cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Novel method for the formation of monodisperse superheated perfluorocarbon nanodroplets as activatable ultrasound contrast agents.

Microbubble (MB) contrast agents have positively impacted the clinical ultrasound (US) community worldwide. Their use in molecular US imaging applications has been hindered by their limited distribution to the vascular space. Acoustic droplet vaporization (ADV) of nanoscale superheated perfluorocarbon nanodroplets (NDs) demonstrates potential as an extravascular contrast agent that could facilitate US-based molecular theranostic applications. However these agents are metastable and difficult to manufacture with high yields. Here, we report a new formulation technique that yields reliable, narrowly dispersed sub-300 nm decafluorobutane (DFB) or octafluoropropane (OFP)-filled phospholipid-coated NDs that are stable at body temperature, using small volume microfluidization. Final droplet concentration was high for DFB and lower for OFP (>1012 vs. >1010 NDs per mL). Superheated ND stability was quantified using tunable resistive pulse sensing (TRPS) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). DFB NDs were stable for at least 2 hours at body temperature (37 °C) without spontaneous vaporization. These NDs are activatable in vitro when exposed to diagnostic US pressures delivered by a clinical system to become visible microbubbles. The DFB NDs were sufficiently stable to allow their processing into functionalized NDs with anti-epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) antibodies to target EpCAM positive cells.
Learning by Brewing: Beer Production Experiments in the Chemical Engineering Laboratory

We discuss the successful creation and implementation of a biotechnology track within the chemical engineering unit operations course. The track focuses on engineering principles relevant to brewing. Following laboratory modules investigating heat transfer processes and yeast fermentation kinetics, student groups design and implement a project to produce and analyze a fermented beverage. In addition to dealing with cell culture, reactor scale-up, systems design, and more, students also consider their process from an environmental and economic standpoint.
#deflategate: Sports journalism and the use of image repair strategy on Twitter:

This study investigated how different groups of sports journalists covered the NFL “deflategate” scandal through social media, specifically in terms of employing image repair strategies via Twitter...
Decentralised adaptive architectures for control of large-scale active–passive modular systems with stability and performance guarantees

Decentralised control of large-scale active–passive modular systems is considered in this paper. The considered class of large-scale systems consist of physically interconnected and generally heter...
IN VITRO PROPAGATION OF SHOOTS AND CALLUS INDUCTION OF GYMNEMA SYLVESTRE R. BR. “AN IMPORTANT ANTI-DIABETIC PLANT”

Objective: The objective of this research was to establish and develop a protocol for the mass multiplication and callus induction of an anti-Diabetic plant- G. sylvestre R. Br. Methods: Sterilized explants (Nodal segment and leaf) were used for the initiation of culture. They were cultured on MS medium supplemented with a variety of PGRs (BAP, Kn, IBA, 2,4-D) individually or in combinations. Results: The induction of multiple shoots from nodal segments were highest in MS medium supplemented with 2.0 mg/l Kn and in BAP Maximum shoots were obtained on MS medium fortified with 1 mg/l BAP. For rooting different concentration of IBA were used and highest rooting was recorded on MS medium supplemented with 2.0 mg/l IBA. The rooted Plantlets were hardened initially in culture room conditions and then transferred to mist house. Leaf petiole explants were used for the purpose of callus induction. Best growth was observed in MS medium supplemented with 2,4-D. 1.0 mg/l 2,4-D+0.5 mg/l BAP, 1.0 mg/l 2,4-D+1.5 mg/l Kn. Conclusion: The results obtained in this research work clearly indicated that Kn is a better choice than BAP for the culture initiation. 2 mg/l IBA was proved best for root induction. For callus induction, 1 mg/l 2,4-D gave good results and when callus was sub-cultured on 2,4-D with BAP or Kn then 1.0 mg/l 2, 4-D+1.5 mg/l Kn proved best for mass propagation of callus.
Fermi-Löwdin orbital self-interaction correction to magnetic exchange couplings.

We analyze the effect of removing self-interaction error on magnetic exchange couplings using the Fermi-Lowdin orbital self-interaction correction (FLOSIC) method in the framework of density functional theory (DFT). We compare magnetic exchange couplings obtained from self-interaction-free FLOSIC calculations with the local spin density approximation (LSDA) with several widely used DFT realizations and wave function based methods. To this end, we employ the linear H–He–H model system, six organic radical molecules, and [Cu2Cl6]2− as representatives of different types of magnetic interactions. We show that the simple self-interaction-free version of LSDA improves calculated couplings with respect to LSDA in all cases, even though the nature of the exchange interaction varies across the test set, and in most cases, it yields results comparable to modern hybrids and range-separated approximate functionals.
Nonlinear Optical Susceptibilities

The first lecture gave a classical introduction to nonlinear optical properties in terms of an anharmonic oscillator model. A phenomenological description of various nonlinear phenomena was outlined. This material may be found in Chapter 1 of a lecture note volume on Nonlinear Optics.1
Water Has Memory

In January 2011, police in St. Petersburg, Florida, raided the home of Hydra Lacy, an African-American man charged with domestic battery. Lacy hid in the tight garret of his one-story house, shots ...
Complete Genome Sequence of the Cluster F1 Mycobacteriophage KingMidas.

ABSTRACT Subcluster F1 bacteriophage KingMidas was isolated from soil collected in Providence, Rhode Island, using Mycobacterium smegmatis mc2155 as the host. The genome is 57,386 bp and contains 105 predicted protein-coding genes but no transfer-messenger RNAs or tRNAs. This siphovirus has an icosahedral head, with a genome 99.1% identical to that of F1 mycobacteriophage Scottish.
Acquisition of 3D Data for Prediction of Monotonic and Cyclic Properties of Superalloys

The component design and fatigue life prediction of turbine disk alloys are critically dependent on the thermomechanical properties of the material. The TriBeam microscope provides a pathway to capture large, targeted 3D microstructural data volumes from turbine disk alloys in order to instantiate models that are used to simulate mechanical loading and assess material properties. The TriBeam experiments used to capture the microstructure, the analysis methods, data requirements, and future needs for 3D infrastructure will be discussed.
Generalized Multiview Shared Subspace Learning Using View Bootstrapping

A key objective in multiview learning is to model the information common to multiple parallel views of a class of objects/events to improve downstream tasks such as classification and clustering. In this context, two open research challenges remain; achieving scalability: how can we incorporate information from hundreds of views per event into a model? and being view-agnostic: how to learn robust multiview representations without knowledge of how these views are acquired? In this work, we study a neural method based on multiview correlation to capture the information shared across a large number of views by subsampling them in a view-agnostic manner during training. We analyze the error of this bootstrapped multiview correlation objective using matrix concentration theory to provide an upper bound on the number of views to subsample for a given embedding dimension. Our experiments on a diverse set of audio and visual tasks—multi-channel acoustic activity classification, spoken word recognition, 3D object classification, and pose-invariant face recognition—demonstrate the robustness of view bootstrapping to model a large number of views. Results and analysis underscore the applicability of our method for a view-agnostic learning setting.
Criteria to Evaluate Evidence in Interventions for Children with Autism

Identifying appropriate and high-quality interventions for children with ASD can be a challenge for professionals and parents alike. A lack of shared parameters for evaluating evidence in the field, the heterogeneous presentation of ASD, and the abundance of unsupported treatments that may be presented to families complicate this process. The present chapter offers guidelines and considerations for evaluating evidence for ASD and addresses ongoing limitations to this endeavor.
Government Social Media Engagement Strategies and Public Roles

Through social media, public officials share information with the people they serve. Related scholarship has centered on open government goals such as transparency, participation, and collaboration...
Oxygen-release microspheres capable of releasing oxygen in response to environmental oxygen level to improve stem cell survival and tissue regeneration in ischemic hindlimbs

Stem cell transplantation has been extensively explored to promote ischemic limb vascularization and skeletal muscle regeneration. Yet the therapeutic efficacy is low due to limited cell survival under low oxygen environment of the ischemic limbs. Therefore, continuously oxygenating the transplanted cells has potential to increase their survival. During tissue regeneration, the number of blood vessels are gradually increased, leading to the elevation of tissue oxygen content. Accordingly, less exogenous oxygen is needed for the transplanted cells. Excessive oxygen may induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, causing cell apoptosis. Thus, it is attractive to develop oxygen-release biomaterials that are responsive to the environmental oxygen level. Herein, we developed oxygen-release microspheres whose oxygen release was controlled by oxygen-responsive shell. The shell hydrophilicity and degradation rate decreased as the environmental oxygen level increased, leading to slower oxygen release. The microspheres were capable of directly releasing molecular oxygen, which are safer than those oxygen-release biomaterials that release hydrogen peroxide and rely on its decomposition to form oxygen. The released oxygen significantly enhanced mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) survival without inducing ROS production under hypoxic condition. Co-delivery of MSCs and microspheres to the mouse ischemic limbs ameliorated MSC survival, proliferation and paracrine effects under ischemic conditions. It also significantly accelerated angiogenesis, blood flow restoration, and skeletal muscle regeneration without provoking tissue inflammation. The above results demonstrate that the developed microspheres have potential to augment cell survival in ischemic tissues, and promote ischemic tissue regeneration in a safer and more efficient manner.
Force-based stiffness mapping for early detection of breast cancer

Early detection of breast cancer will continue to be crucial in improving patient survival rates for the foreseeable future. Our long-term goal is to automate and refine the manual breast exam proc...
Phase Noise and Jitter Measurements in SEU-Hardened CMOS Phase Locked Loop Design

Single event upset (SEU) is a significant problem in analog, digital, and mixed signal circuits. The extent of the attacks increases in radiation susceptible environments such as military and aerospace. Phase locked loop (PLL) is ubiquitous and usually employed as data recovery or clock signal in some electronic devices used in these environments. Single event transient causes ionizing particles to interact with the transistor and generate more leakage current that can result in malfunctioning of the transistor. A radiation hardened PLL is proposed whereby each block is designed to be SEU tolerant. Dual and triple redundancies are employed in the design of phase-frequency detector and frequency divider, respectively. The results show that the phase-locked loop operates from 3.5 to 4 GHz with the center frequency of 3.9 GHz. The phase noise of the voltage-controlled oscillator is estimated to be -109.5 dBc/Hz at 10 MHz offset frequency and the jitter is 128 ps at 3.9 GHz.
A holistic characterization methodology for stochastic printing failures in EUV contact holes

A characterization approach has been developed for evaluating stochastic printing failures in EUV contact holes. Demand for consistent yield exceeding 10 billion contacts requires robust process co-optimization with a focus on stochastic defect reduction throughout the patterning process flow. To monitor and quantify failure rates across process points, implementation of a holistic approach for accurate and high-throughput methodologies is proposed.
Autorregulación del aprendizaje: desenredando la relación entre cognición, metacognición y motivación

La teoria del aprendizaje autorregulado (AA) se compone de tres dimensiones principales: la cognicion, la metacognicion y la motivacion. Si bien abundan las investigaciones sobre estos componentes ...
Human-wildlife conflict in the community forestry landscape: a case study from two Middle Hill districts of Nepal

Our current understanding of human-wildlife conflicts (HWC) is limited beyond protected areas. This article investigated HWC in community-forestry (CF) landscape in two Middle Hill districts of Nep...
Environmental Sound Classification with Tiny Transformers in Noisy Edge Environments

The unprecedented growth of edge sensor infrastructure is driving the demand function for in situ analytics, i.e. automated decision support at the point of data collection. In the present work, we detail our state-of-the-art Environmental Sound Classification (ESC) framework that is capable of near real-time acoustic categorization directly at the edge. Existing ESC algorithms primarily train and test on pristine datasets that fail in real-world deployments due their inability to handle real-world noisy environments. Methods to denoise the sounds are often computationally expensive for edge devices and do not guarantee performance improvements. To this end, we investigate a way to make existing ESC models robust and make them work in operational resource-constrained settings. Our framework employs a noisy classification model consisting of a tiny BERT-based Transformer (less than 20,000 parameters) and considers hardening of this model through the use of transmission channel noise augmentation. We detail real-world results through its deployment on a Raspberry Pi Zero and demonstrate its classification performance.
Alternant systems and their properties

Neutral, ionic, and complete alternant systems are studied using the alternancy symmetry adapted (ASA) approach. This approach is based on an explicit construction of ASA operators that are up to the sign invariant with respect to the particle-hole symmetry transformation. These operators serve as building blocks of alternant systems, and they determine their characteristic properties. All Hamiltonians describing neutral alternant systems are explicitly constructed. Up to some minor restrictions, all Hamiltonians describing ionic and complete alternant systems are also explicitly constructed. Inversely, given a Hamiltonian Ĥ in a second quantization notation, one can easily check whether or not this Hamiltonian describes a neutral (ionic, complete) alternant system. All linear properties characteristic to neutral (ionic, complete) alternant systems are obtained. In particular, all one- and two-particle properties are derived in an explicit form. The properties obtained substantially generalize “classical” properties of alternant systems such as, in the case of neutral alternant systems, uniform charge density distribution, vanishing bond orders between atomic sites of the same parity, and alternancy selection rules for the electric dipole transitions.
The Scratchpad II Computer Algebra Language and System

Seratchpad II is a computer algebra language and system that features generic operations and abstract datatypes that are parameterized, extensible and dynamically constructible. Algorithms may be expressed at their most natural level of abstraction and defined to operate in the most general setting possible. Although designed specifically for computer algebra, Scratehpad II nevertheless provides a general-purpose programming language and environment.
THE LABOR SUPPLY OF NURSES AND NURSING ASSISTANTS IN THE UNITED STATES

Health care administrators and public policy makers are currently much concerned with the labor supply of nurses and nursing assistants. Hospitals and nursing homes, complaining of labor shortages, request public assistance to enable them to pay higher wages. Before committing public funds, policy makers want up-to-date estimates of the wage elasticities of labor supply for nurses and nursing assistants. Constructing a framework within which these elasticities can be estimated requires consideration of the nature and possible origins of the reported shortages. Based on annual time-series data for the US, 1988-2002, the study has derived posterior distributions for short- and long-run own wage elasticities of labor supply by Registered Nurses (RN) and nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants (NAOA). This analysis suggests that increased public assistance to health care providers, designed to raise wages, probably would not reduce reported shortages arising from monopsony power but would nonetheless appreciably increase employment of RNs and NAOAs.
Cytokines in Health and Disease

A comprehensive text providing much of the currently available knowledge in the field of cytokines. There are four areas covered, including general overviews of each of the major cytokines, listings of the important interactions these cytokines have with inflammatory cells, discussions of current an
Planar Laser Light Scattering for the In-Cylinder Study of Soot in a Diesel Engine

A study has been experimentally conducted in an optically-accessible DI Diesel engine operating on 50/50 mixture of iso-octane and tetradecane to evaluate a planar laser light scattering technique for the in-cylinder study of soot. Two simultaneous images, taken with vertically and horizontally polarized scattered light, were used to determine the polarization ratio, C{sub HH}/C{sub W}. This magnitude of the polarization ratio was employed to distinguish soot particles from fuel droplets. The spatial and temporal variations of soot during the combustion cycle were investigated with images taken at various crank angles and swirl levels at three different planes in the combustion bowl. For the high swirl case, soot was uniformly distributed in the combustion bowl. For the non-swirl case, however, soot was mainly observed near the wall and at the top plane, and was observed to exist later into the expansion stroke. These results were consistent with combustion photography results from earlier work and provided improved spatial information and temporal resolution. The major limitations of this technique are the soot deposition on the window and multiple scattering from the fuel droplets during the fuel injection period.
Utilization of α-ketoisocaproate for synthesis of hepatic export proteins and peripheral proteins in normal and cirrhotic subjects

The ratio R, defined as (percent of dose of 14C)/(percent of dose of 3H) in the leucine of plasma fibrinogen, albumin, immunoglobulin G (IgG), red cell globin, and salivary mucin, was measured in 7 normal adults and in 5 cirrhotic patients during continuous intragastric infusion of 1-14C-labeled alpha-ketoisocaproate (KIC) and 3H-labeled leucine. The ratio R measured in whole body protein has been shown in rat experiments to be a measure of the nutritional efficiency of KIC relative to leucine. In normal subjects, R in albumin and fibrinogen became constant (0.63 +/- 0.05) after the third hour and were indistinguishable from one another. The ratio R in IgG was similar and constant. The ratio R in plasma leucine (0.62 +/- 0.06) was significantly lower than R in mucin (0.86 +/- 0.04) or globin (0.73 +/- 0.04), indicating that these latter proteins derive a significant fraction of their leucine from KIC transaminated locally, rather than from circulating leucine. Results in 5 cirrhotic patients were the same, except that R in IgG and R in globin were significantly increased. Thus, cirrhosis does not alter the efficiency, relative to leucine, with which oral KIC is used for synthesis of export proteins by the liver, but increases the efficiency with which it is used for the synthesis of some proteins peripherally.
On languages piecewise testable in the strict sense

In this paper we explore the class of Strictly Piecewise languages, originally introduced to characterize long-distance phonotactic patterns by Heinz [7] as the Precedence Languages. We provide a series of equivalent abstract characterizations, discuss their basic properties, locate them relative to other well-known subregular classes and provide algorithms for translating between the grammars defined here and finite state automata as well as an algorithm for deciding whether a regular language is Strictly Piecewise.
A dry ashing assay method for the trace determination of Th and U in polymers using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

This paper discusses the methods developed for determining the radiopurity of high density polyethylene and polyetherketone ketone materials to be considered for use in ultralow background physics experiments. This work focuses on the processes used to render the polymeric samples acid soluble for subsequent ultratrace analysis using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. High density polyethylene was determined to contain 2.19 ± 0.42 pg Th/g and 2.81 ± 0.52 pg U/g. The method provided very low absolute detection limits of 17.2 and 38.1 fg for Th and U, respectively. However, the polyetherketone ketone sample etched or devitrified the quartz, causing determined values to be a factor of 2–4 higher for Th and 5–9 higher for U from dissolution assay results.
A mapping method for Saccharomyces cerevisiae using rad52-induced chromosome loss.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae diploids homozygous for the rad52-1 mutation have previously been shown to lose chromosomes mitotically. Spontaneous events and events following low levels of X-ray or methyl methanesulfonate treatment result in monosomic diploids, whereas higher levels of treatment result in near haploidization. This rad52-1-dependent chromosome loss has been used to develop a new mapping method which can be used to assign a previously unmapped gene to a chromosome. Chromosome loss mapping can be done in either of two ways: (1) if a diploid, homozygous for rad52-1 but heterozygous for a variety of other recessive markers, is constructed with an unmapped recessive mutation in coupling with known chromosomal markers, chromosome loss will result in the coordinate expression of the mutation and other recessive markers on the same chromosome; (2) if, however, the diploid is constructed with the unmapped mutation in repulsion to chromosomal markers, then even haploidization will never result in the coordinate expression of the unmapped mutation and other markers on the same homologous chromosome pair—This mapping method and subsequent tetrad analyses have been used to locate hom6 on chromosome X, ade4 on chromosome XIII and cdc31 on chromosome XV and to demonstrate that met5, previously assigned to chromosome V, actually maps to chromosome X; the met- marker on chromosome V has been shown to be met6. GAL80 and SUP5, previously assigned to an unmapped fragment, have now been mapped to the right arm of chromosome XIII.
Transitional cell carcinoma of bladder in first four decades of life

A retrospective analysis of 27 patients seen at UCLA in whom transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder developed at age forty or younger was conducted. Forty-one per cent had tumors manifesting known characteristics of aggressive and lethal potential: high histologic grade, muscular invasion, severe epithelial atypia, and frequent multifocal recurrence. One of these patients had extensive pelvic node metastases. The time from the first symptom, usually hematuria, to endoscopic diagnosis exceeded six months in 8 patients. The results of segmental cystectomy were very poor, in the absence of narrowly defined criteria for selection of this mode of therapy. No evidence was found to suggest that transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder in patients forty years of age and under differs clinically or morphologically from that of older patients. Treatment should be determined by the stage of the tumor and other indices of potential lethality.
Biologic markers, cellular differentiation, and metastatic head and neck cancer

The plateau in survival rates from head and neck cancer as well as the increasing incidence of disease among various populations demands the need for new perspectives in head and neck oncology. In pursuit of that goal, investigators have been developing improved biologic markers for metastatic risk of head and neck cancer. Such markers can be placed into categorical groupings, of which markers for cellular differentiation may be the most relevant. Among the growth factors relevant to head and neck cancer, epidermal growth factor and its receptor have received the most attention. Those tumors with unregulated growth factor control tend towards a more dedifferentiated state. Additionally, the degree of cellular differentiation and resulting risk of metastases may be predetermined in an individual through constitutively expressed susceptibility genes. Polymorphisms of the L-myc oncogene identified within peripheral blood lymphocytes may represent such a marker. Certain polymorphisms of this gene will identify individuals likely to express dedifferentiated head and neck cancer. Finally, the expression of cell-surface differentiation antigens may govern the capacity of cell-mediated host immune systems to control metastatic growth.
A novel protein kinase CK2 substrate indicates CK2 is not directly stimulated by polyamines in vivo.

The activity of the protein kinase (CK2) is enhanced in vitro by the binding of polyamines to the CK2β regulatory subunit. The overexpression of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), the rate-limiting enz...
Review: Long-acting β-agonists do not increase risk for asthma-related hospitalization in patients taking inhaled corticosteroids

Source Citation Jaeschke R, O’Byrne PM, Mejza F, et al. The safety of long-acting beta-agonists among patients with asthma using inhaled corticosteroids: systematic review and metaanalysis. Am J Re...
Measurement of ion beam profiles in a superconducting linac with a laser wire.

A laser wire ion beam profile monitor system has been developed at the Spallation Neutron Source accelerator complex. The laser wire system uses a single laser source to measure the horizontal and vertical profiles of a pulsed hydrogen ion (H−) beam along a 230 m long superconducting linac, which accelerates H− from 200 MeV to 1 GeV. In this paper, we describe the laser optics requirement for the system, the performance of the profile measurement, and the effects of laser parameters on the measurement reliability. The result provides a practical guideline for the development of a large-scale, operational, laser-based diagnostics in accelerator facilities.
A triangular finite element mesh generator for fluid dynamic systems of arbitrary geometry

A two-dimensional finite element mesh generator capable of discretizing arbitrarily shaped flow regions is described. This economical, interactive computer code, written in FORTRAN IV and employing PLOT 10 software together with TEKTRONIX graphics terminals (4000 series or similar devices), generates a triangular network of variable element density according to the geometry and local kinematic flow patterns of a given fluid flow problem. The algorithm is an easy-to-use preprocessor and mesh generator delivering for a particular source program suitable input data which contribute to a higher degree of accuracy, efficiency and flexibility of the numerical scheme. The code was tested for the triangularization of the confluence region of the Ohio and Tennessee rivers with two islands forming subchannels of different sizes.
The affine sieve

We establish the main saturation conjecture connected with executing a Brun sieve in the setting of an orbit of a group of affine linear transformations. This is carried out under the condition that the Zariski closure of the group is Levi-semisimple. It is likely that this condition is also necessary for such saturation to hold. © 2013 American Mathematical Society.
Jean-Francois Lyotard and the Question of Disciplinary Legitimacy.

The modern university developed as an institution legitimated by external referents, including national culture and its emancipatory potential. Today's university, however, has been largely destabilized as these referents have become, at the very least, significantly less compelling relative to larger concerns about economic competitiveness and, more extremely, met with incredulity within the context of postmodernity. This article examines the current state of the university through a consideration of Jean-Francois Lyotard's The Postmodern Condition, particularly Lyotard's ideas of performativity and language games. This analysis demonstrates the tenuous position of those disciplines that have not been reconciled to the logic of performativity. Using the example of the humanities, it is argued that endangered disciplines must become re-referentialized in order to survive.
“Minding the Gap” in Architectural Speculation

Abstract Design as scholarship or scholarship of design? “No” to a forced choice of ideology but “yes” to a new model of architectural critical theory. These twinned aspirations of scholarship are frozen by ideological mandates that control signification and visualization. First, we must understand how ideology creates metaphors in teaching and research; then, we must spatialize this same logic to see the inner workings of our synesthetic experience of architectural space as an act of reception.
Measurement of intracellular volume in monolayers of cultured cells

Methods have been developed for measuring the intracellular water space (ICS) in cultured diploid fibroblast monolayers. The values obtained have been compared to similar measurements of ICS in suspended fibroblasts using an oil spin method. Markers commonly used for measurement of total water space (TWS) ([3H]H2O, [14C]urea) and extracellular space (ECS) ([3H]inulin, [14C]l-glucose, [3H]sucrose, [3H]d-mannitol) were investigated for use in cell monolayers. Monolayer incubations were terminated by rapidly rinsing the culture dishes three times with ice cold buffer. The distribution volume of the TWS marker [14C]urea plateaued at 10 to 15 min and was independent of urea concentration. [3H]H2O was not a suitable marker for measuring total water space in cell monolayers because of rapid loss of intracellular label during rinsing. Intracellular space was calculated by subtracting [3H]sucrose space (5 min) from [14C]urea space (20 min) after incubation of fibroblasts with both markers. Values obtained for ICS (mean ± SE;µl/106 cells) of fibroblasts from two cell lines measured in monolayer (1.74±0.11 and 1.60±0.10) and in suspension (1.88±0.07 and 1.78±0.11) was approximately 10% smaller than the values for cell size (2.01 and 2.22) obtained from Coulter Counter sizing. Thus, the methods developed for measurement of ICS in monolayer fibroblasts yield data comparable to those obtained with the more standard oil spin method. Furthermore, the methods can be applied to measurement of ICS in other types of adherent cells.
Influence of magma chamber geometry on hydrothermal activity at mid-ocean ridges

Two-dimensional models of the ridge environment are utilized in this study to examine the behavior of ridge hydrothermal systems, with particular emphasis on the influence of magma chamber geometry. Seismological evidence supports a dike-like 2 km half-width chamber, and models of this chamber indicate that: (1) complete crystallization of the magma requires 30,000 years, (2) hydrothermal upflow and hot springs are concentrated in a narrow band within 1.5 km of the ridge axis for the lifetime of the system, (3) a large hydrothermal cell forms and remains centered 2 km from the axis for the lifetime of the system, (4) hydrothermal activity ends by 70,000 years. Petrological evidence supports a wide sill-like chamber up to 15 km in half-width, and models of this chamber indicate that: (1) complete crystallization of the magma requires 120,000 years, (2) hydrothermal vents are present at the ridge axis, but most of the vents are located 5–10 km away from the axis, (3) one large hydrothermal cell develops 15 km from the axis, while a series of small vigorous cells form directly above the intrusion, all of these features migrate toward the axis as the magma solidifies, (4) hydrothermal activity ends by 170,000 years. Substantially different hydrothermal systems develop around these two chamber geometries because they generate different distributions of near-criticalP-T conditions for H2O. These zones of near-critical conditions are the primary control on driving forces for ridge hydrothermal systems, and provide the primary link between magmatic and hydrothermal events. Narrow magma chambers produce a very narrow near critical zone, and therefore produce hydrothermal and hot-spring activity that is strong focused at the ridge axis. Wide chambers produce broad near-critical zones, and widely distributed hot-spring activity that sweeps towards theaxis with time.
Feasibility of NIR tomographic reconstruction with multispectral continuous wave data by mapping into frequency domain data

Diffuse near-infrared tomography of tissue can provide intrinsically useful information about total hemoglobin, oxygen saturation, water and cytochromes within tissue, yet to extract this information spectral data is required at many wavelengths. In this study, we examine a new approach to using multispectral continuous wave measurements through tissue along with second-derivative data analysis methods to estimate the pathlength in tissues over multiple tomographic paths. The goal of this work has been to demonstrate that the optical differential pathlength that is estimated by spectroscopy methods is directly related to the optical pathlength as measured by frequency-domain signals. This direct relation then allows the use of tomographic algorithms which have been developed for frequency-domain optical tomography to be applied to multispectral continuous wave data. The theoretical development is presented here, along with numerical validation in homogeneous and heterogeneous tissue-simulating regions. These results indicate that the approach outlined is valid and provides the theoretical basis for developing multispectral near-infrared tomography of tissues.
IR Microscopic Imaging of Pathological States and Fracture Healing of Bone

The application of IR microscopic imaging to the study of bone disease and fracture healing is demonstrated. Samples of normal and osteoporotic human iliac crest biopsies were prepared and examined at ~6-10 μm spatial resolution and 8 cm-1 spectral resolution with a 64 × 64 MCT focal plane array detector coupled to a Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) microscope and a step-scanning interferometer. Two spectral parameters, one that monitors the extent of mineral (hydroxyapatite) formation in the tissue and another that monitors the size/perfection of the crystals, were compared in the samples generated from normal and pathological tissues. The average mineral levels in the osteoporotic sample were reduced by ~40% from the normal. In addition, the crystal size/perfection was substantially enhanced in the disease state. The applicability of IR imaging techniques to the study of therapeutic intervention was also investigated in a study of the effects of estrogen therapy on fracture healing in rat femurs. Femurs were examined by IR microscopic imaging 4 weeks after fracture. IR imaging showed that the mineral level was enhanced in estrogen-treated samples. In addition, the crystals were larger/more perfect in the treated specimens. These data demonstrate the utility of IR spectroscopic imaging for the study of pathological states of hard tissue.
Estimation of the variability of the latency of responses to brief flashes

Abstract Human observers discriminated which of two spatially separated 1 msec flashes came first. Performance was measured as a function of the difference between the onsets of the flashes. The data are interpreted within the framework of a model which makes it possible to estimate the variability of the physiological responses evoked by these stimuli.
Automated adverse event detection collaborative: electronic adverse event identification, classification, and corrective actions across academic pediatric institutions

Background Historically, the gold standard for detecting medical errors has been the voluntary incident reporting system. Voluntary reporting rates significantly underestimate the number of actual adverse events in any given organization. The electronic health record (EHR) contains clinical and administrative data that may indicate the occurrence of an adverse event and can be used to detect adverse events that may otherwise remain unrecognized. Automated adverse event detection has been shown to be efficient and cost effective in the hospital setting. The Automated Adverse Event Detection Collaborative (AAEDC) is a group of academic pediatric organizations working to identify optimal electronic methods of adverse event detection. The Collaborative seeks to aggregate and analyze data around adverse events as well as identify and share specific intervention strategies to reduce the rate of such events, ultimately to deliver higher quality and safer care. The objective of this study is to describe the process of automated adverse event detection, report early results from the Collaborative, identify commonalities and notable differences between 2 organizations, and suggest future directions for the Collaborative. Methods In this retrospective observational study, the implementation and use of an automated adverse event detection system was compared between 2 academic children's hospital participants in the AAEDC, Children's National Medical Center, and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Both organizations use the EHR to identify potential adverse events as designated by specific electronic data triggers. After gathering the electronic data, a clinical investigator at each hospital manually examined the patient record to determine whether an adverse event had occurred, whether the event was preventable, and the level of harm involved. Results The Automated Adverse Event Detection Collaborative data from the 2 organizations between July 2006 and October 2010 were analyzed. Adverse event triggers associated with opioid and benzodiazepine toxicity and intravenous infiltration had the greatest positive predictive value (range, 47%- 96%). Triggers associated with hypoglycemia, coagulation disturbances, and renal dysfunction also had good positive predictive values (range, 22%-74%). In combination, the 2 organizations detected 3,264 adverse events, and 1,870 (57.3%) of these were preventable. Of these 3,264 events, clinicians submitted only 492 voluntary incident reports (15.1%). Conclusions This work demonstrates the value of EHR-derived data aggregation and analysis in the detection and understanding of adverse events. Comparison and selection of optimal electronic trigger methods and recognition of adverse event trends within and between organizations are beneficial. Automated detection of adverse events likely contributes to the discovery of opportunities, expeditious implementation of process redesign, and quality improvement.
Defect Characterization in Ge/(001)Si Epitaxial Films Grown by Reduced-Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition

We studied the microstructural characteristics and electrical properties of epitaxial Ge films grown on Si(001) substrates by x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The films were grown using a two-step technique by reduced-pressure chemical vapor deposition, where the first step promotes two-dimensional growth at a lower substrate temperature. We observed a decrease in defect density with increasing film thickness. Ge films with thickness of 3.5 μm exhibited threading dislocation densities of 5 × 106 cm−2, which yielded devices with dark current density of 5 mA cm−2 (1 V reverse bias). We also noted the presence of stacking faults in the form of lines in the films and establish that this is an important defect for Ge films grown by this deposition technique.
Physical-chemical conditions of ore deposition

Abstract Ore deposits form under a wide range of physical and chemical conditions, but those precipitating from hot, aqueous fluids—i.e. the hydrothermal deposits—form generally below 700°C and at pressures of only 1 or 2 kbar or less. Natural aqueous fluids in rocks may extract metal and sulfur from a variety of rock types or may acquire them as a residual heritage from a crystallizing silicate magma. Ore-forming hydrothermal fluids never appear as hot springs (except in deep, submarine situations) because they boil, mix with surface waters, and cool, thereby losing their ore-bearing ability before reaching the surface. Mineral systems function as chemical buffers and indicators just as buffers and indicators function in a chemical laboratory. By reading the record written in the buffer/indicator assemblages of minerals one can reconstruct many aspects of the former chemical environment. By studying the record of changing conditions one may deduce information regarding the processes functioning to create the succession of chemical environments and the ore deposits they represent. The example of the OH vein at Creede, Colorado, shows a pH buffered by the K-feldspar + muscovite + quartz assemblage and the covariation of S 2 and O 2 buffered by the assemblage chlorite + pyrite + quartz. Boiling of the ore fluid led to its oxidation to hematite-bearing assemblages and simultaneously produced an intensely altered, sericitic capping over the vein in response to the condensation of vapors bearing acidic components. The solubility of metals as calculated from experimental and theoretical studies of mineral solubility appears too low by at least one or two powers of ten to explain the mineralization at Creede. In contrast to Creede where the mineral stabilities all point to a relatively consistent chemistry, the Mississippi Valley type deposits present a puzzle of conflicting chemical clues that are impossible to reconcile with any single equilibrium situation. Thus we must seriously consider metastable equilibria; those most likely involve redox disequilibrium among the sulfur species in solution and perhaps also involve organic compounds.
Elevated chemokine receptor CXCR4 expression in primary tumors following neoadjuvant chemotherapy predicts poor outcomes for patients with locally advanced breast cancer (LABC)

Purpose Patients with locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) have a poor outcome. A molecular predictor to identify at-risk patients is sorely needed. CXCR4 is a chemokine receptor that has been linked to breast cancer invasion and metastasis. We postulate that in patients with LABC, CXCR4 overexpression levels in cancer specimens following neoadjuvant chemotherapy predict cancer outcome. Experimental design 54 patients with LABC were prospectively accrued and analyzed. All had neoadjuvant chemotherapy and definitive surgical therapy. Study homogeneity was maintained by standardized treatment, surveillance, and compliance protocols. A 1 cm3 cancer from the surgical specimens of each patient was retrieved for analysis. CXCR4 levels were detected using Western blots, and results were quantified against 1 μg of protein from HeLa cells. CXCR4 expression was defined as low (<6.6-fold) or high (≥6.6-fold). Primary endpoints were cancer recurrence and death. Statistical analysis performed included independent samples t-test, chi-square test, Spearman Rank analysis, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, log-rank test, and Cox proportional hazard model. Results With a median follow-up of 30 months, patients with high CXCR4 overexpression (≥6.6-fold) had a significantly higher incidence of recurrence (P = 0.0006) and cancer death (P = 0.0128) than those with low CXCR4 overexpression (<6.6-fold). The relative risks for recurrence and death in the high CXCR4 group were 27.3-fold (95% CI: 6.2–120.8; P = 0.001) and 4.8-fold (95% CI: 1.5–15.0; P = 0.0076) higher, respectively than those in the low CXCR4 group. Conclusion High CXCR4 overexpression in specimens from LABC patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy was predictive of cancer outcome.
Xenotransplantation: current status and a perspective on the future.

Could xenotransplantation using pigs as the transplant source solve the severe shortage of human organ donors? This Review describes the recent advances that are helping to bring this approach closer to the clinic and the obstacles that still need to be overcome. Xenotransplantation using pigs as the transplant source has the potential to resolve the severe shortage of human organ donors. Although the development of relatively non-toxic immunosuppressive or tolerance-inducing regimens will be required to justify clinical trials using pig organs, recent advances in our understanding of the biology of xenograft rejection and zoonotic infections, and the generation of α1,3-galactosyltransferase-deficient pigs have moved this approach closer to clinical application. This Review highlights the major obstacles impeding the translation of xenotransplantation into clinical therapies and the potential solutions, providing a perspective on the future of clinical xenotransplantation.
Discrimination of Senescent Vegetation Using Thermal Emissivity Contrast

A remote sensing method utilizing multiband thermal infrared (8–12 μm) imagery that discriminates between senescent vegetation and bare soil is described. This discrimination is achieved by computing thermal band emissivities from a temperature-emissivity separation algorithm, and then classifying surface features based on spectral emissivity contrast. In a study of rangelands and winter wheat fields in central Oklahoma, the contrast, or range, of these spectral emissivities is diagnostic of the presence or absence of surface vegetative cover. A large range of emissivities, approximately greater than 0.03, is indicative of bare soil, while a low range, less than 0.02, is indicative of vegetative cover. When knowledge of the emissivity range is combined with a vegetation index, such as NDVI, the surface may be classified by a ternary system: bare soil, green vegetation, and senescent vegetation. Discrimination between bare soil and soil covered with senescent vegetation using emissivity contrast should be feasible in other settings. The benefit of this technique is that heat flux predictions can be based on a more accurate surface representation than otherwise provided by visible and near-infrared land classification schemes.