodes Based on a Guanidine Ionophore: An Apparently ‘Two-Thirds Nernstian’ Response Slope

While ion-selective electrodes (ISEs) based on anion ionophores with guanidine groups were reported in the past, their response mechanism was poorly understood. In this study, an ionophore with one guanidine group was prepared as a model compound, and the chloride and sulfate responses of ISE membranes containing this ionophore were investigated. The electrodes exhibit Nernstian responses resulting from a neutral or charged ionophore mode when added cationic or anionic sites are used, respectively. Based on this observation, it might be expected that membranes without added ionic sites exhibit Nernstian responses according to a charged carrier mechanism. However, experimental results show an apparently ‘two–thirds Nernstian’ equilibrium response, which can be explained on the basis of the phase boundary model.
Examination of DNA methyltransferase expression in cloned embryos reveals an essential role for Dnmt1 in bovine development

In studies of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), the ability of factors within the oocyte to epigenetically reprogram transferred nuclei is essential for embryonic development of the clone to proceed. However, irregular patterns of X-chromosome inactivation, abnormal expression of imprinted genes, and genomic DNA hypermethylation are frequently observed in reconstructed embryos, suggesting abnormalities in this process. To better understand the epigenetic events underlying SCNT reprogramming, we sought to determine if the abnormal DNA methylation levels observed in cloned embryos result from a failure of the oocyte to properly reprogram transcription versus differential biochemical regulation of the DNA methyltransferase family of enzymes (DNMTs) between embryonic and somatic nuclei. To address this question, we conducted real-time quantitation of Dnmt transcripts in bovine preimplantation embryos generated though in vitro fertilization (IVF), parthenogentic activation, and SCNT. By the 8-cell stage, transcripts encoding Dnmt1 become significantly down-regulated in cloned embryos, likely in response to the state of genomic hypermethylation, while the de novo methyltransferases maintain an expression pattern indistinguishable from their IVF and parthenote counterparts. Depletion of embryonic/maternal Dnmt1 transcripts within IVF embryos using short-interfering RNAs, while able to lower genomic DNA methylation levels, resulted in developmental arrest at the 8/16-cell stage. In contrast, SCNT embryos derived from a stable, Dnmt1-depleted donor cell line develop to blastocyst stage, but failed to carry to term. Our results indicate an essential role for Dnmt1 during bovine preimplantation development, and suggest proper transcriptional reprogramming of this gene family in SCNT embryos. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 78:306–317, 2011. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Highly dispersed Pt nanoparticle catalyst prepared by atomic layer deposition

Abstract Nanoparticulate platinum has been well dispersed onto large quantities of micron-sized mesoporous silica gel using atomic layer deposition in a fluidized bed reactor (i.e. ALD-FBR). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) cross-sectional investigations showed that the Pt nanoparticles were homogeneously distributed throughout primary 30–75 μm silica gel particles, including the inner surfaces comprising 5–7 nm pores. The Pt catalyst loading level was tightly controlled by the number of coating cycles. An extremely low Pt loading with 3.1 × 10 −6 mg Pt/cm 2 (0.10 atom/nm 2 ), 4.8 × 10 −6 mg Pt/cm 2 (0.15 atom/nm 2 ) and 2.9 × 10 −5 mg Pt/cm 2 (0.91 atom/nm 2 ) was prepared with 3, 5 and 10 coating cycles, respectively. The average Pt particle size is approximately 1.2 nm for 3 cycles. For 5 and 10 coating cycles, the Pt particle size is measured to be 1.9 nm and 2.3 nm, respectively. The sample with a 3.1 × 10 −6 mg Pt/cm 2 loading exhibits the highest metal dispersion of 90%. Thermal stability studies indicated an initial sintering of the Pt particles during the first 4 h of heat treatment at 450 °C in an air environment. After that, there was no noticeable change of the particle size during the following heat treatment process. Carbon monoxide oxidation demonstrated nearly 100% conversion of CO to CO 2 over 20 mg of 4.8 × 10 −6 mg Pt/cm 2 loaded silica gel particles at 180 °C for 100 sccm flow rate of 1% CO in argon.
400-Cycle Inverters for Military Aircraft

Certain equipment on modern military aircraft requires a-c power with a high standard of quality. Good wave shape, very small voltage variations, fairly close frequency range, freedom from radio-noise interference, and reliability over a wide range of operating conditions are required of the power supply. A review of the authors' experiences in design and development of such power supplies is offered with some suggestions for future explorations.
Control of intergranular fatigue cracking by slip homogeneity in copper II: Effect of loading mode

Abstract Recent studies of long-life fatigue in polycrystalline copper have shown fractures to initiate primarily at grain boundaries. This is considered surprising in the light of early work where crack nucleation in persistent slip bands seemed to be the rule. To investigate the causes of this behavior, studies habe been carried out on polycrystalline copper with emphasis on the following factors: grain size (Part I), method of starting the test, frequency and mode of test control (Part II). The results show that the cyclic plasticity is the controlling factor in grain boundary initiation and propagation of fatigue cracks. It was found that transgranular cracking can be produced by factors which promote strain localization, and reducing the grain size of the specimens in constant-amplitude tests is one of them. In small-grain-sized metals, most of the applied plastic strain is concentrated in a few persistent slip bands, some of which develop into cracks with continued cycling. Use of coarse-grained structures causes strain homogenization and therefore intergranular cracking. For coarse-grained copper, a step is gradually built up at a sensitive grain boundary as a result of the “homogeneous” cyclic slip, at which point the cracking occurs in the same manner as proposed by Kim and Laird for high strain fatigue.