cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The challenge of protecting endangered species habitat along the Southern California coast

Abstract The southern California coast is rich in species that are habitat‐dependent. Three endangered birds and one plant species depend on coastal wetlands that cover less than 25% of their historic area and are far from pristine. Despite laws that protect wetlands and endangered species, regulatory agencies still permit habitat alterations if mitigation plans promise compensation. Lost habitat is usually replaced by restoring disturbed wetlands, with a net loss of wetland acreage and often a decline in habitat quality. Although the emerging policy of no net loss seeks to maintain both habitat area and functioning, even mitigation projects with the highest standards do not fulfill such goals. One five‐year‐old salt marsh adjacent to San Diego Bay was constructed as habitat for an endangered bird, but it lacks that species and is deficient in food chain support, plant productivity, and nutrient supply functions. It should be possible to accelerate development of these ecosystem processes, using scientifi...
Conformational and rheological changes in catfish myosin during alkali-induced unfolding and refolding

Abstract Changes in the conformation of catfish ( Ictalurus punctatus ) myosin due to (i) cations (ii) alkaline pH and (iii) salt addition were determined using circular dichroism, tryptophan fluorescence, differential scanning calorimetry and hydrophobicity studies. The relation between conformation and storage modulus ( G ′) of alkali treated myosin was studied. Two types of bases, NaOH and KOH were used for unfolding myosin under three alkaline conditions, pH 11.0, 11.5 and 12.0. Myosin, unfolded under alkali conditions was immediately refolded by adjusting pH back to 7.3. Subjecting myosin to alkaline conditions and subsequent readjustment to pH 7.3 increased the G ′ of thermally treated myosin. G ′ was affected by the presence or absence of salt during alkali treatments. When salt was present during alkali unfolding of myosin, the added salt stabilized the conformation of myosin against alkali unfolding and denaturation. In the absence of salt or when salt was added after refolding, myosin showed significantly higher denaturation and high G ′ on heating and cooling. Among the different alkaline pH values, myosin treated at pH 11.0 showed higher G ′. The type of anions influenced the conformation of myosin and the strength of gels. Treatment of myosin with KOH resulted in greater denaturation and higher gelling ability ( G ′) compared to NaOH.
Growth and characterization of vapor-deposited polyaniline on Cu(110)

The physical and chemical properties of ultrathin polyaniline films vapor deposited on Cu(110) were studied by high-resolution electron-energy-loss spectroscopy (HREELS). During the initial stages of film growth, HREEL vibrational spectra demonstrate that aniline oligomers bond to Cu(110) via amino groups and react to form ordered emeraldine chains. Following protonic doping, the ultrathin emeraldine films exhibited a plasmon excitation in the far-infrared indicating superior electrical conductivity to doped solution-cast emeraldine films. These results demonstrate the importance of substrate interactions in determining the physical properties of polyaniline thin films.
Who will benefit from ‘the sociocultural turn’ in education?

Educational theories, cultures and learning: a critical perspective, edited by Harry Daniels, Hugh Lauder and Jill Porter, Heinemann 2009, 246 pp., $160.00; £93.00 (hardback), ISBN 978-0-415-49118-...
Korean merchants in the black community: Prejudice among the victims of prejudice

Abstract The Korean‐black conflict in the black community in Philadelphia, PA, where Korean merchants are actively engaged in small businesses, is examined on the basis of interviews with community leaders and merchants and data from secondary sources. Manifest sources of conflict between these two minority groups stemming from cultural misunderstanding, communication problems, economic competition, and structural changes due to the settlement of a large number of Koreans in the black community are explored, and deeper sources are examined, originating from a historical prejudice on the part of Koreans; Koreans’ status anxiety arising from incongruence between their previous status and their current one; Blacks’ experience with non‐black shop owners or exploiters in the past; and Blacks’ feeling of powerlessness in stopping the influx of both whites and Asian groups into their community. All these sources of conflict may have developed independently before Koreans and Blacks came into contact, and their r...
Empowerment through design: engaging alternative high school students through the design, development and crafting of digitally-enhanced pets

Students in alternative school are not served by existing interventions, which often focus on remediation and rote learning. Tangible computational crafts, because of their emotional affordances and relationships to youth's known likes and activities, may be a way to engage struggling students in sophisticated learning through design projects. I aim to explore how underachieving youth enrolled in a rural alternative public high school for failing students use PicoBoard, an external logic board, to design, develop and craft their own digital pets. The study focuses on empowering novice students to be designers. Questions include how students engage in the process of finding and fixing errors, and whether the design project helps students develop a productive relationship to making mistakes and learning. Initial analyses suggest students without programming experience can design and develop a personal digital pet over the course of five weeks, that students take pride in their physical creations, divide work tasks according to perceived strengths, and learn important aspects of debugging and code remixing, even when not confident about their abilities.
SELECTION OF BENEVOLENCE IN A HOST-PARASITE SYSTEM.

A paradigm for the evolution of cooperation between parasites and their hosts argues that the mode of parasite transmission is critical to the long-term maintenance of cooperation. Cooperation is not expected to be maintained whenever the chief mode of transmission is hori- zontal: a parasite's progeny infect hosts unrelated to their parent's host. Cooperation is expected to be maintained if the chief mode of transmission is vertical: a parasite's progeny infect only the parent's host or descendants of that host. This paradigm was tested using bacteria and filamentous bacteriophage (fl). When cells harboring different varian&ts of these phage were cultured so that no infectious spread was allowed, ensuring that all parasite transmission was vertical, selection favored the variants that were most benevolent to the host-those that least harmed host growth rate. By changing the culture conditions so that horizontal spread of the phage was allowed, the selective advantage of the benevolent forms was lost. These experiments thus support the theoretical ar- guments that mode of transmission is a major determinant in the evolution of cooperation between a parasite and its host.
Perceptual fidelity measure of digital color images

A digital color image quality metric is proposed in this work based on the characteristics of the human visual system. Chromatic coordinates are transformed from spectral cone absorption responses to the opponent-color space. The sensitivity thresholds in each of the color space axes are measured and visual masking models are provided and parameterized. Multiple contrasts are computed by the wavelet coefficients in their corresponding resolutions. The new objective error measure is defined as the aggregate contrast mismatch between the original and compressed images. Experimental results are given to show its consistency with human observation experience and subjective ranking.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Theory and experimental investigation of a weir-type inclined solar still

Abstract A weir-type solar still is proposed to recover rejected water from the water purifying systems for solar hydrogen production. This consists of an inclined absorber plate formed to make weirs, as well as a top basin and a bottom basin. Water is flowed from the top basin over the weirs to the bottom collection basin. A small pump is used to return the unevaporated water to the top tank. Hourly distillate productivity of the still with double- and single-pane glass covers was measured and the latter showed higher production rates. The average distillate productivities for double- and single-pane glass covers are approximately 2.2 and 5.5 l/m 2 /day in the months of August and September in Las Vegas, respectively. Mathematical models that can predict the hourly distillate productivity are developed. These compared well with the experimental results. Productivity of the weir-type still with a single-pane glass was also compared with conventional basin types tested at the same location. The productivity of the weir-type still is approximately 20% higher. The quality of distillate from the still is analyzed to verify the ability of the still to meet the standards required by the electrolyzers.
Numerical simulation of particle size distribution evolution during pulverized coal combustion

Abstract Two numerical simulations of particle size distribution (PSD) evolution during ash-free char combustion are presented to help determine the sensitivity of measured coal PSD evolution to fragmentation. The first simulation is based on percolation theory, and it builds the PSD evolution from an ensemble of individual particle size time histories. The second simulation is population balance that operates on the entire distribution as a unit. Inputs to the simulations come from experimental data available in the literature, and results of the simulations are discussed in conjunction with these data.
Secular Changes in the Age-Specific Prevalence of Diabetes Among U.S. Adults 1988–2010

OBJECTIVE To examine the age-specific changes of prevalence of diabetes among U.S. adults during the past 2 decades. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS This study included 22,586 adults sampled in three periods of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988–1994, 1999–2004, and 2005–2010). Diabetes was defined as having self-reported diagnosed diabetes or having a fasting plasma glucose level ≥126 mg/dL or HbA 1c ≥6.5% (48 mmol/mol). RESULTS The number of adults with diabetes increased by 75% from 1988–1994 to 2005–2010. After adjusting for sex, race/ethnicity, and education level, the prevalence of diabetes increased over the two decades across all age-groups. Younger adults (20–34 years of age) had the lowest absolute increase in diabetes prevalence of 1.0%, followed by middle-aged adults (35–64) at 2.7% and older adults (≥65) at 10.0% (all P P CONCLUSION During the past two decades, the prevalence of diabetes increased across all age-groups, but adults ≥65 years of age experienced the largest increase in absolute change. Obesity, as measured by BMI, WHtR, or WC, was strongly associated with the increase in diabetes prevalence, especially in adults
Characterization of the Membrane Association of the Influenza Virus Matrix Protein in Living Cells

To determine if membrane association is an intrinsic property of the influenza virus matrix protein (M1) it was expressed from cDNA in living cells in the absence of other influenza virus proteins. By using a membrane fractionation scheme the M1protein was found to associate with membranes in a time-dependent manner (0 time = 45% total; after a 3-hr chase period = 68% total M1protein). Coexpression of the integral membrane proteins HA+NA+M2did not significantly increase the association of the M1protein with cellular membranes, indicating that putative interactions of the M1protein and the cytoplasmic tails of the integral membranes cannot be detected by this assay. Biochemical treatments of the M1protein associated with membranes with alkali, high salt conditions, or Triton X-114 yielded data that challenge the normal criteria for integral membrane proteins or peripheral membrane proteins. Examination of the solubility of the M1protein in influenza virus-infected cells to Triton X-100 extraction indicated it became increasingly insoluble with time, but the M1protein could be solubilized in Triton X-100 containing 1MNaCl, suggesting an association of the M1protein with the cytoskeleton. However, when the M1protein was expressed from cDNA, it did not become insoluble to Triton X-100 extraction, suggesting an interaction of the M1protein unique to the influenza virus-infected cell.
Improved Counseling Information Through Rotation of Discriminant Functions

Results of discriminant analyses are of restricted value in the counseling setting because discriminant functions often lack psychological interpretability. Proposed is a technique for obtaining rotated discriminant function scores which should have the clarity of meaning as do rotated factors from factor analyses. This technique is successfully illustrated with data for the prediction of graduating college majors from aptitude, achievement and interest measures obtained in high school.
Technology with Cognitive and Mathematical Fidelity: What It Means for the Math Classroom

Technology according to the National Council of Mathematics plays a special role in teaching and learning mathematics. Technology when used effectively can deepen mathematical understanding and lead to greater abstraction. But, not all uses of technology lead to this desired result. Defining cognitive and mathematical fidelity and using it to determine which Web-based formats lead to greater generalizing and abstraction will help in understanding why interactive math objects empower teachers to build a better, deeper understanding of math concepts.
Glucose stimulation of fatty acid synthetase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase in liver of newly hatched chicks (Gallus domesticus).

Abstract 1. 1. Glucose feeding to newly hatched chicks increased the hepatic activities of fatty acid synthetase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase and decreased the activity of glucose-6-phosphatase. 2. 2. Actinomycin D and cycloheximide were partially effective in preventing the increase of fatty acid synthetase activity associated with glucose feeding, but were without effect on glucose-6-phosphatase activity. 3. 3. Cycloheximide prevented the increase of acetyl-CoA carboxylase activity associated with glucose feeding, but actinomycin D only partially prevented the increase.
Formation of the macrocyclic ring in tetrapyrrole biosynthesis.

THE monopyrrole porphobilinogen (PBG; Fig. 1) is polymerized and cyclized to uroporphyrinogen III (Fig. 2) in the early stages of the biosynthesis of the haems, chlorophylls and bile pigments1,2. It is relatively easy to visualize the condensation of four PBG molecules to give uroporphyrinogen I (Fig. 2), the only other uroporphyrinogen isomer found in nature. The topological problems posed by the formation of the III isomer through PBG condensation have led to several hypotheses about the reaction sequence3–5, none of which seem to be completely in accord with all the available evidence1,2,6. This report is concerned with a new hypothesis about this reaction sequence which has been deduced from a study of molecular models of presumed intermediates.
Physical and psychophysical evaluation of LCD noise

Abstract This paper presents the results of initial physical and psycho-physical evaluations of the noise of several high-resolution Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs), which have different pixel structures. Spatial as well as temporal noise was physically measured with the aid of a high-performance CCD camera. Human contrast sensitivity in the presence of spatial noise was determined psycho-physically using square-wave patterns stimuli as well as square stimuli. The results demonstrate that spatial noise is the dominant noise in all LCDs, while temporal noise is insignificant and plays only a minor part. The magnitude of spatial noise of LCDs appears to be larger than that of Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) displays with a P104 phosphor. Of particular interest with respect to LCD noise is the contribution of the pixel structure to the Noise Power Spectrum, which shows up as sharp spikes at spatial frequencies beyond the LCDs' Nyquist frequency. Important is also the fact that spatial noise can be corrected for and essentially minimized. The process involved is called Error Diffusion. Spatial noise can almost be reduced by a factor of 2. Much more work is necessary to understand the impact of spatial noise on the diagnosis of malignant abnormalities like micro-calcifications.
Failure of heat reinforcement performance by trained animals during hypothermia

Abstract Shaved, euthermic, male Long-Evans rats weighing 248 ± 29 g, in a 2 °C environment, were trained to obtain external heat from an overhead heating lamp by lever pressing. Steady performance for heat began after 2.0 ± 1.2 hr of exposure to the experimental situation and continued for the remainder of a 19-hr training session. Following the training session, heat loss was increased by moistening the skin of the animals and reducing the duration of the heat reinforcement from 4 sec to 1 3 sec. This effected a progressive hypothermia. Even though the rate of working for external heat increased greatly under this stress, the colonic temperature dropped 1 °C every 13.1 min. When the body temperature reached 25.5 ± 1.0 °C, heat reinforcement performance began to slow down. At 24.6 ± 1.0 °C, this performance stopped, several degrees above the onset of motor failure. This observation was supported by three additional series of experiments involving variations in the duration of training, periods of rest before testing in hypothermia, and means of achieving hypothermia. The body temperature of 24.6 ± 1.0 °C at which previously trained animals failed to perform corresponds closely to a reported critical level for instrumental response acquisition by untrained animals.
Recurrence of prolapse after transvaginal mesh excision

OBJECTIVE Recurrence of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is a potential complication after mesh removal. We evaluated anatomical and functional outcomes preoperatively and postoperatively in patients undergoing mesh excision. MATERIALS AND METHODS We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of consecutive patients who underwent mesh excision from years 2005 to 2009. Anatomical outcomes were evaluated using the POP quantification (POP-Q) system. Recurrence of prolapse was defined as stage II or higher-stage prolapse on the POP-Q system, reoperation for prolapse, or postoperative use of a pessary for prolapse reduction. Functional outcomes were assessed using the pelvic floor distress inventory and pelvic floor impact questionnaire scores. RESULTS Data were analyzed from 71 patients who underwent either partial or complete mesh excision. Most (44/70 [63%]) of the patients underwent partial mesh excision, and 26 patients (37%) underwent total mesh removal. Nineteen patients (26.7%) had preoperative prolapse and 27 (38.0%) of the 71 patients underwent concomitant native tissue prolapse repair. Overall change in POP-Q stage in women who underwent partial removal (median, 0 [-1 to 2]) was less advanced than in women with total excision. (median, -1 [-3 to 0]; P = 0.006) at 1 year postoperatively. Four patients prolapsed to the hymen, with all patients having defects in the anterior compartment. No patients required a second surgery, and one patient was treated with a pessary.Total pelvic floor distress inventory and pelvic floor impact questionnaire scores before mesh excision were significantly improved 6 months after mesh removal (P < 0.05). Dyspareunia improved significantly after mesh excision (P = 0.034). CONCLUSION In our patient population, total and partial mesh excision is associated with re-treatment of POP in 1.4% of the patients. Patient functional outcomes significantly improved after mesh removal.
A Poetic Epiphany: Explorations of Aesthetic Forms of Representation

Alternative forms of representation, such as poetry, are becoming more widely used by qualitative researchers in disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, and psychology. Aesthetic forms of representation highlight the co-constructed nature of the research project, and in this article we will discuss how they can facilitate creative explorations of lived experience in qualitative research. We begin with an example of a poetic representation of a participant's story as a starting point for our discussion. Next, we describe the process by which the poem was created. Finally, we will discuss other studies that have used similar representational forms and provide a rationale for why these forms may be an appealing choice for other qualitative researchers.
The distinct roles of TRAF2 and RIP in IKK activation by TNF-R1: TRAF2 recruits IKK to TNF-R1 while RIP mediates IKK activation.

Abstract The death domain kinase RIP and the TNF receptor-associated factor 2 (TRAF2) are essential effectors in TNF signaling. To understand the mechanism by which RIP and TRAF2 regulate TNF-induced activation of the transcription factor NF-κB, we investigated their respective roles in TNF-R1-mediated IKK activation using both RIP −/− and TRAF2 −/− fibroblasts. We found that TNF-R1-mediated IKK activation requires both RIP and TRAF2 proteins. Although TRAF2 or RIP can be independently recruited to the TNF-R1 complex, neither one of them alone is capable of transducing the TNF signal that leads to IKK activation. Moreover, we demonstrated that IKK is recruited to the TNF-R1 complex through TRAF2 upon TNF treatment and that IKK activation requires the presence of RIP in the same complex.
Surface mass diffusion over an extended temperature range on Pt(111)

Surface mass diffusion is investigated on Pt(111) at temperatures in the range 710–1220 K. This greatly extends the range over which diffusion is known from step fluctuation spectroscopy (SFS). In the present research, a beam of Pt− self-ions is employed to create a suitable structure on step edges. The surface mass diffusion coefficients then follow from the decay of Fourier components observed by low-energy electron microscopy (LEEM) at selected annealing temperatures. The results agree with SFS values where they overlap, and continue smoothly to low temperature. This makes it unlikely that diffusion along step edges plays a major role in step edge relaxation through the temperature range studied. The surface mass diffusion coefficient for the range 710–1520 K deduced from the present work, together with previous SFS data, is Ds = 4 × 10−3 exp(−1.47 eV/kBT) cm2 s−1.
Measurements of the Spray Angle of Atomizing Jets

Liquid jets are considered issuing from single-hole, round nozzles into quiescent gases under conditions such that they break up into a well defined conical spray immediately at the nozzle exit plane. The initial angles of such sprays were measured at room temperature by a spark photography technique. Water, n-hexane, and n-tetradecane at pressures from 11.1 MPa to 107.6 MPa were injected into gaseous N2 at pressures from 0.1 MPa to 4.2 MPa through sixteen nozzles of different geometry. Under the test conditions, the spray angle is found to be a strong function of the nozzle geometry and the gas-liquid density ratio and a weak function of the injection velocity. The measured trends are then discussed in the light of possible mechanisms of the breakup process and shown to be compatible with the aerodynamic theory of surface breakup if modified to account for nozzle geometry effects.
Nature of psychiatric illness: why psychiatry is a branch of medicine.

Abstract Are psychiatric conditions diseases? How is disease defined? Is there a satisfactory definition of disease for nonpsychiatric conditions? Why is there such intensity in the debate? Are there implications of different answers that reach beyond definitions to include more substantive issues? If there are no important issues in the controversy other than which word to use to refer to certain psychologic or behavioral states, is the discussion worth continuing? Compromise, a new nomenclature, or the victory of one side will permit attention to shift to more important matters. But if the argument reflects significant differences about important underlying issues, these differences need to be clarified and resolved through critical analysis and observation.
Psychological Factors that Promote and Inhibit Pathological Gambling

Abstract This paper describes qualitative data regarding psychological factors that may affect gambling behavior among treatment-seeking pathological gamblers. Participants ( n = 84) diagnosed with pathological gambling were treated in a clinical trial examining the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Qualitative data were collected from participants during each of 8 structured CBT sessions. Specific gambling-related psychological factors that were assessed include triggers, consequences, high-risk situations, craving experiences, assertiveness skills, cognitive distortions, and coping strategies. The most commonly reported triggers for gambling were lack of structured time and negative emotional state, which were similar to the high-risk times for gambling. The most frequently listed positive consequences of gambling were enjoyment associated with winning and use of gambling as an escape. Negative consequences of gambling included depressed mood, financial problems, and conflict with family. Coping strategies changed during treatment, as participants reported relying less upon avoidance and distraction, and became better able to utilize support networks and cognitive coping skills. These data are important to better understand the factors associated with the development, maintenance, and cessation of pathological gambling.
Effects of small-group learning on transfer: A meta-analysis

This study investigated the potential benefit of small-group learning on transfer performance using the method of meta-analysis. Results showed positive support for the hypothesis that small-group learning can increase students’ transfer performance (average effect size of 0.30). Unlike reviews of effects of cooperation on learning, this review of effects on transfer found no greater benefit of structured small-groups compared to unstructured. This finding, in conjunction with the significant variability found across effect sizes, suggests that further investigation into features of effective unstructured small-group tasks might yield heuristics that teachers could eventually use to make decisions about when collaboration would be most useful. Although some of the reviewed studies were published decades ago, the vast majority were published within the last few years, suggesting a growing area of research interest.
Review: Androgen deprivation therapy does not increase CV mortality in prostate cancer

Source Citation Nguyen PL, Je Y, Schutz FA, et al. Association of androgen deprivation therapy with cardiovascular death in patients with prostate cancer: a meta-analysis of randomized trials. JAMA...
An access structure for generalized transitive closure queries

An access structure that accelerates the processing of generalized transitive closure queries is presented. For an acyclic graph, the access structure consists of source-destination pairs arranged in a topologically sorted order. For a cyclic graph, entries in the structure are approximately topologically sorted. The authors present a breadth-first algorithm for creating such a structure, show how it can be used to process queries, and describe incremental techniques for maintaining it. >
Substrate-aware mixed-signal macrocell placement in WRIGHT

We describe a set of placement algorithms for handling substrate coupled switching noise. A typical mixed-signal IC has both sensitive analog and noisy digital circuits, and the common substrate parasitically couples digital switching transients into the sensitive analog regions of the chip. To preserve the integrity of sensitive analog signals, it is thus necessary to electrically isolate the analog and digital. We argue that optimal area utilization requires such isolation be designed into the system during first-cut chip-level placement. We present algorithms that incorporate commonly used isolation techniques within an automatic placement framework. Our substrate-noise evaluation mechanism uses a simplified substrate model and simple electrical representations for the noisy digital macrocells. The digital/analog interactions determined through these models are incorporated into a simulated annealing macrocell placement framework. Automatic placement results indicate these substrate-aware algorithms allow efficient mixed-signal placement optimization. >
Diet reduction to requirements in obese/overfed ewes from early gestation prevents glucose/insulin dysregulation and returns fetal adiposity and organ development to control levels.

Obesity at conception and excess gestational weight gain pose significant risks for adverse health consequences in human offspring. This study evaluated the effects of reducing dietary intake of ob...
Nearshore fish (Pholis gunnellus) persists across the North Atlantic through multiple glacial episodes.

The intertidal biota of the North Atlantic is characterized by two disjunct communities (North American and European) exposed to different climatic regimes during the Pleistocene and in the Holocene. We collect multilocus DNA sequence data from the nearshore fish Pholis gunnellus to help uncover processes determining biogeographical persistence during periodic coastal glaciations. Coalescent-based estimates from the multilocus DNA sequence data suggest that P. gunnellus persisted on both sides of the North Atlantic throughout the last two glacial maxima (> 202 000 years) with little trans-Atlantic gene flow since divergence, very little structure among populations within Europe (ΦST < 0.05) and some structure within the North American coastline (ΦST = 0.0–0.21). Although the ecological flexibility and high local migration of P. gunnellus could have enhanced this species’ survival across the Atlantic, logistic regression did not find a significant determinant of trans-Atlantic persistence when considering 12 other North Atlantic phylogeographical studies from the literature.
High-Performance and Parameterized Matrix Factorization on FPGAs

FPGAs have become an attractive choice for scientific computing. In this paper, we propose a high performance design for LU decomposition, a key kernel in many scientific and engineering applications. Our design achieves the optimal performance for LU decomposition using the available hardware resources. The design is parameterized. Thus, it can be easily adapted to various hardware constraints. Experimental results show that our design achieves high performance and offers good scalability. Our implementation on a Xilinx Virtex-II Pro XC2VP100 achieves superior sustained floating-point performance over existing FPGA-based implementations and optimized libraries on the state-of-the-art processors.
Anal Stenosis After Hemorrhoidectomy: Avoidance and Management

Hemorrhoidal disease is a very common problem, affecting a large number of patients. The majority of patients with hemorrhoids can be managed nonoperatively; however, for patients who fail nonoperative therapy, hemorrhoidectomy is a safe and effective option. Anal stenosis is an uncommon complication after hemorrhoidectomy, but can be a potentially debilitating condition. The majority of patients with anal stenosis can be managed nonoperatively with a combination of stool bulking agents, stool softeners, increased fluid intake, and, occasionally, anal dilation. If patients fail nonoperative management, there are multiple options for surgical therapy including sphincterotomy, rectal mucosal flap reconstruction, and perianal tissue flaps. When choosing the surgical approach to anal stenosis, it is important to appropriately diagnose the level of stenosis and determine whether the patient has a functional, anatomic, or combined stenosis.
CONGENITAL ICHTHYOSIS: CONCURRENT IMMUNODEEICIENCY AND ATYPICAL T CELLS

A patient with congenital ichthyosis and progressive neurologic anomalies showed disturbances in the specific humoral and cellular defense as well as the presence of atypical lymphoid cells in skin and lymph node. The latter resembled the atypical T cells found in mycosis fungoides and Sezary syndrome. The possibility of the presence of either a cutaneous T cell lymphoma or unregulated T cell stimulation leading to concurrent immunodeficiency in this patient is discussed.
Hamiltonian structure of dynamical systems which solve linear programming problems

Abstract A new class of completely integrable Hamiltonian systems which solve linear programming problems is introduced. The relations with reduced Toda flows, double-bracket equations, interior point methods are established. An interpretation in terms of total actions on Kahler manifolds is given. A complete description of the phase portrait (including the explicit description of action-angle variables) is provided.
Ovarian Cancer and Polymorphisms in the Androgen and Progesterone Receptor Genes: A HuGE Review

Ovarian cancer is the second most common gynecologic cancer among women and the second leading cause of death from gynecologic malignancy worldwide. Androgens, acting through androgen receptors (ARs), have been implicated in the disease, while progestins, acting through progesterone receptors (PGRs), may provide protection against the disease. The PGR gene contains several polymorphisms in the hormone-binding domain, three of which are in linkage disequilibrium (a complex referred to as PROGINS). PROGINS has been associated with increased risk of ovarian cancer. This association has not been found consistently, and it may be limited to women who do not use oral contraceptives. The AR gene contains a trinucleotide CAG repeat, the length of which has been inversely associated with the ability of the AR-ligand complex to transactivate androgen-responsive genes. Data on the association between the AR repeat length and ovarian cancer, both in general and among carriers of mutations in the breast cancer 1 and 2 (BRCA1/2) genes, are inconclusive. There is insufficient evidence that polymorphisms in either the PGR gene or the AR gene may be a risk factor for ovarian cancer, alone or in combination with other factors. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and clinical validity of the PROGINS and AR CAG repeat assays are unknown. No recommendations for population-based screening can be made.
Targeted antioxidant treatment decreases cardiac alternans associated with chronic myocardial infarction.

Background— In myocardial infarction (MI), repolarization alternans is a potent arrhythmia substrate that has been linked to Ca2+ cycling proteins, such as sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ ATPase (SERCA2a), located in the sarcoplasmic reticulum. MI is also associated with oxidative stress and increased xanthine oxidase (XO) activity, an important source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the sarcoplasmic reticulum that may reduce SERCA2a function. We hypothesize that in chronic MI, XO-mediated oxidation of SERCA2a is a mechanism of cardiac alternans. Methods and Results— Male Lewis rats underwent ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery (n=54) or sham procedure (n=24). At 4 weeks, optical mapping of intracellular Ca2+ and ROS was performed. ECG T-wave alternans (ECG ALT) and Ca2+ transient alternans (Ca2+ALT) were induced by rapid pacing (300–120 ms) before and after the XO inhibitor allopurinol (ALLO, 50 µmol/L). In MI, ECG ALT (2.32±0.41%) and Ca2+ ALT (22.3±4.5%) were significantly greater compared with sham (0.18±0.08%, P <0.001; 0.79±0.32%, P <0.01). Additionally, ROS was increased by 137% ( P <0.01) and oxidation of SERCA2a by 30% ( P <0.05) in MI compared with sham. Treatment with ALLO significantly decreased ECG ALT (−77±9%, P <0.05) and Ca2+ ALT (−56±7%, P <0.05) and, importantly, reduced ROS (−65%, P <0.01) and oxidation of SERCA2a (−38%, P <0.05). CaMKII inhibition and general antioxidant treatment had no effect on ECG ALT and Ca2+ ALT. Conclusions— These results demonstrate, for the first time, that in MI, increased ROS from XO is a significant cause of repolarization alternans. This suggests that targeting XO ROS production may be effective at preventing arrhythmia substrates in chronic MI.
Planar circularly polarized microstrip antenna with a single feed

A novel circularly polarized (CP) microstrip antenna is introduced. The antenna is fed with a single coaxial probe and the structure is planar. The CP bandwidth is much larger than available single-probe microstrip antennas and the CP radiation quality is excellent over the entire upper hemisphere.
Lack of effect of St John's Wort on carbamazepine pharmacokinetics in healthy volunteers.

Background St John's Wort is a popular herbal product used by approximately 7% of patients with epilepsy. Previous reports have described reductions in concentrations of CYP3A4 substrates indinavir and cyclosporine (INN, ciclosporin) associated with St John's Wort. Objective Our objective was to determine the effect of St John's Wort on steady state carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide pharmacokinetics. Methods and Subjects Eight healthy volunteers (5 men; age range, 24–43 years) participated in this unblinded study. Subjects received 100 mg of carbamazepine twice daily for 3 days, 200 mg twice daily for 3 days, and then 400 mg once daily for 14 days. Blood samples were collected before and 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 24 hours after the dose on day 21. The subjects then took 300 mg of St John's Wort (0.3% hypericin standardized tablet) 3 times daily with meals and with carbamazepine for 14 days. On day 35, blood sampling was repeated. Plasma samples were analyzed for carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide with HPLC. We compared carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide noncompartmental pharmacokinetic parameter values before and after St John's Wort with a paired Student t test. Results We found no significant differences before or after the administration of St John's Wort in carbamazepine peak concentration (7.2 ± 1 mg/L before versus 7.6 ± 1.3 mg/L after), trough concentration (4.8 ± 0.5 mg/L before versus 4.3 ± 0.8 mg/L after), area under the plasma concentration-time curve (142.4 ± 12.9 mg · h/L before versus 143.8 ± 27.2 mg · h/L after), or oral clearance (2.8 ± 0.3 L/h before versus 2.9 ± 0.6 L/h after). Similarly, no differences were found in peak concentration (2 ± 0.5 mg/L before versus 2.1 ± 0.4 mg/L after), trough concentration (1.3 ± 0.3 mg/L before versus 1.4 ± 0.3 mg/L after), and area under the plasma concentration-time curve (37.5 ± 7.4 mg · h/L before versus 41.9 ± 10.3 mg · h/L after) of carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide. Conclusions The results suggest that treatment with St John's Wort for 14 days did not further induce the clearance of carbamazepine. (Clin Pharmacol Ther 2000;68:605–12.) Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2000) 68, 605–612; doi: 10.1067/mcp.2000.111530
Model Existence Theorems for Modal and Intuitionistic Logics

In classical logic a collection of sets of statements (or equivalently, a property of sets of statements) is called a consistency property if it meets certain simple closure conditions (a definition is given in §2). The simplest example of a consistency property is the collection of all consistent sets in some formal system for classical logic. The Model Existence Theorem then says that any member of a consistency property is satisfiable in a countable domain. From this theorem many basic results of classical logic follow rather simply: completeness theorems, the compactness theorem, the Lowenheim-Skolem theorem, and the Craig interpolation lemma among others. The central position of the theorem in classical logic is obvious. For the infinitary logic the Model Existence Theorem is even more basic as the compactness theorem is not available; [8] is largely based on it. In this paper we define appropriate notions of consistency properties for the first-order modal logics S 4, T and K (without the Barcan formula) and for intuitionistic logic. Indeed we define two versions for intuitionistic logic, one deriving from the work of Gentzen, one from Beth; both have their uses. Model Existence Theorems are proved, from which the usual known basic results follow. We remark that Craig interpolation lemmas have been proved model theoretically for these logics by Gabbay ([5], [6]) using ultraproducts. The existence of both ultra-product and consistency property proofs of the same result is a common phenomena in classical and infinitary logic. We also present extremely simple tableau proof systems for S 4, T, K and intuitionistic logics, systems whose completeness is an easy consequence of the Model Existence Theorems.
Characterization of an exception to the 'even-electron rule' upon low-energy collision induced decomposition in negative ion electrospray tandem mass spectrometry.

Electrospray-generated precursor ions usually follow the ‘even-electron rule’ and yield ‘closed shell’ fragment ions. We characterize an exception to the ‘even-electron rule.’ In negative ion electrospray mass spectrometry (ES-MS), 2-(ethoxymethoxy)-3-hydroxyphenol (2-hydroxyl protected pyrogallol) easily formed a deprotonated molecular ion (M-H)− at m/z 183. Upon low-energy collision induced decomposition (CID), the m/z 183 precursor yielded a radical ion at m/z 124 as the base peak. The radical anion at m/z 124 was still the major fragment at all tested collision energies between 0 and 50 eV (Elab). Supported by computational studies, the appearance of the radical anion at m/z 124 as the major product ion can be attributed to the combination of a low reverse activation barrier and resonance stabilization of the product ions. Furthermore, our data lead to the proposal of a novel alternative radical formation pathway in the protection group removal of pyrogallol. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Platinum‐Modified Gold Electrocatalysts for the Hydrogen Oxidation Reaction in Alkaline Electrolytes

Alkaline fuel cells offer advantages over acidic fuel cells because of the relaxed necessity for platinum (Pt) electrocatalysts and the increased stability of non-Pt-group metals at high pH values. While this offers the possibility of less expensive electrocatalysts, the activity of non-Pt-group metals is still low in comparison to Pt. Reducing the amount of Pt needed for fuel oxidation by modification can effectively lower the cost of the catalyst while maintaining a high oxidation activity. Here we compare Pt-modified Au (Pt/Au), Pt, and Au disk electrodes for the oxidation of hydrogen. The Pt/Au surface exhibits a hydrogen oxidation activity similar to that of bulk Pt and far superior to that of a pure Au disk. Pt-modified Au/C (Pt/Au/C) exhibits an activity similar to that of supported Pt/C.
Mindfulness‐Based Interventions in Counseling

Mindfulness is a relatively new construct in counseling that is rapidly gaining interest as it is applied to people struggling with a myriad of problems. Research has consistently demonstrated that counseling interventions using mindfulness improve well-being and reduce psychopathology. This article provides a detailed definition of mindfulness, including a discussion of the mechanisms underlying mindfulness practice; explores the implementation of mindfulness as a counseling intervention; and examines literature supporting its effectiveness.
A comparative review of gene clustering in expression profile

Microarray experiments have been widely used to screen biological activities and cellular changes under different conditions at molecular level. Its ability to simultaneously monitor expression changes of thousands of genes has acquired its popularity but, at the same time, posed many challenging statistical and computational problems. Gene clustering problem is one of them. The purpose of gene clustering is to search for groups of genes with similar expression patterns, which likely have related biological functions or interactions. In this paper, popular gene clustering methods, including hierarchical clustering, AT-means, self-organizing maps, CLICK, model-based clustering and tight clustering, are introduced and compared with simulated data and a real data. The result shows the superior ability of tight clustering to deal with complex structure of microarray data. All the other methods encounter difficult problems of either scattered genes, local optimization or estimation of number of clusters. Tight clustering, on the other hand, provides an alternative to avoid these difficulties and systematically produce a sequence of tight clusters.
Medical strategies to handle mass casualties from the use of biological weapons

This article reviews the definitions of biological weapons and mass casualties. In addition, it discusses the main operational and logistical issues of import in the medical management of mass casualties from the use of biological weapons. Strategies for medical management of specific biologic agents also are highlighted.
Evaluation of the transfection property of a peptide ligand for the fibroblast growth factor receptor as part of PEGylated polyethylenimine polyplex

Purpose: Experiments were conducted to evaluate the utility of a peptide receptor ligand to improve transfection efficiency as part of a polyethylenimine-polyethylene glycol (PEI-PEG) polyplex. The 7-mer peptide (MQLPLAT), targeted toward the fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2) receptor, was recently identified using a phage-display library method as possessing a high degree of specificity for the FGF2 receptor without the mutagenicity associated with FGF itself. Two approaches (pre-modification or post-modification) to incorporate the peptide into the PEGylated polyplex were compared in terms of their effect on particle size, surface charge, DNA condensation ability, toxicity, cellular uptake and transfection efficiency.Methods: The peptide was conjugated to branched PEI (25 kDa) via a PEG spacer either before (pre-modified) or after (post-modified) complexation of PEI with DNA. Polyethyleneimine was conjugated to the PEG spacer (N-hydroxy succinimide (NHS) -PEG-maleimide (Mal)) through the NHS group. The ...
Element-free Galerkin method for static and quasi-static electromagnetic field computation

Conventional finite-element methods (FEMs) rely on an underlying tessellation to describe the geometry and the basis functions that are used to represent the unknown quantity. Alternatively, however, it is possible to represent both the geometry and basis as a set of points. This alternative scheme has been used extensively in solid mechanics to compute stress and strain distributions. This paper presents an adaptation of the scheme to the analysis of electromagnetic problems in both the static and quasi-static regimes. It validates the proposed model against both analytical solutions and benchmarked FEMs. The paper demonstrates the efficacy of the proposed method by applying it to a range of problems.