cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Race, socioeconomic status, and breast carcinoma in the U.S: what have we learned from clinical studies.

BACKGROUND Whether African-American women have biologically more aggressive breast carcinoma compared with white women and whether race acts as a significant independent prognostic factor for survival have not been determined. Alternatively, race merely may be a surrogate for socioeconomic status (SES). METHODS A literature review was performed of clinical trials and retrospective studies in the U.S. that compared survival between white women and black women with breast carcinoma after adjustment for known prognostic factors (patient age, disease stage, lymph node status, and estrogen receptor status) to assess the impact of race and SES. RESULTS Single institutional and clinical studies suggest that, when black patients are treated appropriately and other prognostic variables are controlled, their survival is similar to the survival of white patients. Twelve retrospective studies and 1 analysis of a clinical trial included SES and race as variables for survival. Only three of those studies revealed race as a significant prognostic factor for survival after adjusting for SES. CONCLUSIONS SES replaces race as a predictor of worse outcome after women are diagnosed with breast carcinoma in many studies. However, black women present with more advanced disease that appear more aggressive biologically, and they present at a younger age compared with white women. Further research should be conducted concerning the precise elements of SES that account for the incidence of breast carcinoma, age at diagnosis, hormone receptor status, and survival to devise better strategies to improve outcome. Cancer 2002;95:1988–99. © 2002 American Cancer Society. DOI 10.1002/cncr.10830
Deconvolution of the atmospheric radiocarbon record in the last 50,000 years

Abstract Here we identify the principal causes of changes in the atmospheric Δ 14 C record by removing the influence of two discrete large changes in the geomagnetic field between 45 and 30 kyr. The marked transitions in the Δ 14 C record during this period can be interpreted as being the result of either “zero magnetic field” for periods of the order of 6500 y and 600 y at ∼ 40 kyr and 32 kyr B.P., respectively, or for longer durations if the field was non-zero for appreciable time during the event. Once the effect of these events has been removed, the residual Δ 14 C record shows a plateau with nearly constant value at ∼ 300‰ during 28–17 kyr B.P, followed by a sharp decrease in Δ 14 C between 17 kyr B.P. and the present, to a Δ 14 C value of ∼ 0‰. Estimated global paleomagnetic fields derived from paleointensity measurements in deep sea sediments (SINT-800, NAPIS-75 and Sumatra Basin) can only explain a maximum of 50% of this residual Δ 14 C record during 30–0 kyr B.P. We propose that the remainder must have resulted from changes in oceanic circulation leading to isolation of ≥ 20% of oceanic radiocarbon inventory from large scale mixing with the atmosphere during 28–17 kyr B.P. Subsequent inclusion of this carbon may be responsible in part for the decrease between 17 kyr B.P. to the present, to a Δ 14 C value of ∼ 0‰. We also note that the deconvoluted Δ 14 C record during the past 15,000 y B.P. seems to be primarily influenced by the changes in the atmospheric CO 2 concentrations. These possibilities have been discussed in previous works, but our results here point to a seemingly cyclical change in carbon exchange that was initiated prior to the Last Glacial Maximum.
The special role of nausea in the acquisition of food dislikes by humans.

When nausea follows ingestion of a food people tend to develop a dislike for the taste of the food. Other negative events, such as diarrhea, respiratory distress or rashes often motivate avoidance of associated foods, but are much less likely to cause the foods to become distasteful. This is one of the first cases where a well defined event has been shown to produce a stable change in affective response to an associated object.
Religion and the Prospects for “Thin” Politics

AbstractReligion is a common source of “thick” morality and therefore a common obstacle to public policy consensus in pluralistic societies. But religion also adapts its thick moral commitments to prevailing social, cultural, and procedural dispositions. Engaging the model of “thick moralities and thin politics” proposed by Benjamin Gregg (2003), I explore the process by which religion adapts to the demands of normatively “thin” politics. To conceptualize this, I survey how American Christianity is negotiating aspects of postmodernism and how this negotiation offers one way to understand religion’s increased engagement with politics at the level of thin normativity. Thus, I would add to Gregg’s model by focusing on one example of a transition from “thick to thin”.
Model-based compression of nonstationary landmark shape sequences

We have proposed a novel model-based compression technique for nonstationary landmark shape data extracted from video sequences. The main goal is to develop a technique for the compact storage of landmark shape data. We use nonstationary shape activity (NSSA) to model the shape sequences. The shape data is encoded by applying differential pulse code modulation (DPCM) on the shape velocity coefficients under the NSSA model. We have studied the system performance in terms of compressibility-distortion trade off. NSSA based compression technique has been compared with two other methods based on existing shape modeling techniques namely, stationary shape activity (SSA) and active shape model (ASM). We tested our system with landmark shape data extracted from multiple video sequences of the CMU mocap database. It was found that NSSA outperforms both SSA and ASM in terms of compressibility for a given distortion tolerance. Thus NSSA based compression technique could be very useful in the applications like storage of large volumes of biomedical landmarks' data.
A Diagnostic Algorithm for Metabolic Myopathies

Metabolic myopathies comprise a clinically and etiologically diverse group of disorders caused by defects in cellular energy metabolism, including the breakdown of carbohydrates and fatty acids to generate adenosine triphosphate, predominantly through mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. Accordingly, the three main categories of metabolic myopathies are glycogen storage diseases, fatty acid oxidation defects, and mitochondrial disorders due to respiratory chain impairment. The wide clinical spectrum of metabolic myopathies ranges from severe infantile-onset multisystemic diseases to adult-onset isolated myopathies with exertional cramps. Diagnosing these diverse disorders often is challenging because clinical features such as recurrent myoglobinuria and exercise intolerance are common to all three types of metabolic myopathy. Nevertheless, distinct clinical manifestations are important to recognize as they can guide diagnostic testing and lead to the correct diagnosis. This article briefly reviews general clinical aspects of metabolic myopathies and highlights approaches to diagnosing the relatively more frequent subtypes (Fig. 1).
Pyrolysis of untreated and APO‐THPC treated cotton cellulose during one‐second exposure to radiant flux levels of 5–25 cal./cm.2‐sec.

Samples of untreated and APO-THPC flame-retardant treated cotton cellulose were pyrolyzed in a helium stream by exposure to flux levels of 5–25 cal./cm.2-sec. for 1 sec. in a carbon arc imaging furnace. The reaction products were separated naturally into four fractions, which were analyzed separately. Fraction (V−190 + V−80) comprised volatile products that failed to condense in cold traps at −80°C. It was swept onto a chromatography column and analyzed immediately. For both fabrics, it consisted of a mixture of CO, CO2, CH4, and ethylene. These light gases accounted for approximately 5% of the total product at 5 cal./cm.2-sec. and for 18% of the total product at 18–20 cal./cm.2-sec. Fraction Vrt was contained in cold traps, and consisted of products volatile at room temperature, but condensable at −80°C. It was found by gas-liquid partition chromatography to contain 12 polar organic constituents which were identified with respect to boiling point. The percentage of total product in Fraction Vrt was approximately 20 times greater for the treated than for the untreated fabric. The tar fraction, Vpyr, was found condensed at the bottom of the pyrolysis cell, and therefore contained products volatile at the surface of the sample but not at 25°C. It was found in infrared analysis to consist of levoglucosan and an unidentified carbonyl compound. Finally, the weight of residual char was estimated from the weight loss and the area of burn. For both fabrics, the percentage of char decreased with increasing flux level. At every flux level, the average percentage of char was higher for the treated that for the untreated fabric. The mechanism of pyrolysis is similar for both treated and untreated cloth, and for both high and low temperature degradation. A critical step is the formation of levoglucosan by scission of the 1,4-glycosidic linkages of cellulose. A mechanism for subsequent decomposition of levoglucosan to lower molecular weight compounds is considered.
Studying and Implementation of Embedded System's Code Replacement Technique

A code replacement technique and tool were proposed in this paper, which can be used in embedded systems to fulfill the needs, module updating and debugging and defects modifying and otherwise, and promised that never disturb the system's routine running. The technique could be used in critical application areas for module updating and debugging, also some special areas which had some other requirement when updating and debugging. Through the argumentation and development of prototype, some conclusions could be drew safely: the first, meeting the requirement associated with the real-time response and having none or little bad impact to the system; the second,the complicated and resource-consumed operations were placed at host, so the technique didn't depend the target machine's capability much and could be used for almost all the embedded systems which had more or less resource and processing capability.
Chronic myelogenous leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia occurring in the course of polycythemia vera

We are reporting an unusual case of a 54-year-old woman with polycythemia vera (PV) who developed Ph chromosome positive chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) 8 years after the initial diagnosis of PV, and terminating in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), 11 years after the initial diagnosis. Cytogenetic studies revealed a normal female karyotype at the time of diagnosis of PV and the presence of a Ph chromosome at the time of appearance of CML. Southern blot hybridization revealed a bcr rearrangement in both mononuclear cells and granulocytes. The diagnosis of ALL was established on the basis of morphology, positive TdT staining, and monoclonal antibody studies positive for I2, B4, and J5. This case demonstrates the transition of PV into CML, followed by a blastic transformation into acute lymphocytic leukemia. At termination of her disease there were findings compatible with bi-phenotypic leukemia. These findings would suggest that the disease arose in a primitive multipotential stem cell.
Film Growth Mechanisms of Amorphous Silicon in Diode and Triode Glow Discharge Systems

By simulating the growth morphology of plasma-deposited amorphous silicon films on patterned substrates using a Monte-Carlo technique, we find the effective sticking coefficient for the dominating mass transporting species to be quite different depending on the film growth mechanism. The physical-vapor-deposition-like growth regime producing defective materials is associated with species like SiH2 and SiH which have a large effective sticking coefficient, while the chemical-vapor-deposition-like process producing “device quality” materials is linked to species like SiH3 which has a much smaller effective sticking coefficient. In a triode reactor the physical-vapor-deposition-like process is suppressed since species with small effective sticking coefficients are selected. However, the growth rate decreases rapidly as the substrates are moved away from the plasma. There seems to be an incompatibility between good material quality and fast growth rate in the plasma deposition of amorphous silicon in either diode or triode reactors.
A Risk Reduction Framework for Dynamic Workflows

Workflows tend to fail in real-world scenarios due to the uncertain/unreliable sensory information which sometimes needs to be updated during the execution of workflows. In a logic based framework, these dynamic predicates that can be updated are called non-monotonic predicates (NMPs). In this paper, we focus on reducing the risk of a given workflow due to the NMPs in that workflow. The main idea is to synthesize a backup workflow by augmenting the main workflow without introducing new NMPs. The backup workflow is generated by using expected values of NMPs if necessary instead of given values. The expected values are calculated from the execution history or provided by a domain expert. It is argued that total risk reduces to the square root of the main workflow itself.
A comprehensive evaluation of the 8-gauge vacuum-assisted Mammotome® system for ultrasound-guided diagnostic biopsy and selective excision of breast lesions

Minimally invasive breast biopsy technology is now considered a standard of care for the diagnostic evaluation of suspicious breast lesions. The aim of the current study was to present a comprehensive evaluation of the 8-gauge vacuum-assisted Mammotome® system for ultrasound-guided diagnostic biopsy and selective excision of breast lesions. A retrospective analysis was conducted of a series of 304 consecutive 8-gauge Mammotome® procedures that were performed under ultrasound guidance by a single surgeon from March 2004 to December 2006. Multiple variables, including patient demographics, characteristics of the breast lesion (based on ultrasound and mammography), procedural and histopathology variables, and interval follow-up variables (based on ultrasound and mammography), were evaluated. Among 304 procedures, 235 (77%) were performed with the presumption of complete excision of the ultrasound lesion during Mammotome® core acquisition, while 69 (23%) were performed with only partial excision of the ultrasound lesion during Mammotome® core acquisition (diagnostic tissue sampling only). 100% of all ultrasound lesions were accurately diagnosed, demonstrating no apparent false-negative results among the 256 patients that were compliant with follow-up at a median interval follow-up duration of 11 months (range 1 to 37). Likewise, 89% of all appropriately selected ultrasound lesions were completely excised, as demonstrated on interval follow-up ultrasound at a median time of 6 months (range, 3 to 16). There were no independent predictors of successful complete excision of any given appropriately selected ultrasound lesion by the ultrasound-guided 8-gauge Mammotome® biopsy technique. The 8-gauge vacuum-assisted Mammotome® system is highly accurate for ultrasound-guided diagnostic biopsy of suspicious breast lesions and is highly successful for complete excision of appropriately selected presumed benign breast lesions. This particular technology should be routinely offered to all appropriately selected patients that are evaluated by physicians involved in breast-specific health care.
Environmental Assessment of Logistics Outsourcing

Environmental awareness is increasingly important to society, government, and industry, and there is a strong demand for sustainable development practices. The importance of supply chain management is critical, as it characterizes and influences the life cycles of all products. Within the major logistics trends, outsourcing has a significant potential to increase sustainability in the supply chain as third-party logistics providers (3PLs) focus on improving resource utilization and making processes more efficient. However, their motivation is largely economic, and an environmental perspective is rarely seen in 3PLs. As consumers demand greener alternatives and, subsequently, environmental regulatory measures are implemented, 3PLs will have to become more environmentally and socially aware in order to develop sustainability goals. This study compares two scenarios using life-cycle assessment (LCA): one where logistics functions are handled in-house, and an alternative scenario where such functions are outsourced to a 3PL. The impacts of logistics outsourcing on energy utilization, global warming potential, and fatalities are first quantified in the supply chain of an automobile. Even though vehicle operation, responsible for most of the impacts considered, is outside the domain of logistics functions, logistics outsourcing nonetheless has the potential to reduce energy use and global warming potential by 0.4-2% and fatalities by 0.8-3.3% throughout the entire life cycle of a typical automobile. Road and air transportation are found to account for most of the impacts in all selected metrics. Analyzing logistics outsourcing in the other sectors of the U.S. economy revealed the same trend as observed in the supply chain of an automobile.
Nearly uniform failure of atrial flutter ablation and continuation of antiarrhythmic agents (hybrid therapy) for the long-term control of atrial fibrillation

Ablation for atrial flutter and continued pharmacologic therapy (hybrid therapy) is a management strategy when treatment with class I antiarrhythmic drugs organize atrial fibrillation (AF) into flutter. Previous studies with 2–3-year follow-up have reported satisfactory control of AF burden. We evaluated the effectiveness of hybrid therapy after a follow-up of 5 years. We hypothesized that longer term follow-up would demonstrate eventual failure of this strategy to control AF. A consecutive, retrospective evaluation of all first time ablations of right atrial flutter at the University of Pennsylvania between August 2003 and August 2005 was performed (n = 179). The study population consisted of 33 patients who had atrial flutter only after treatment of AF with class I antiarrhythmic drugs and was continued on them post-ablation. Follow-up data were obtained by reviewing records from our institution, from referring cardiologists, and from direct patient questionnaires. Atrial fibrillation recurrence was noted in 28 of 31 patients (90.3 %) who completed 5 years of follow-up. AF recurrence typically resulted in significant symptoms, although 21 % developed persistent AF and were eventually minimally symptomatic on a rate control strategy. A wide range of time to recurrence was observed (0.2–64.5 months) with 39 % recurring greater than 2 years post-ablation. Hybrid therapy is not effective for long-term control of AF. Patients should be counseled about the likelihood of eventual AF recurrence and anticoagulation should be maintained indefinitely when this strategy is used.
A reply to Schlesinger's theodicy

In Religion and Scientific Method, George Schlesinger presented a strikingly original theodicy. In this paper, I explain the strategy underlying Schlesinger's argument. I then present a parallel argument to indicate the weakness of Schlesinger's theodicy. Finally, I show that Schlesinger's theodicy assumes a false principle, and therefore fails.
Reliability design methodology for confined high pressure inflatable structures

Abstract A design methodology for high pressure, inflatable structures is proposed. The inflatable structure may be partially confined inside large diameter conduits and tunnels. The design addresses the main structural requirements of the system, namely, fabric strength, geometric stability, and axial stability. The proposed design methodology is based on the concept of limit states. Load and resistance factors are identified for all the stochastic variables participating in the structural design equations. A formal methodology is used to estimate the load and resistance factors from known distributions of data for each of the stochastic variables. The concepts of basis values, coverage, and confidence are used along with the analytical treatment necessary to estimate the load and resistance factors. The analysis is applied to the cases of Normal, Log-normal, and Weibull distributions of data. Material characterization and data analysis are presented for fabric strength and friction coefficient between the inflatable and the confining conduit material. The system reliability is also evaluated.
The role of salicylic acid in induced systemic resistance elicited by plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria against blue mold of tobacco

Investigations were conducted to determine the role of salicylic acid (SA) in induced systemic (ISR) resistance against blue mold disease of tobacco elicited by plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). SA did not inhibit germination of sporangia or development of germ tubes of Peronospora tabacina, the blue mold pathogen, in vitro. Of three PGPRstrains tested, none produced detectable levels of SA in aqueous Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium, and only Serratia marcescens strain 90-166 produced SA in tryptic soy broth (TSB). In a microtiter plate system, levels of endogenous free SA in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) seedlings treated with three PGPRstrains significantly increased during the first week after PGPRtreatment. In the second week, however, levels of SA were significantly lower than those in nontreated tobacco seedlings. When plants treated with Bacillus pumilus strain SE34 were challenged with P. tabacina, levels of SA increased markedly 1 day after challenge, compared to the nonbacterized and challenged control. However, a similar increase in SA 1 day after pathogen challenge did not occur in plants treated with PGPRstrains 90-166 or Pseudomonas fluorescens strain 89B-61. These observations indicate that SA accumulation in tobacco plants may play a role in ISRagainst tobacco blue mold by PGPR . Disease assays conducted in the microtiter plates showed that the tested PGPRstrains significantly reduced disease severity of blue mold in both Xanthi-nc and transgenic NahG tobacco, indicating that systemically induced resistance in tobacco to blue mold by PGPRmay be SA-independent. 2002 Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.
Precision Phase Adjustment of a Linear Accelerator High Power Waveguide Feed Network

Each klystron of the SLAC accelerator feeds four consecutive 10-foot accelerator sections through approximately 25 feet of earth shielding. The high power waveguide network which divides and guides the power to the four sections is adjusted so that the rf waves traveling within the accelerator sections are, at the end of each section, phased within ± two degrees of an ideal wave traveling at the velocity of light. A modulated reflection technique is used to compare the electrical phase length from a single input port through the four arms of the network during adjustment. The inclusion of the previously tuned accelerator sections in the network allows the total phase error to be minimized if careful control is exercised over the section terperatures. The measuring system, the reflection modulators, and the possible errors involved are discussed.
HIV Risk Factors in Dually Diagnosed Patients

The authors examined correlates of HIV seropositivity in a sample of dually diagnosed inpatients. The subjects were 147 consecutively admitted patients to a specialized dual-diagnosis unit in a municipal hospital who were given a structured interview and HIV testing. The HIV seroprevalence was 19%, with women having a nearly fourfold increased risk of being HIV seropositive, as compared with men. Cocaine as drug of choice was also highly significant as a risk factor for HIV infection, independent of gender. This finding suggests that targeted prevention and education programs need to be developed for the dually diagnosed patient.
Species of Dactylogyrus (Monogenoidea: Dactylogyridae) and Trichodina mutabilis (Ciliata) Infesting Koi Carp, Cyprinus carpio, During Mass Mortality at a Commercial Rearing Facility in Utah, U.S.A.

Abstract A die-off of koi carp, Cyprinus carpio, at a commercial rearing facility located in Spanish Fork, Utah, U.S.A., is reported. Although the cause of mortality in carp remained undetermined, moribund carp became heavily infested with Trichodina mutabilis and 6 species of Dactylogyrus (prevalence = 100%). Dactylogyrus formosus comprised the largest proportion of the dactylogyrid population on infested hosts (38.7%), followed by D. dulkeiti (28.8%), D. anchoratus (14.7%), D. baueri (8.6%), D. intermedius (8.0%), and D. minutus (1.2%). Occurrences of D. dulkeiti and D. baueri on Cy. carpio represent new host records. Dactylogyrus dulkeiti and T. mutabilis on carp in Utah are the first records of these species in the Nearctic.
The Role of Information in the Policy Process: Implications for the Examination of Research Utilization in Higher Education Policy

Connecting research and policy persists as one of higher education’s most pressing challenges. Yet, the extent to which states rely on research evidence to craft policy remains under-studied. This chapter examines research utilization and public policy theory for their conceptual implications on how researchers might examine the role of information in the higher education policymaking process. The review of literature includes education-related studies, but also reviews classic studies drawn from political science, policy analysis, and evaluation. The inventory of how five theories of the policy process incorporate the research utilization literature identifies possible conceptual extensions of these frameworks and holds promise for increasing our understanding of how research influences policy. This chapter also discuss the influence of two types of intermediary organizations—state higher education agencies and regional compacts—on research utilization in the higher education policymaking process.
Benefit-Cost Analysis in the States: Status, Impact, and Challenges

Although there is growing interest in applying benefit-cost analysis (BCA) to public policy questions, limited information is available on states’ use of this methodology. The nationwide assessment presented here begins to fill that void and finds that states and the District of Columbia are increasingly conducting BCAs and using the results to inform their policy choices. The numbers of reports released by the states and statutory mandates to conduct these studies increased substantially between 2008 and 2011. An analysis of the studies released by states shows that most lack some recommended technical features of rigorous BCA, but the reports are having a reported impact on state policy and budget decisions. Like other forms of policy research, BCA faces challenges including resource and data limitations, timing problems, and gaining policymaker buy-in for the approach and findings.
Amyloid biomarkers: pushing the limits of early detection.

This scientific commentary refers to ‘Cerebrospinal fluid analysis detects cerebral amyloid-β accumulation earlier than positron emission tomography’, by Palmqvist et al. (doi:10.1093/brain/aww015). One of the major advances in Alzheimer’s disease clinical research over the past two decades has been the development and validation of biomarkers for amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, the core neuropathological lesions that define the disease. Amyloid plaque deposition can be detected in vivo based on reductions in CSF levels of the amyloid-beta 1-42 amino acid polypeptide (amyloid-β1-42), or by PET imaging with radiotracers that bind selectively to the fibrillar aggregates of amyloid-β that form plaques (Blennow et al. , 2015). Collectively, amyloid-β biomarkers provide strong evidence for a prolonged ‘preclinical’ or ‘asymptomatic at-risk’ stage of Alzheimer’s disease, in which amyloid pathology is present in situ decades prior to the onset of clinical dementia (Sperling et al. , 2011). Even in the absence of overt cognitive deficits, normal individuals who have positive amyloid-β biomarkers show accelerated neurodegeneration and declining performance on neuropsychological tests compared to their amyloid-β-negative counterparts, and are at increased risk for developing incident cognitive impairment (Jagust, 2016). These observations have shifted the landscape of Alzheimer’s disease clinical research towards preclinical, biomarker-based detection of amyloid, and the implementation of early therapeutic interventions aimed at lowering amyloid and thus delaying or ultimately preventing the onset of clinical dementia (Sperling et al. , 2011). In this issue of Brain , Palmqvist and colleagues provide compelling evidence that CSF amyloid-β1-42 may be more sensitive than amyloid PET to the early stages of amyloid deposition (Palmqvist et al. , 2016), a finding that has important ramifications for our understanding of preclinical Alzheimer’s disease and for the design of prevention trials. Though they measure very different elements of amyloid biology, CSF amyloid-β1-42 and amyloid PET …
Effect of Manure and Corn Hybrid on Survival of Western Corn Rootworm (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

The interactions between manure and hybrid tolerance and their subsequent effects on the survival of the western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, and other soil arthropods were investigated in 1992 and 1993. To evaluate alternative management strategies for the western corn rootworm, treatment combinations included 2 corn hybrids ('Pioneer hybrid 3733' and 'Cornell 281'), 4 manure rates (0, 45, 90 and 135 metric ton/ha) and 3 western corn rootworm egg densities (1992: 0, 500, 700 eggs per 30.5-cm row; 1993: 0, 400, 800 eggs per 30.5-cm row). Pioneer hybrid 3733 has been rated superior to Cornell 281 in resistance to stalk and root lodging. Plots of Pioneer hybrid 3733 contained fewer western corn rootworm larvae on 6 July 1992, but the number of larvae and adults did not differ between hybrids on any other date. Although western corn rootworm larval counts did not differ by manure rate in either year, adult emergence was reduced an average of 45% in manured plots compared with nonmanured plots in 1992. Wet soil conditions probably contributed to the reduced larval counts and adult emergence found in all plots in 1992 compared with 1993 and could have interacted with manure to increase mortality in treated plots. Adult emergence increased with egg density, but the ratio of emergence to egg density decreased as egg density increased. Numbers of mesostigmatid mites significantly increased in manured plots during both years. No evidence of enhanced predation was reflected in larval counts. Although previous studies have reported increased western corn rootworm survival in tolerant corn hybrids with large root systems, manure applications and the subsequent increase in root mass did not lead to increased western corn rootworm populations.
Removal of bone marrow in living animals.

SummaryA method is described allowing the removal of the entire marrow from any of the long bones in a living rabbit.
Prolonged Nightly Fasting and Breast Cancer Prognosis

Importance Rodent studies demonstrate that prolonged fasting during the sleep phase positively influences carcinogenesis and metabolic processes that are putatively associated with risk and prognosis of breast cancer. To our knowledge, no studies in humans have examined nightly fasting duration and cancer outcomes. Objective To investigate whether duration of nightly fasting predicted recurrence and mortality among women with early-stage breast cancer and, if so, whether it was associated with risk factors for poor outcomes, including glucoregulation (hemoglobin A 1c ), chronic inflammation (C-reactive protein), obesity, and sleep. Design, Setting, and Participants Data were collected from 2413 women with breast cancer but without diabetes mellitus who were aged 27 to 70 years at diagnosis and participated in the prospective Women’s Healthy Eating and Living study between March 1, 1995, and May 3, 2007. Data analysis was conducted from May 18 to October 5, 2015. Exposures Nightly fasting duration was estimated from 24-hour dietary recalls collected at baseline, year 1, and year 4. Main Outcomes and Measures Clinical outcomes were invasive breast cancer recurrence and new primary breast tumors during a mean of 7.3 years of study follow-up as well as death from breast cancer or any cause during a mean of 11.4 years of surveillance. Baseline sleep duration was self-reported, and archived blood samples were used to assess concentrations of hemoglobin A 1c and C-reactive protein. Results The cohort of 2413 women (mean [SD] age, 52.4 [8.9] years) reported a mean (SD) fasting duration of 12.5 (1.7) hours per night. In repeated-measures Cox proportional hazards regression models, fasting less than 13 hours per night (lower 2 tertiles of nightly fasting distribution) was associated with an increase in the risk of breast cancer recurrence compared with fasting 13 or more hours per night (hazard ratio, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.05-1.76). Nightly fasting less than 13 hours was not associated with a statistically significant higher risk of breast cancer mortality (hazard ratio, 1.21; 95% CI, 0.91-1.60) or a statistically significant higher risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio, 1.22; 95% CI, 0.95-1.56). In multivariable linear regression models, each 2-hour increase in the nightly fasting duration was associated with significantly lower hemoglobin A 1c levels (β = –0.37; 95% CI, –0.72 to –0.01) and a longer duration of nighttime sleep (β = 0.20; 95% CI, 0.14-0.26). Conclusions and Relevance Prolonging the length of the nightly fasting interval may be a simple, nonpharmacologic strategy for reducing the risk of breast cancer recurrence. Improvements in glucoregulation and sleep may be mechanisms linking nightly fasting with breast cancer prognosis.
Red Cell Preservation: Further Studies with Adenine

Supplementation of the ACD-preservative with small amounts of adenine (0.5 µM per ml. amounting to 37 mg. of the base or 56 mg. of adenine sulfate per 550 ml. unit of blood) preserved satisfactory viability (post-transfusion survival greater than 70 per cent) of stored human red cells for 5 to 6 weeks. In the concentrations used, the addition of guanine, cytidine or uridine, alone or in combination with adenine, had little or no effect in extending viability. Hypoxanthine, even in large amounts, did not appear to be toxic to the stored cells. Preservation of viability after 6 weeks of refrigerated storage may be somewhat improved by storage in certain plastic containers as compared with glass.
Analysis and surveillance results of Leptospirosis in Hunan province in 2005

[Objective] To understand the surveillance and prevention for Leptospirosis in Hunan province. [Methods] Five counties (cities) were selected to investigate bacteria-bearing condition of infection source and serology results of natural population and suspects. Laboratory testing was carried out according to related national standards. [Results] Separation of Leptospirosis and distribution of Leptospirosis strains about source of infection; 15 strains of Leptospirosis were separated from samples from mice and frogs. Among them, 14 strains were separated from mice, and the positive rate was 3.59%. Serology: antibodies in double sera from 11 suspects were detected and 5 were confirmed. The confirmation rate is 45.45%; 15 types of antibodies in 525 natural population were detected, and the types of antibodies in it were more than 12. Among them, the positive rate of Icterohaemorrhagiae in Xiang Tan country was the highest (62.75%), and the GMT of it in Yuan Jiang city was the highest (37.64). [Conclusion] It was proved from separation of Leptospirosis in mice and frogs that saxkoebing type and Yuanjiang type of Sejroe serogroup were the major types in Dongting Lake area, Hunan province. Icterohaemorrhagiae was still the major popular serotype in natural population, and secondly were Autumnalis, Australis, Pomona, Grippotyphosa. More attention should be paid to monitoring and controlling the major serotype.
Stress Analysis on the Leakage of Main Steam Drainage Pipes

Due to the leakage of the main steam drainage pipes,the efficiency as well as the personal safety and the normal operation of the equipment in one power plant has been seriously affected.The excessively high secondary stress is considered to the main reason for the issue,so instead of fixed bearings,sliding bearings are adopted to make sure that the secondary stress is in the allowable range.No leakage accidents happen again after the technical renovation.
The Analysis of the Accuracy of Measurement by Vibrating Wire Sensor and the Practice

In this paper the basic working principle,characteristics and engineering applications of the vibrating wire sensor are introduced.In view of the applications,the author analyzes the methods and the principles of using counter to pick up frequency signal in engineering and also makes qualitative analysis on the factors which influence the system error and random error in the vibrating wire sensor measurement.Methods and measures of reducing system errors are proposedin order to improve the measurement accuracy.These methods also havegreat significance for other engineering monitoring.
Mechanism and Mitigation of the Decomposition of an Oxorhenium Complex-Based Heterogeneous Catalyst for Perchlorate Reduction in Water.

A biomimetic heterogeneous catalyst combining palladium nanoparticles and an organic ligand-coordinated oxorhenium complex on activated carbon, Re(hoz)2–Pd/C, was previously developed and shown to reduce aqueous perchlorate (ClO4–) with H2 at a rate ∼100 times faster than the first generation ReOx–Pd/C catalyst prepared from perrhenate (ReO4–). However, the immobilized Re(hoz)2 complex was shown to partially decompose and leach into water as ReO4–, leading to an irreversible loss of catalytic activity. In this work, the stability of the immobilized Re(hoz)2 complex is shown to depend on kinetic competition between three processes: (1) ReV(hoz)2 oxidation by ClO4– and its reduction intermediates ClOx–, (2) ReVII(hoz)2 reduction by Pd-activated hydrogen, and (3) hydrolytic ReVII(hoz)2 decomposition. When ReV(hoz)2 oxidation is faster than ReVII(hoz)2 reduction, the ReVII(hoz)2 concentration builds up and leads to hydrolytic decomposition to ReO4– and free hoz ligand. Rapid ReV(hoz)2 oxidation is mainly prom...
Genetic Signature of Resistance to White Band Disease in the Caribbean Staghorn Coral Acropora cervicornis.

Coral reefs are declining worldwide due to multiple factors including rising sea surface temperature, ocean acidification, and disease outbreaks. Over the last 30 years, White Band Disease (WBD) alone has killed up to 95% of the Caribbean`s dominant shallow-water corals—the staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis and the elkhorn coral A. palmata. Both corals are now listed on the US Endangered Species Act, and while their recovery has been slow, recent transmission surveys indicate that more than 5% of staghorn corals are disease resistant. Here we compared transcriptome-wide gene expression between resistant and susceptible staghorn corals exposed to WBD using in situ transmission assays. We identified constitutive gene expression differences underlying disease resistance that are independent from the immune response associated with disease exposure. Genes involved in RNA interference-mediated gene silencing, including Argonaute were up-regulated in resistant corals, whereas heat shock proteins (HSPs) were down-regulated. Up-regulation of Argonaute proteins indicates that post-transcriptional gene silencing plays a key, but previously unsuspected role in coral immunity and disease resistance. Constitutive expression of HSPs has been linked to thermal resilience in other Acropora corals, suggesting that the down-regulation of HSPs in disease resistant staghorn corals may confer a dual benefit of thermal resilience.
Surgical treatment for rhabdomyoma of the right atrium causing arrhythmias

Rhabdomyomas of the heart occur as multiple lesions in 90% of patients so affected, and 80% of the patients die in the first year of life. A 21-month-old child presented with a large isolated right atrial rhabdomyoma causing a supraventricular tachyarrhythmia. Surgical excision cured the arrhythmia.
Treatment Options for Paraclinoid Aneurysms: Discussion

In the preceding two chapters, the authors have reviewed the literature and their experience with paraclinoid aneurysms. They pay particular attention to the indications and techniques used for treatment with open surgical clipping and flow diversion. Also mentioned were several other strategies for treating patients with these lesions including conservative management, carotid ligation, simple embolization, and balloon- or stent-assisted embolization.
Decoupling and elucidation of surface-driven processes during inorganic mineralization on virus templates.

Abstract There is a lack of fundamental information about the molecular processes governing biomineralization of inorganic materials to produce nanostructures on biological templates. This information is essential for the directed synthesis of high quality nanomaterials via biotemplating. We characterized palladium (Pd) mineralization via the individual adsorption, reduction, and nanocrystal growth processes, which simultaneously occur during the hydrothermal synthesis on the Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). The adsorption of precursor and reduction of palladium were decoupled through UV–vis Spectroscopy and in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy studies. The role of additional cysteine (Cys) residues, ionic strength, and coating density on the fundamental parameters describing these processes were quantitatively evaluated. Primary nanocrystal growth and structural orientation of Pd nanoparticles was characterized using in situ small angle X-ray scattering. The adsorption, reduction of Pd species, and nanocrystal sizes were significantly changed on addition of Cys residues to the amino terminus of the TMV coat protein. Reduction of Pd on an already coated virion was dependent on the Pd surface area, and was hindered by the presence of residual salt. Furthermore, trends in Pd adsorption intensity and capacity suggested that chloride ions affected the adsorption equilibrium. Application of this fundamental approach with further optimization of parameters dictating biomineralization would facilitate directed synthesis and scale up of bioinorganic systems.
A simulation‐based approach to understand how metacommunity characteristics influence emergent biodiversity patterns

To understand controls over biodiversity, it is necessary to take a multi-scale approach to understand how local and regional factors affect the community assembly processes that drive emergent patterns. This need is reflected in the growing use of the metacommunity concept to interpret multi-scale measures of biodiversity, including metrics derived from diversity partitioning (e.g. α, β and γ diversity) and variation partitioning (e.g. spatial and environmental components of compositional turnover) techniques. However, studies have shown limited success using these metrics to characterize underlying community assembly dynamics. Here we demonstrate how a metacommunity simulation package (MCSim) can be used to evaluate when and how biodiversity metrics can be used to make inferences about metacommunity characteristics. We examined a wide range of parameter settings representing ecologically relevant scenarios. We used artificial neural networks (ANNs) to assess the sensitivity of diversity and variation partitioning metrics (calculated from simulation outcomes) to metacommunity parameter settings. In the scenarios examined in this study, the niche-neutral gradient strongly influenced most biodiversity metrics, metacommunity size exhibited a marginal influence over some metrics, and dispersal dynamics only affected a subset of variation partitioning outcomes. Variation partitioning response curves along the niche-neutral gradient were not monotonic; however, simulation outcomes suggest other biodiversity metrics (e.g. dissimilarity saturation) can be used in combination with variation partitioning metrics to make inferences about metacommunity properties. With the growing availability of archived ecological data, we expect future work will apply simulation-based techniques to better understand links between biodiversity and the metacommunity characteristics that are presumed to control the underlying community assembly processes.
A Concept for Test Case Prioritization Based upon the Priority Information of Early Phase

The early information from requirement and design phase is very effective in software testing phase and it is also admitted by software requirement engineers (SRE) and software designer’s community. However still most of the regression testing techniques work is performed by taking conventional information from software code. It will be more beneficial for software engineer if they use requirement priority information and design priority information in software testing to validate the process and find the fault easily. This will also provide the right direction of working of software and actual information is tested as per condition imposed. In this paper we scout that whether early phase (requirement and design) priority information associate with the tradition code analysis phase can improve the effectiveness of prioritization of test case techniques.
Disorders of Heme Biosynthesis

X-linked sideroblastic anemia is due to a deficiency of the erythroid form of the first enzyme in the heme biosynthetic pathway, 5-aminolevulinic acid synthase. Characteristics of the disease are variable, but typically include adult onset anemia, ineffective erythropoiesis with formation of ring sideroblasts, iron accumulation and pyridoxine responsiveness.
Use of UHPLC-TripleQ with synthetic standards to profile anti-inflammatory hydroxycinnamic acid amides in root barks and leaves of Lycium barbarum.

Hydroxycinnamic acid amides (HCAA) are the secondary metabolites ubiquitously exist in flowering plants, formed by condensation between hydroxycinnamates and mono or polyamines. HCAA species not only serve multiple functions in plant growth and development, but also exert significant positive effects on human health. In this study, we combined organic synthesis and UPHLC-TripleQ-MS/MS specifically targeting at HCAA species. The method was fully validated with respect to specificity, linearity, intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), recovery, and reproducibility. We applied this method to identify and quantify HCAAs from the root barks and leaves of Lycium barbarum. HCAA species were reported in leaves for the first time, and 10 new HCAA species were further identified in root barks in addition to the ones reported in the literature. We also examine anti-inflammatory properties of identified HCAAs species. Seven HCAA compounds had a potent NO inhibitory effect with IC50 as low as 2.381 μM (trans-N-caffeoyl phenethylamine). Our developed method largely improved analytical sensitivity of HCAAs species that potentially contributes to plant metabolomics studies.
Low Vision Mobility Problems: Perceptions of O&M Specialists and Persons with Low Vision:

Through national survey research, this study explored low vision mobility problems, including the effects of different lighting conditions and the relationship between the reported perceptions of m...