cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparison of routine soil tests and EPA method 3050 as extractants for heavy metals in Delaware soils

Abstract Agricultural use of sewage sludges can be limited by heavy metal accumulations in soils and crops. Information on background levels of total heavy metals in soils and changes in soil metal content due to sludge application are; therefore, critical aspects of long‐term sludge monitoring programs. As soil testing laboratories routinely, and rapidly, determine, in a wide variety of agricultural soils, the levels of some heavy metals and soil properties related to plant availability of these metals (e.g. Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, pH, organic matter, texture), these labs could participate actively in the development and monitoring of environmentally sound sludge application programs. Consequently, the objective of this study was to compare three soil tests (Mehlich 1, Mehlich 3, and DTP A) and an USEPA approved method for measuring heavy metals in soils (EPA Method 3050), as extractants for Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn in representative agricultural soils of Delaware and in soils from five sites involved in a state‐mo...
Mycobacterium tuberculosis SigM Positively Regulates Esx Secreted Protein and Nonribosomal Peptide Synthetase Genes and Down Regulates Virulence-Associated Surface Lipid Synthesis

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis genome encodes 12 alternative sigma factors, several of which regulate stress responses and are required for virulence in animal models of acute infection. In this work we investigated M. tuberculosis SigM, a member of the extracytoplasmic function subfamily of alternative sigma factors. This sigma factor is expressed at low levels in vitro and does not appear to function in stress response regulation. Instead, SigM positively regulates genes required for the synthesis of surface or secreted molecules. Among these are genes encoding two pairs of Esx secreted proteins, a multisubunit nonribosomal peptide synthetase operon, and genes encoding two members of the proline-proline-glutamate (PPE) family of proteins. Genes up regulated in a sigM mutant strain include a different PPE gene, as well as several genes involved in surface lipid synthesis. Among these are genes involved in synthesis of phthiocerol dimycocerosate (PDIM), a surface lipid critical for virulence during acute infection, and the kasA-kasB operon, which is required for mycolic acid synthesis. Analysis of surface lipids showed that PDIM synthesis is increased in a sigM-disrupted strain and is undetectable in a sigM overexpression strain. These findings demonstrate that SigM positively and negatively regulates cell surface and secreted molecules that are likely to function in host-pathogen interactions.
An enhanced model of capacity expansion with CO 2 cap-and-trade and EOR CO 2 re-emergence

This paper describes an enhanced model of power production under CO2 cap-and-trade regulation. Re-emergence of CO2 from EOR (enhanced oil recovery) processing is considered, and the net CO2 release is quantified accordingly. New cost data is used to reflect the cost increase in the past few years. Binary variables are used for new construction of power plants, transmission, CO2 pipelines, and retrofitting, while continuous variables are used for representing others such as power production, CO2 generation, etc. The objective is to minimize regional cost of meeting demand under potential CO2 cap-and-trade regulation in the United States. In case studies, 28 nodes are used to represent production and demand in five States including Indiana and its surrounding states. Seventy sequestration sites are chosen for the 28 nodes, including EOR, ECBM (enhanced coal bed methane) and aquifers.
Analysis and characterization of intercarrier and interblock interferences for wireless mobile OFDM systems

OFDM has been applied in a wide variety of wireless communications in recent years since it has the advantage over the conventional single-carrier modulation schemes when enduring the frequency-selective fading. However, intercarrier-interference (ICI) and interblock interference (IBI) due to the Doppler effect, carrier frequency drift of local oscillators and multipath fading limit the capability of OFDM systems. In this paper, a new generalized mathematical model for intercarrier and interblock interferences is derived for wireless mobile OFDM systems, in which Doppler frequency drift, local carrier frequency offset, multipath fading, and cyclic prefix coding are all present in reality. Such a new ICI/IBI model can be applied for OFDM performance evaluation in different environments. This new formulation of IBI and ICI provides a generalized framework which includes special ICI models appearing in the previous literature. Besides, the derived OFDM performance evaluation analysis in this paper can greatly benefit OFDM designers for wireless multimedia networks and digital video broadcasting technologies.
DSM-5 and Neurodevelopmental and Other Disorders of Childhood and Adolescence

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), the classification of mental disorders for children and adolescents has been revised. Although some changes are welcome and needed, others have been controversial. In this article, I examine the diagnostic changes along with some of the associated controversies and resolutions. The implications for the practice of child forensic psychiatry, including problems that may be encountered by forensic psychiatrists who evaluate adults with childhood-onset mental disorders, are examined. The pitfalls associated with improper use of The Manual by legal professionals are also reviewed.
Impaired olfaction as a marker for cognitive decline: Interaction with apolipoprotein E 4 status

Objective: To determine whether olfactory status predicts cognitive decline (CD) over a 2-year follow-up period. Methods: The authors enrolled individuals in a community-based longitudinal study of memory and aging in the Japanese–American community in King County, WA, between 1992 and 1994. At baseline they screened 1,985 persons using the Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (CASI) and the 12-item Cross-Cultural Smell Identification Test (CC-SIT). Of these 1,985 people, 1,836 were found not to be demented. Two years later the authors rescreened 1,604 participants with the CASI. They defined CD as a 2-year loss of ≥5.15 points/100 on the CASI. They genotyped 69% of the 1,604 people completing both examinations for apolipoprotein E (apoE). Results: After adjusting for age, CASI score at baseline, education, smoking, sex, and follow-up time, the authors determined an odds ratio (OR) for CD of 0.90 (95% CI, 0.84 to 0.97) for an increase in each correct point on the CC-SIT (range, 0 to 12). Compared with normosmics, the OR for persons with impaired olfaction (microsmics) was 1.25 (95% CI, 0.83 to 1.89) and for anosmics the OR was 1.92 (95% CI, 1.06 to 3.47). Persons who were anosmic at baseline and who had at least one APOE-e4 allele had 4.9 times the risk of CD (95% CI, 1.6 to 14.9) compared with normosmics without the e4 allele. The estimated relative risk among women was 9.7 (95% CI, 1.3 to 70.4), and for men the risk was 3.2 (95% CI, 0.8 to 12.6). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves showed that although the area under the curve (AUC) for baseline CASI was only 0.51, the AUC for CC-SIT alone was 0.62. Adding CC-SIT to the ROC model with CASI improved the AUC curve from 0.51 to 0.62. Conclusions: Unexplained olfactory dysfunction in the presence of one or more APOE-e4 alleles is associated with a high risk of cognitive decline. Cross-Cultural Smell Identification Test classifies people with cognitive decline correctly to a greater degree than a global cognitive test.
Reflectance of Alaskan black spruce and white spruce foliage in relation to elevation and latitude

Leaf reflectance at visible and near-infrared wavelengths (400-1000 nm) is related primarily to pigmentation, leaf structure and water content, and is an important tool for studying stress physiology and relationships between plants and their growth environment. We studied reflectance of two co-occurring Alaskan conifers, black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), at elevations from 60 to 930 m a.s.l. along a latitudinal gradient from 61 degrees to 68 degrees N. Black spruce samples were collected from 24 sites and white spruce from 30 sites. Overall, reflectance spectra of the two species were similar, but from 400 to 700 nm, needle reflectance was consistently higher in black spruce than in white spruce (all P <or= 0.05). This difference is probably related to differences in epicuticular wax morphology or amount, and may represent a photoprotective mechanism in black spruce. Reflectance at visible wavelengths generally increased with elevation and latitude in both species, consistent with a general stress response. However, in a multiple regression, latitude and elevation explained only 25-45% of the total variation in the indices studied. Reflectance indices suggested that needle yellowness increased, whereas chlorophyll content and photochemical efficiency decreased with both elevation and latitude. These trends were consistent between species, but white spruce generally showed a much smaller (and insignificant) reflectance response to latitude compared with black spruce. Differences between species could be related to black spruce's ability to colonize more stressful sites and white spruce's greater competitiveness on less stressful sites, coupled with the effects of drainage and microtopography (which may vary less predictably with latitude than elevation) on species distribution. The black spruce results suggest that a 1000-m increase in elevation is roughly comparable with a 6 degrees increase in latitude.
Context sensitive topic models for author influence in document networks

In a document network such as a citation network of scientific documents, web-logs, etc., the content produced by authors exhibits their interest in certain topics. In addition some authors influence other authors' interests. In this work, we propose to model the influence of cited authors along with the interests of citing authors. Moreover, we hypothesize that apart from the citations present in documents, the context surrounding the citation mention provides extra topical information about the cited authors. However, associating terms in the context to the cited authors remains an open problem. We propose novel document generation schemes that incorporate the context while simultaneously modeling the interests of citing authors and influence of the cited authors. Our experiments show significant improvements over baseline models for various evaluation criteria such as link prediction between document and cited author, and quantitatively explaining unseen text.
A Rigorous Comparison Between the Sexes of Results and Complications After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Although there is a higher relative incidence of anterior cruciate ligament injuries in female than in comparable male athletes according to the literature, the majority of populations studied after reconstruction are male-dominated. We wished to determine whether a selection bias for reconstruction based on sex is warranted according to complications and outcome. Ninety-four patients (47 of each sex) were matched for chronicity of injury, age, preoperative sports activity levels, articular cartilage condition, and months of followup. All had patellar tendon autogenous reconstruction and a similar program of immediate knee motion and early return to function. The results were rated with the Cincinnati Knee Rating System. At a mean of 26 months postoperatively, there were no significant differences for complications or outcome between men and women. Women required an average of six more rehabilitation visits than men; however, none required additional surgery for knee motion complications and the rate of patellofemoral crepitus conversion was only 7%, lower than that found for men (15%). The overall failure rate was low, only 6% for women and 4% for men. We concluded that the functional rehabilitation program was effective, postoperative complications were few, and no scientific basis exists to use sex alone as a selection criteria for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.
Equivariant Genera of Complex Algebraic Varieties

For smooth manifolds, Atiyah and Meyer studied contributions of monodromy to usual signatures. In this note we obtain Atiyah-Meyer type formulae for equivariant Hodge-theoretic genera of complex algebraic varieties. Equivariant Hirzebruch genera y(X;g) of a quasi-projective variety X acted upon by a nite group of algebraic automorphisms are dened by combining the group action with the information encoded by the Hodge ltration of the mixed Hodge structure in cohomology. While for a projective algebraic manifold y(X;g) can by computed by the Atiyah- Singer holomorphic Lefschetz theorem, we derive a Atiyah-Meyer type formula for y(X;g) in the case when X is not necessarily smooth or compact, but just bers equivariantly (in the complex topology) over a compact algebraic manifold. These results apply to computing Hodge-theoretic invariants of orbit spaces. We also obtain some results comparing equivariant Hodge-theoretic genera of the range and domain of an equivariant algebraic map in terms of its singularities.
Motion Robust Magnetic Susceptibility and Field Inhomogeneity Estimation Using Regularized Image Restoration Techniques for fMRI

In functional MRI, head motion may cause dynamic nonlinear field-inhomogeneity changes, especially with large out-of-plane rotations. This may lead to dynamic geometric distortion or blurring in the time series, which may reduce activation detection accuracy. The use of image registration to estimate dynamic field inhomogeneity maps from a static field map is not sufficient in the presence of such rotations. This paper introduces a retrospective approach to estimate magnetic susceptibility induced field maps of an object in motion, given a static susceptibility induced field map and the associated object motion parameters. It estimates a susceptibility map from a static field map using regularized image restoration techniques, and applies rigid body motion to the former. The dynamic field map is then computed using susceptibility voxel convolution. The method addresses field map changes due to out-of-plane rotations during time series acquisition and does not involve real time field map acquisitions.
Orientation dependence in near-field scattering from TiO(2) particles.

This scattering of light by small particles embedded in a continuous transparent medium is influenced not only by the bulk optical properties of the particles and the medium but also by the size, shape, and spatial arrangement of the particles—that is, by the microstructure. If the particles are close together, as in agglomerated coatings or stereolithographic suspensions, interactions between the radiation fields of adjacent particles can lead to variations in the magnitude and spatial arrangement of the scattered light in the near and the far field, which can affect the color and hiding power of a coating, the cure depth and homogeneity in stereolithography, and the threshold intensity for stimulated emission in random lasers. Our calculations of the near- and the far-field scattering distribution for 200-nm TiO2 spheres in pairs of various orientations and in an ordered array of five particles show that, depending on the orientation of the particles with respect to the incident light, these interactions can either increase or decrease the scattering efficiency, the isotropy of the scattering, and the magnitude of the electric field strength within the matrix and the particles. In the mid-visible range, two particles in line increase the backscattering fraction by 28% and the scattering strength by 38% over that of a single particle, whereas if the particles are in the diagonal configuration the backscattering fraction and scattering strength are actually reduced by addition of the second particle. At shorter or longer wavelengths the backscattering fraction is reduced regardless of the location of the second particle, by as much as 60% when five particles are arranged in the zigzag configuration. These results are surprising in that it is generally assumed that multiple scattering enhances backscattering. Simple models of multiple scattering or scattering of two particles as a single, larger particle are inadequate to explain these results.
Single-shot spatiotemporal measurements of high-field terahertz pulses

The electric field profiles of broad-bandwidth coherent terahertz (THz) pulses, emitted by laser-wakefield-accelerated electron bunches, are studied. The near-single-cycle THz pulses are measured with two single-shot techniques in the temporal and spatial domains. Spectra of 0-6 THz and peak fields up to ≃0.4 MV cm−1 are observed. The measured field substructure demonstrates the manifestation of spatiotemporal coupling at focus, which affects the interpretation of THz radiation as a bunch diagnostic and in high-field pump-probe experiments.
Evaluation of Interventions Designed to Prevent and Control Injuries

Violent and unintentional injuries place a severe physical, emotional, and financial burden on US communities. Injuries affect people of all ages, from infants through older adults, and are the leading cause of death in the first four decades of life (1). In 1995, the economic cost of injuries was estimated to be over $260 billion, including the costs of health care and lost productivity (2). Despite the large burden on US communities, injury prevention is still a relatively new area of public health. In 1992, Congress mandated the establishment of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control to coordinate research and programmatic responses to the problem of injuries in this country (3). In partnership with other federal, state, and local organizations and universities, the Center has encouraged the use of a population-based or public health approach to injury research and programs. This approach complements engineering, mental health, and criminal justice approaches to injury prevention and control. Evaluation of interventions is an important aspect of injury prevention. Results of evaluations have the power to change injury prevention practice. For example, bicycle helmet use increased following demonstration of the impact of helmets on brain injury (4–6). The number of programs promoting installation of smoke detectors and provision of fire injury prevention education grew once these programs were shown to be highly effective and to save money (7, 8). The number of states with laws prohibiting blood alcohol concentrations of 0.08 percent or higher increased after such laws were shown to decrease fatal motor vehicle injuries (9–11).
What Is the Optimal Management of Late-Presenting Survivors of Acute Type A Aortic Dissection?

Background Although type A aortic dissections represent a surgical emergency, some patients present late after the onset of symptoms. Optimal management of this cohort has not been defined. Methods Data on 195 patients with type A dissections followed up at a single institution between 1985 and 2005 were collected prospectively. Of these, 93 patients (47.2%) presented 48 hours or later after the initial onset of pain (group A), and the remaining 102 patients underwent immediate operative repair (group B). Median follow-up was 41.8 months (range, 0 to 386 months). Results Patients in group A were older (68.8 versus 59.3 years, p = 0.0005) and had a higher incidence of coronary artery disease (42.5% versus 14.6%, p p = 0.0023), and congestive heart failure (14.1% versus 1.0%, p = 0.0004). Long-term survival was similar, although group B showed a trend toward improved 30-day mortality (16.5% versus 8.7%, p = 0.1035). Of the 92 patients in group A, 53 (57.6%) eventually underwent operative repair a median of 8.2 days after symptom onset. There was a trend toward improved long-term survival among patients undergoing repair ( p = 0.1031). Conclusions Initial medical management with interval operative repair of selected patients referred greater than 2 days following an acute type A dissection is a viable option. Delayed repair after optimization of the clinical condition and detailed evaluation of concomitant diseases results in excellent long-term results.
Caring for one of our own.

Schwartz Center Rounds are monthly multidisciplinary meetings where caregivers reflect on important psychosocial issues that they, along with patients and their families, face and gain insight and support from fellow staff members, with the goal of advancing compassionate health care, supporting caregivers, and fostering the connection between a clinician and his or her patients. This Schwartz Round focused on boundaries and the particular privileges and pressures of caring for a member of the staff. The article explores the tension between professional courtesy and empathic engagement. Major transitions can include the intrinsic fear of abandonment. Being “connected” is an important aspect of the patient-caregiver relationship. Patient-centered care requires that we balance clinical acumen and medical technology with humanism throughout the different phases of a patient’s experience with a life-threatening illness.
Array CGH improves detection of mutations in the GALC gene associated with Krabbe disease

Krabbe disease is an autosomal recessive lysosomal storage disorder caused by mutations in the GALC gene. The most common mutation in the Caucasian population is a 30-kb deletion of exons 11 through 17. There are few other reports of intragenic GALC deletions or duplications, due in part to difficulties detecting them. We used gene-targeted array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) to analyze the GALC gene in individuals with Krabbe disease in whom sequence analysis with 30-kb deletion analysis identified only one mutation. In our sample of 33 cases, traditional approaches failed to identify two pathogenic mutations in five (15.2%) individuals with confirmed Krabbe disease. The addition of array CGH deletion/duplication analysis to the genetic testing strategy led to the identification of a second pathogenic mutation in three (9.1%) of these five individuals. In all three cases, the deletion or duplication identified through array CGH was a novel GALC mutation, including the only reported duplication in the GALC gene, which would have been missed by traditional testing methodologies. We report these three cases in detail. The second mutation remains unknown in the remaining two individuals (6.1%), despite our full battery of testing. Analysis of the GALC gene using array CGH deletion/duplication testing increased the two-mutation detection rate from 84.8% to 93.9% in affected individuals. Better mutation detection rates are important for improving molecular diagnosis of Krabbe disease, as well as for providing prenatal and carrier testing in family members.
A METHOD FOR ISOLATING, TRANSFERRING AND ORIENTING SINGLE CELLS WHICH HAVE BEEN CRITICAL POINT DRIED

We present a method for handling individual dried cells so that precise orientation can be achieved as they are placed on a substrate. A static neutralizer gun was used to establish a charge, opposite to the cell surface charge, on a pin used to manipulate individual cells onto a suitable substrate having the same charge as the carrier, or a substrate having a sticky surface. Once the surface charges are established, handling of individual cells can be accomplished with ease so that precise orientation of the cells on the substrate is possible. Cells on the charged substrate are unaffected by either low pressures (10-6 torr) or the ionic environment of a sputter coater.
Ultrascale Collaborative Visualization Using a Display-Rich Global Cyberinfrastructure

The scalable adaptive graphics environment (SAGE) is high-performance graphics middleware for ultrascale collaborative visualization using a display-rich global cyberinfrastructure. Dozens of sites worldwide use this cyberinfrastructure middleware, which connects high-performance-computing resources over high-speed networks to distributed ultraresolution displays.
Reframing Recovery: Developmental Considerations for Maintaining Change

Lasting recovery for clients can be challenging to establish in addictions counseling. Through the combination of 2 approaches, motivational interviewing and developmental counseling and therapy, client treatment can be refined to promote transformative change and long-lasting recovery.
Switchable wide tuning range bandstop filters for frequency-agile radios

This paper reports on micromachined tunable bandstop filters that exhibit an octave frequency tuning range with high stopband rejection and low out-of-band loss. In addition to continuous frequency tuning, stopband switch on-off capability is realized by employing ohmic switches along with tunable capacitors. The fully re-configurable filters in this work are fabricated using a silicon-based integrated passive device technology and are the smallest-size bandstop filters reported in the low SHF range.
The role of differential and integral experiments to meet requirements for improved nuclear data

A formal procedure can be used to assess the nuclear data uncertainty reductions needed in order to meet target accuracies on crucial design integral parameters, if target uncertainties have been agreed on these design parameters. In the present paper, we used the covariance information and the resulting uncertainties on advanced reactor systems, both described in ref. [1] as part of the activity of the OECDNEA WPEC Subgroup 26, to investigate data target accuracies and possible approaches to meet them.
Emergency contraception: knowledge and attitudes of family medicine providers.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Emergency contraception (EC) is an underutilized method of preventing unplanned pregnancy. This study assessed family physicians' and nurse providers' knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about EC. METHODS A cross-sectional survey was distributed to faculty, residents, and clinic nurses in a Midwestern department of family medicine. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Statistical significance was tested by chi-square test, Student's t test, and Mann-Whitney U test where appropriate. RESULTS Seventy-eight providers participated (response rate 81%). Seventy-four percent of physicians have prescribed EC in the past, with an average of 3.2 (range 0-10) times in the last year. The majority of providers reported that they were familiar with indications (96%) and protocols (78%) for prescribing EC, yet knowledge inaccuracies were identified. Overall attitudes regarding EC were positive. CONCLUSIONS Although the majority of participating providers were willing to prescribe EC and had generally favorable attitudes toward it, rates of providing this therapy were low. There was a discrepancy between providers' perceived and actual knowledge about EC. Interventions targeting misunderstandings might help reduce missed opportunities to provide EC.
Seminar on global and large scale System Models summary and conclusions

We began with a review of relevant aspects of the Methodology of System Modelling and System Theory. We had detailed presentations of the following specific models: Mesarovic-Pestel Models Bariloche Models UNIDO — (ARAB) Models
List Testing Exercise: Budget Constraint

This exercise simulates routine list-testing decisions made by direct marketers. It presents students with 10 lists of 50,000 names each and a budget allowing them to mail to only half the available names. To discourage complicated sequential testing plans, the students are required to write out their instructions for dealing with the 500,000 names. Actual response rates for the 10 lists are available to the instructor for use in evaluating the students' plans.
Claudin-2-dependent paracellular channels are dynamically gated

Intercellular tight junctions form selectively permeable barriers that seal the paracellular space. Trans-tight junction flux has been measured across large epithelial surfaces, but conductance across individual channels has never been measured. We report a novel trans-tight junction patch clamp technique that detects flux across individual claudin-2 channels within the tight junction of cultured canine renal tubule or human intestinal epithelial monolayers. In both cells, claudin-2 channels display conductances of ~90 pS. The channels are gated, strictly dependent on claudin-2 expression, and display size- and charge-selectivity typical of claudin-2. Kinetic analyses indicate one open and two distinct closed states. Conductance is symmetrical and reversible, characteristic of a passive, paracellular process, and blocked by reduced temperature or site-directed mutagenesis and chemical derivatization of the claudin-2 pore. We conclude that claudin-2 forms gated paracellular channels and speculate that modulation of tight junction channel gating kinetics may be an unappreciated mechanism of barrier regulation.
Hurricane Flood Protection for Texas City, Texas (Coastal Engineering Conference in Santa Barbara, California, October 1965)

The hydraulic problems relating to design of the hurricane flood protection system, and a general description of the protective structures and facilities selected for the project are presented. The method of determining hurricane surges is given and storm tide elevations and frequencies developed from hypothetical storms of varying magnitude are compared with those derived from the records of experienced storms. The size and characteristics of waves and wave run-up that would be expected with the design storm surge are examined, with respect to the type and elevation of protective structures required for Texas City. The problems of providing interior drainage during both normal and high tide periods are also considered, as are factors involved in determining the type and capacities of drainage structures, pumping plants, and ponding areas required for handling rainfall runoff within the protected area. Some unusual problems encountered in detailed planning and design of the protective structures (especially those through the congested industrial areas) are described.
Good Hybrids/Bad Hybrids

Hybrid income-consumption taxes seek to tax some but not all savings, the treatment of savings being the principal difference between an income and a consumption tax. Some hybrids, however, simply move the tax system towards a prepaid consumption or wage tax; others, by allowing arbitrage, risk making all taxation voluntary. A consistent, progressive postpaid consumption tax, in contrast, gets matters just right, by design: it allows ordinary savings, for times of retirement or medical or educational needs, to lower the burden of taxation, while falling on the yield to savings when it is used to elevate lifestyles. It is, in short, a good hybrid.
Bacterial pneumonia in persons infected with the human immunodeficiency virus

Background Patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection are at increased risk for bacterial pneumonia in addition to opportunistic infection. However, the risk factors for bacterial pneumonia and its incidence in this population are not well defined. Methods In a multicenter, prospective, observational study, we monitored 1130 HIV-positive and 167 HIV-negative participating adults for up to 64 months for pulmonary disease. The HIV-positive group comprised 814 homosexual or bisexual men, 261 injection-drug users, and 55 female partners of HIV-infected men. Results There were 237 episodes of bacterial pneumonia among the HIV-positive participants (rate, 5.5 per 100 person-years), as compared with 6 episodes among the HIV-negative participants (rate, 0.9 per 100 person-years; P<0.001). The rate of bacterial pneumonia increased with decreasing CD4 lymphocyte counts (2.3, 6.8, and 10.8 episodes per 100 person-years in the strata with more than 500, 200 to 500, and fewer than 200 cells per cubic m...
Radiative Heat Transfer During Growth of Carbon Nanotubes by Vertical Electric-Arc Process

A macroscopic finite elements model of heat transfer occurring during production of carbon nanotubes was developed. Radiation heat transfer was modeled using the Discrete Ordinates (DO) model and the Rosseland diffusion approximation. The arc is modeled as semitransparent, with the optical thickness ranging from zero to infinity. The results are compared to the limited data available. The optical thickens has a significant impact on the temperature field in (i) the arc and (ii) the anode surfaces exposed to the arc. The temperature of the cathode side-surface on which the small diameter carbon nanotube grew, is not sensitive to the optical thickness of the arc. The model indicates that the optical thickness of the arc should be high, aL ≥ 100.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Real-Time Systems Theory and Practice Can We Bridge the Gap?

This discussion begins with the question: what is the impact of the universities and the real-time research community on the real-time systems industry, whose total market has been estimated to be approximatelly $45 billions. Their impact and influence are very low.
Section 3: Vibrations of a Stretched Membrane

A rectangular taut membrane, only stretched lengthwise, will be susceptible to the same vibrations and the same sounds which vibrate crosswise. The nodes of vibration will then be transverse immobile lines. But such a membrane, as a membrane stretched in more directions, will also be able to vibrate in infinite ways. The curvature cannot be expressed by lines, but by curved surfaces. For these, the expressions and the means to calculate them are once again lacking. The nodes of vibration will form nodal lines in the different directions. More information on the vibrations of surfaces is located in Sect. 7.
Self-regulation of functional pathways by motifs inside the disordered tails of beta-catenin

Beta-catenin has two major functions: coordinating cell-cell adhesion by interacting with cadherin in cadherin junction formation pathway; and regulating gene expression through Wnt signaling pathway. Accomplishing these two functions requires synergistic action of various sequential regions of the same beta-Catenin molecule, including the N-terminal tail, the middle armadillo domain, and the C-terminal tail. Although the middle armadillo domain is the major functional unit of beta-Catenin, the involvement of tails in the regulation of interaction between beta-Catenin and its partners has been well observed. Nonetheless, the regulatory processes of both tails are still elusive. In addition, it is interesting to note that the three sequential regions have different structural features: The middle armadillo domain is structured, but both N- and C-terminal tails are disordered. This observation leads to another important question on the functions and mechanisms of disordered tails, which is also largely unknown. In this study, we focused on the characterization of sequential, structural, and functional features of the disordered tails of beta-Catenin. We identified multiple functional motifs and conserved sequence motifs in the disordered tails, discovered the correlation between cancer-associated mutations and functional motifs, explored the abundance of protein intrinsic disorder in the interactomes of beta-Catenin, and elaborated a working model on the regulatory roles of disordered tails in the functional pathways of beta-Catenin. Disordered tails of beta-Catenin contain multiple functional motifs. These motifs interact with each other and the armadillo domain of beta-catenin to regulate the function of beta-Catenin in both cadherin junction formation pathway and Wnt signaling pathway.
microRNAs: Tiny Regulators with Great Potential

Animal genomes contain an abundance of small genes that produce regulatory RNAs of about 22 nucleotides in length. These microRNAs are diverse in sequence and expression patterns, and are evolutionarily widespread, suggesting that they may participate in a wide range of genetic regulatory pathways.
Toll-like receptor 9 signaling antagonizes the B cell receptor-dependent ability of B cells to process and present antigen to helper T cells.

B cells express both an adaptive antigen-specific B cell receptor (BCR) and innate Toll-like receptors (TLRs) allowing the functional outcome of the B cell’s engagement with antigen to be modulated in response to pathogen-derived TLR ligands. In T cell-dependent responses, the BCR both signals for B cell proliferation and differentiation and also internalizes bound antigen for processing and presentation to helper T cells. Here we show that although the presence of the TLR9 ligand, CpG, does not affect early BCR mediated events following antigen binding including phosphorylation of key components of the signaling cascade and the formation of BCR clusters on cell surface, CpG alters the outcome of BCR signaling, resulting in unique transcriptional profiles, enhanced proliferation and differentiation to antibody secreting cells. In contrast, CpG dramatically limits the ability of B cells to process and present antigen to helper T cells. In the presence of CpG, BCR-induced upregulation of CD86 and MHC class II expressions are antagonized and antigen internalized by the BCR is not properly trafficked to antigen processing compartments resulting in reduced numbers of peptide-MHC class II complexes on the B cell surface. Indeed, CpG treated antigen-specific B cells show a reduced ability to maintain contact with antigen-specific T cells and to activate antigen-specific helper T cell proliferation in vitro. These results suggest that TLR9 activation in T cell dependent responses would drive B cell toward proliferation and antibody secretion and away from events that are highly dependent on the ability of B cells to present antigen to helper T cells, such as entry into germinal centers and affinity selection.
Balint's Syndrome

Clinically, Balint's syndrome is the co-occurrence of three symptoms: optic apraxia, optic ataxia, and simultanagnosia. Optic apraxia was initially described as ‘pseudoparalysis of gaze’ without accompanying eye movement deficits. Optic ataxia is a deficit in reaching to the location of an object that is otherwise seen without accompanying motor deficits. Simultanagnosia is inability or inefficiency in perceiving more than one object at a time. Selective attention and visual feature integration are also compromised. Balint's syndrome leaves the patient functionally blind but without the resources of the blind to compensate. Occipital parietal disruption bilaterally is associated with this cluster of deficits.
Epidural Pneumorrhachis Causing Intraoperative Loss of Motor Potentials During Instrumented Fusion for Scoliosis: A Case Report.

Case In a patient who underwent a thoracoscopic anterior release combined with a posterior spinal fusion for juvenile idiopathic scoliosis, unilateral loss of neuromonitoring signals was noted during the posterior instrumentation, and epidural pneumorrhachis was identified by intraoperative O-arm imaging. An immediate laminectomy and decompression of epidural fat and air were performed, resulting in return of the neuromonitoring signals. The patient had no clinical motor or neurological deficits postoperatively, and the posterior spinal fusion was completed successfully 3 days later. Conclusion Epidural pneumorrhachis is a possible complication of scoliosis surgery with pedicle screw fixation, which can result in the intraoperative loss of neuromonitoring signals; however, rapid identification and intervention can result in an excellent outcome.
Geochemistry: Evaporating planetesimals

In comparison to primitive, chondritic meteorites, which are widely thought to be the building blocks of Earth, Earth and other differentiated planetary bodies are chemically fractionated, with Earth's crust and mantlethe 'silicate Earth'being strongly depleted in moderately volatile elements (such as lead, zinc, indium and the alkali metals). Two papers in this week's issue suggest that this difference in composition between chondritic meteorites and Earth could be a natural consequence of vapour loss from magma on the surface of growing planetesimals. Ashley Norris and Bernard Wood examined the melting processes that would have occurred during accretion on Earth and its precursor bodies and performed vaporization experiments under conditions of fixed temperature and oxygen partial pressure. They found that the pattern of volatile-element depletion in the silicate Earth is consistent with partial melting and vaporization rather than with simple accretion of a volatile-rich chondrite-like body. Remco Hin and co-authors show that differentiated planetary bodies have isotopically heavier magnesium compositions compared to chondritic meteorites, and conclude that this could be due to the isotopic fractionation between liquid and vapour, followed by vapour escape during accretionary growth of planetesimals.
Extending the Stansfield Algorithm to Three Dimensions: Algorithms and Implementations

The Stansfield algorithm is a well-known geolocation method for two-dimensional (2-D), azimuth-only bearing measurements of a stationary emitter. It is known to suffer from estimation bias, and its performance in terms of optimality criteria is unknown. Strategies that accurately combine both azimuth and elevation measurements for 3-D position estimation are generally required in many applications. This paper introduces two novel bearings-only geolocation algorithms: the weighted Stansfield algorithm in three dimensions (WS3D) and the instrumental variable weighted Stansfield algorithm in three dimensions (IVWS3D). In these two procedures, bearing quality weighting and estimated range weighting are used to minimize the maximum-likelihood cost function in pairs of coupled least-squares procedures. Measurement weighting is shown to be important to obtain best performance. Moreover, the use of updated bearing measurements in the instrumental variable method in IVWS3D is shown to decrease estimation bias. Simulations of the new algorithms show that the WS3D algorithm asymptotically outperforms existing geolocation algorithms, whereas the IVWS3D algorithm provides the least-biased position estimation.
Development and validation of a stabilized immersed boundary CFD model for freezing and melting with natural convection

Abstract Numerous processes in the automotive, additive manufacturing or energy storage industries require an accurate prediction of the solidification (freezing) and melting (thawing) dynamics of substances. The numerical modeling of these phase changes is highly complex because it includes sharp moving interfaces and strong discontinuities in the material properties. This complexity is often exacerbated by the occurrence of natural convection, which induces a strong coupling between the motion of the liquid and the position of the solid–liquid interface. This leads to strongly coupled non-linear thermo-fluid problems which have to be solved in complex geometries. In this work, we introduce two novel stabilized finite element models to predict the phase change with natural convection. The first model uses a more classical viscosity approach to impose stasis in the solid region whereas the second one is based on an immersed boundary formulation to accurately describe the solid–fluid interface. The efficiency of the stabilization is first demonstrated by studying the Stefan problem. The two approaches to impose stasis are then compared using 2D test cases before they are both used to study melting in a rectangular (2D) and prismatic (3D) cavity. Significant differences are observed in the flow profiles and the solid–liquid interface position between the 2D and the 3D simulations.
Development of a Hybrid Micro Air Vehicle Capable of Controlled Transition

Micro air vehicles often have limited versatility with restrictions on endurance, agility, hover capability, and payload. A hybrid vehicle is proposed that addresses these constraints using a tailsitter design and novel dual tilting rotors. Transition between hover and forward flight is achieved by rotating the body with control authority provided by only the tilting rotors in a minimally actuated design. The addition of tilting rotors allows for improved actuation capacity and control throughout transition. A cascaded control methodology is presented that accounts for large body rotations using the resolved tilt-twist method. Nonlinear backstepping converts the control forces and moments to actuator inputs while considering the unique vehicle dynamics. A prototype vehicle is constructed with the control strategy running in an embedded flight controller and transition is demonstrated experimentally. The vehicle is able to maintain control authority throughout transition while also achieving increased efficiency in forward flight.
Forever New Frontiers: Managing Messiness at the Edge

The future of talent management will always be discovered on the frontier, and the frontier is always messy. There will always be charlatans selling snake oil and the latest personality assessments. What can be done? When operating at the edge of the map, one cannot rely on having the right answers because the challenges and the answers will be novel. However, adventurers can rely on the capabilities and processes that allow them to adapt and figure it out as they go.
Soil Water Content and the Ratio of Nitrous Oxide to Nitric Oxide Emitted from Soil

Nitrification and denitrification are oxidative and reductive microbial processes, respectively, that occur simultaneously at different microsites within the soil, and each process produces both nitric oxide (NO) and nitrous oxide (N2O). Although much is known about regulation of these processes in the laboratory, the salient factors appropriate for use in regional and global models of N trace gas emissions have not been identified. However, trends exist in the growing global database of N2O and NO emissions that are consistent with soil water content functioning as an important controller of the ratio of N2O to NO emitted from soils. Below about 60% water-filled pore space (WFPS), soil microbial processes are often limited by diffusion of organic-C and inorganic-N substrates in soil water films, whereas diffusion of O2 in the soil atmosphere limits aerobic processes when WFPS > 60% (60% WFPS is roughly equivalent to field capacity in many soils). In laboratory studies with nitrification inhibitors, the aerobic process, chemoautotrophic nitrification, was the dominant source of both N2O and NO when soil water content was 60%, the anaerobic process, denitrification, was the dominant source, and N2O emissions were 10 or more times greater than NO emissions. Emission ratios of N2O to NO were > 1 when WFPS > 60%. Few field studies report WFPS, but even gravimetric soil water content, which does not account for textural differences among soils, crudely predicted emission ratios of N2O to NO. Prediction of ratios of emissions of N2O and NO based on WFPS (or a related parameter of soil water content) would be most useful when combined with ecosystem models of N cycling dynamics that predict total N gas emissions from indices of N availability or site fertility.
Geriatrics in primary care residency training.

A description of a medical school curriculum that integrates the knowledge and skills necessary in caring for the elderly into primary care residency programs. Virtual Mentor is a monthly bioethics journal published by the American Medical Association.
Thymomas and other thymic primary malignancies of the chest

Thymic epithelial tumor is a rare mediastinal neoplasm but is the most common primary neoplasm of the anterior mediastinum. Radiologists and clinicians must be aware of the full spectrum of this rare disease, the standard guidelines for diagnostic evaluation, and how imaging findings affect therapeutic decisions. We present the variable imaging appearance of the normal thymus, the imaging features, and current staging of thymic neoplasms with an emphasis on how imaging interpretation affects management.