cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fructan Supplementation and Infection Affect Food Intake, Fever, and Epithelial Sloughing from Salmonella Challenge in Weanling Puppies

Our objective was to examine the effects of fructan supplementation on the immune response of weanling puppies subjected to bacterial challenge. Previous studies in bacterial challenged neonatal piglets have reported benefits of fructan supplementation. Thirty hound-cross puppies (12 wk of age) were used in a 2 x 3 factorial randomized complete block design. Following a 7-d baseline period, puppies were assigned to diets containing: 1) no prebiotic, 2) 1% short-chain fructooligosaccharides (scFOS), or 3) 1% inulin. After 14 d on treatment diet, dogs received an oral gavage of: 1) Salmonella typhimurium DT104 (5 x 10(8) colony forming units) or 2) 0.9% saline. Food intake, fecal and activity scores, body temperature, body weight, blood chemistry, intestinal nutrient transport, intestinal morphology and pathology, and gut microbiota were measured. Food intake decreased (P < 0.01) and body temperature increased (P < 0.05) in infected puppies. However, the decrease in food intake was less (P < 0.05) in those consuming fructans. Infected puppies consuming fructans also had decreased (P = 0.05) severity of enterocyte sloughing than those fed the control diet. Ileal Na+-dependent glucose transport was decreased (P = 0.02) in infected vs. noninfected puppies consuming CON, whereas no changes occurred in fructan-supplemented animals. Puppies consuming inulin also had increased fecal acetate (P = 0.03) and total short-chain fatty acid (P = 0.06) concentrations than scFOS-fed puppies and controls. Finally, puppies fed inulin had an increase (P = 0.05) in Lactobacillus concentrations compared with scFOS and CON. In summary, fructan supplementation appeared to attenuate some of the negative responses associated with Salmonella challenge and may provide protection against infection in weanling puppies.
A retrovirus carrying the K-fgf oncogene induces diffuse meningeal tumors and soft-tissue fibrosarcomas.

Abstract The K-fgf/hst oncogene encodes a growth factor of the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family and transforms cells through an autocrine mechanism which requires extracellular activation of its receptor(s). To identify the cell and tissue targets of K-fgf oncogenic potential in vivo, we constructed a recombinant retrovirus carrying the human K-fgf cDNA and injected it, together with helper Moloney murine leukemia virus, into immunocompetent as well as nude mice. The original construct was highly transforming in tissue culture but produced no detectable pathologies in vivo with the exception of a single fibrosarcoma which arose after a long latency. The virus produced by this tumor appears to have undergone a complex series of recombination events involving the helper Moloney murine leukemia virus. It encodes an Env/K-FGF fusion protein whose expression is under the control of a hybrid long terminal repeat. This virus (designated MFS, for meningeal fibrosarcoma) induces tumors in mice with high frequency and short latency. These neoplasms consist of aggressive fibrosarcomas of soft tissue as well as diffuse meningeal tumors originating from the dura mater that surround the whole central nervous system and cause severe hydrocephalus. The Env/K-FGF fusion protein expressed by the MFS virus has retained all of the biological properties of native K-FGF, including secretion, mitogenic activity, heparin binding, and neutralization by anti-K-FGF antibodies. These and other results indicate that the tumors induced by the MFS virus result from the oncogenic potential of K-FGF.
Modeling of plasmonic terahertz antennas using COMSOL ® multiphysics

A computational model allowing for the study of terahertz photoconductive antennas is presented. This model allows for nanoscale geometry variations in three dimensions. The model is validated using measurements data. The preliminary results illustrate the effectiveness of the model in calculating the time-dependent photocurrent collected by the antenna as well as the total photocurrent enhancement of the terahertz antenna as compared to the non-plasmonic design. This model will be used as a tool to design a more enhanced plasmonic terahertz photoconductive antenna as will be presented in the conference.
The economic cost of a carbon tax on the personal computer market

The environmental cost of production—the impacts of effluents such as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, air particulates, and water pollutants—on society and the environment is a growing global concern for governments, corporations, and consumers. Proposed regulatory schemes seek to address many of these environmental problems by imposing policies to internalize the environmental costs associated with production—such as a tax on the emissions of carbon dioxide, or a carbon tax. But businesses lack a framework that provides a quick and easy way to analyze the effect that changing environmental cost structures may have on corporate business strategy.
What is the occupational risk to emergency care providers from the human immunodeficiency virus

The risk to health care providers of acquiring human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection through occupational exposure is very low, but the consequences of becoming infected are obviously severe. The magnitude of this risk has been debated extensively in the medical literature, but the majority of these discussions have focused on providers of surgical, orthopedic, and obstetric care, none of whom have ever been documented to have become infected with HIV through occupational exposure. In contrast, there has been very little information published regarding the degree of risk to emergency care providers, several of whom have been confirmed as having acquired HIV infection through occupational exposures. This report addresses the extent and nature of risk of HIV infection to emergency care providers and reviews the current management of significant exposures.
Margherita of Cortona: Women, Preaching, and the Writing of Hagiography

AbstractThis article examines Margherita of Cortona (1247–97), who took a penitent habit in the late 1270s. In 1290 Margherita was granted permission to rebuild the church of San Basilio near her cell and a secular priest became her confessor. After her death in 1297, her former confessor, the Franciscan Giunta Bevegnati, composed Margherita's Legenda, which provides an account of her life, conversion and penitence, her conversations with Christ, and her charitable works. In addition to the Legenda, there is also an altarpiece, portraying Margherita and scenes from her life, and the seventeenth-century watercolour paintings that reproduce the frescos which once decorated the church of Santa Margherita, the former San Basilio. Following a short introduction to Margherita's life, and a brief examination of preaching for women in the Middle Ages and its prohibitions, the article examines how the biographer, Giunta Bevegnati, represents the relationship of Margherita to preaching and sermons, in particular fo...
Patellar tendon repair with hamstring autograft: A cadaveric analysis

Abstract Background Rupture of the patellar tendon requires surgical repair to restore function of the knee. The most accepted repair technique utilizes running locking non-absorbable sutures secured to the patella through three drill holes. Complications with this repair technique include rerupture, knee stiffness, and extensor lag caused by gap formation at the site of repair. Some surgeons have suggested augmenting the standard repair with local autograft tendon to avoid these complications. It was hypothesized that using a repair technique that included augmentation of the repair with autograft tendons would decrease the gap formation at the repair site under cyclic loading conditions. Methods In this experiment, eight specimens were used to analyze two methods of patellar tendon repair: hamstrings autograft augmentation and a standard repair using three vertical bone tunnels in the patella. Each specimen was then extended with a 2.2 kg weight on the tibia at 0.25 Hz to simulate early motion after surgery. The gap formed at the repair site was then measured at 1, 10, 100, and 250 cycles and both techniques confidence interval compared using a Wilcoxon signed rank test. Findings The mean gap formation for the standard repair after one cycle was 8.9 mm (SD 2.4) and for the augmented repair was 3.6 mm (SD 0.9). At 250 cycles the mean gap formed for the standard repair was 13.2 mm (SD 1.9) and the mean gap for the augmented repair was 7.2 mm (SD 0.9). All gaps for all cycles analyzed had an 88% confidence interval for significance using a Wilcoxon signed rank test. Interpretation The biomechanical results of this study show statistical trend toward decrease gap formation with an augmented tendon at the repair site under a simulated dynamic knee motion.
Impedance-based structural health monitoring of wind turbine blades

Wind power is a fast-growing source of non-polluting, renewable energy with vast potential. However, current wind turbine technology must be improved before the potential of wind power can be fully realized. Wind turbine blades are one of the key components in improving this technology. Blade failure is very costly because it can damage other blades, the wind turbine itself, and possibly other wind turbines. A successful damage detection system incorporated into wind turbines could extend blade life and allow for less conservative designs. A damage detection method which has shown promise on a wide variety of structures is impedance-based structural health monitoring. The technique utilizes small piezoceramic (PZT) patches attached to a structure as self-sensing actuators to both excite the structure with high-frequency excitations, and monitor any changes in structural mechanical impedance. By monitoring the electrical impedance of the PZT, assessments can be made about the integrity of the mechanical structure. Recently, advances in hardware systems with onboard computing, including actuation and sensing, computational algorithms, and wireless telemetry, have improved the accessibility of the impedance method for in-field measurements. This paper investigates the feasibility of implementing such an onboard system inside of turbine blades as an in-field method of damage detection. Viability of onboard detection is accomplished by running a series of tests to verify the capability of the method on an actual wind turbine blade section from an experimental carbon/glass/balsa composite blade developed at Sandia National Laboratories.
Living with Myths: Undergraduate Education in America

(1994). Living with Myths: Undergraduate Education in America. Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning: Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 28-32.
Disseminating Trust Information in Wearable Communities

This paper describes a framework for managing and distributing trust information in a community of mobile and wearable computer users. Trust information in the form of reputations are used to aid users during their social interactions with the rest of the community.
Angiographic Determination of the Left Vetricular Ejection Rate in Man with Heart Disease

Eighty-two adults with various chronic heart diseases were studied by cardiac catheterization and quantitative biplane left ventriculography with filming at 12 per second. Mean left ventricular ejection rate (dVe/dt), which is the change in chamber volume with respect to time, was calculated from the films. The patient series included those with left ventricular volume overload, pressure overload, myocardial disease, idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis, and one patient with a ventricular septal defect. dVe/dt correlated significantly with stroke volume and both parameters varied over nearly a ten-fold range of values. dVe/dt correlated poorly with the ejection fraction, whereas dVe/dt divided by end-diastolic volume correlated significantly with the ejection fraction. dVe/dt alone bas minimal value in assessing left ventricular function but when dVe/dt is normalized for end-diastolic volume, it may reflect the contractile function of the left ventricle. Therefore, ventricular ejection rate is similar to other assessments of ventricular pump function (ie, stroke volume, strokework, and power) and only has significance in evaluating left ventricular myocardial function when preload is considered.
Condensed-phase flame retardation in nylon 6-layered silicate nanocomposites: Films, fibers, and fabrics

Flame-retardant properties of nylon 6/organically modified montmorillonite (OMMT) thin films, fibers, and fabrics were investigated to determine the efficacy of condensed-phase flame-retardant mechanism in relation to montmorillonite concentration, sample geometry, and flame test conditions. Horizontal flame spread conducted on thin films revealed no significant difference in burning behavior between nylon 6 and nanocomposites with 5 wt% OMMT. However, with a higher concentration level of 8–10 wt% OMMT, the films burned without any dripping. The flame spread rate was reduced by 30–40% as compared with nylon 6 films. Cone calorimeter study on nanocomposite films showed that the peak heat release rate of nylon 6 was reduced by 65–67% with 8–10 wt% OMMT. Undrawn nanocomposite monofilaments with 10 wt% OMMT burned slowly and steadily in Bunsen flame without dripping. In cone calorimeter, nanocomposite fabrics with 8 wt% OMMT showed reduced heat release rate and mass loss rate compared to nylon 6 fabrics with increase in fabric tightness factor. The mass loss rate was about 40–60% less when compared with nylon 6 fabrics. The fabric char structure remained intact after burning. This demonstrated the interdependence of fabric tightness factor, OMMT concentration, and source of heat flux in forming a protective char and affecting the flammability of fabrics. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2008. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers
Mixed-methods studies

The papers in this special issue may be considered part of the ongoing rapprochement between two methodologies that were often considered irreconcilable in times past (Barbour & Barbour, 2003; Pope...
The Underestimated Significance of Practitioner Knowledge in the Scholarship on Student Success

The scholarship on student success, particularly for minority groups, has two limitations. One is the lack of attention to practitioners' knowledge, beliefs, experiences, education, and feelings of self‑efficacy as factors that influence student outcomes. The other derives from the traditional science assumption that the researcher produces generalized knowledge that is translatable into "best practices" that are implemented locally by practitioners. These epistemological limitations can be addressed by the conceptualization of a phronetic social science for higher education where practitioners assume the role of researchers and develop context‑dependent knowledge and experience about how to facilitate student success.
Identification and Characterization of Oxalate Oxidoreductase, a Novel Thiamine Pyrophosphate-dependent 2-Oxoacid Oxidoreductase That Enables Anaerobic Growth on Oxalate

Moorella thermoacetica is an anaerobic acetogen, a class of bacteria that is found in the soil, the animal gastrointestinal tract, and the rumen. This organism engages the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway of anaerobic CO2 fixation for heterotrophic or autotrophic growth. This paper describes a novel enzyme, oxalate oxidoreductase (OOR), that enables M. thermoacetica to grow on oxalate, which is produced in soil and is a common component of kidney stones. Exposure to oxalate leads to the induction of three proteins that are subunits of OOR, which oxidizes oxalate coupled to the production of two electrons and CO2 or bicarbonate. Like other members of the 2-oxoacid:ferredoxin oxidoreductase family, OOR contains thiamine pyrophosphate and three [Fe4S4] clusters. However, unlike previously characterized members of this family, OOR does not use coenzyme A as a substrate. Oxalate is oxidized with a kcat of 0.09 s−1 and a Km of 58 μm at pH 8. OOR also oxidizes a few other 2-oxoacids (which do not induce OOR) also without any requirement for CoA. The enzyme transfers its reducing equivalents to a broad range of electron acceptors, including ferredoxin and the nickel-dependent carbon monoxide dehydrogenase. In conjunction with the well characterized Wood-Ljungdahl pathway, OOR should be sufficient for oxalate metabolism by M. thermoacetica, and it constitutes a novel pathway for oxalate metabolism.
Carbon monoxide and human health.

To prevent adverse effects on human health as exposure to carbon monoxide (CO) increases adequate programs and policies must be adopted. Their formulation will require deliberate scientific judgment based on adequate information and the consideration of certain hypotheses which are reviewed here. Exposures to CO are widespread. For the U.S. urban population cigarette smoking is probably the most important source followed in importance by motor vehicle exhaust occupational sources and home heating and cooking devices. The median carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) concentration for those who smoke 1 pack of cigarettes daily and who inhale is 5.9% - a concentration sufficient to imply a serious threat to health in persons with underlying vascular insufficiency. This level of exposure may be responsible for some of the excess mortality from cardiovascular disease observed among cigarette smokers. Community air pollution may produce COHb concentrations in nonsmokers similar to those observed in smokers and the effects of these concentrations will be greater at high altitude. There has been considerable documentation of endogenous production of CO from home catabolism. Such production provides a tool for the study of hemolytic disorders is a hazard to infants in respirators and to men in submersibles and space capsules and may increase the risk of closed-circuit anesthesia. Low and commonly occurring CO exposures may impair accurate estimation of time intervals as well as the performance of more complex psychomotor tasks. A possible role of CO in motor vehicle accidents is suggested by data showing higher levels of COHb in drivers involved in accidents than in policemen and in other occupationally exposed populations.(AUTHORS MODIFIED)
Improving the persistence of first-year undergraduate women in computer science

This paper describes a study of undergraduate women's retention in the first-year of the computer science major at the University of Pennsylvania for the purpose of identifying the underlying issues responsible for attrition. The subsequent steps taken by the faculty to improve women's retention is also discussed.
Tree-ring analysis and conifer growth responses to increased atmospheric CO2 levels.

Tree-ring data of naturally grown connifers were analyzed to evaluate the possibility of enhanced tree growth due to increased atmospheric CO2. Tree cores were obtained from 34 sites in four different climatic regions in the northern hemisphere. In each of the four regions, the sampling sites were located along ecological gradients between the subalpine treeline and low elevations and, sometimes, the arid forest border. Growth trends after 1950, when the atmospheric CO2 concentration increased by more than 30 μl·l-1 indicate an increase in ring-widths at eight of the 34 sites. These chronologies were from sites which moderate temperature or water stress. In four cases the growth increase in the post-1950 period coincided with favorable climatic conditions. In the remaining four cases, the growth increase exceeded the upper bound response expected from CO2 enrichment experiments with seedling conifer species. Therefore, increased growth in any of the tree-ring chronologies examined could not be solely attributed to higher atmospheric CO2 concentrations.
Eigenvalue analysis in electromagnetic cavities using divergence free finite elements

The conventional node-based finite-element method frequently yields nonphysical solutions to the vector eigenvalue problem in electromagnetic (EM) cavities. The nonphysical modes are mainly due to inadequacy in enforcing the divergence free condition and boundary (as well as interface) conditions. The edge-based finite element method with divergence free shape functions can delete the resulting spurious solutions. This method has been used to solve various eigenvalue problems in both lossless and lossy cavities. No spurious modes are observed in the frequency range of interest. Good predictions of the lower modes are obtained in all examples. In addition to being a reliable tool for cavity mode analysis, the method also finds application in the characterization of materials when loaded in an EM cavity. >
Comparative Efficacy of the Concurrent Use of Pyrazinamide and Isoniazid with That of Other Forms of Therapy in the Treatment of Pulmonary Tuberculosis

SUMMARY 1.Fifty-eight patients with pulmonary tuberculosis were treated in five random groups to evaluate therapeutic efficacy of pyrazinamide and isoniazid. 2.Pyrazinamide and isoniazid therapy was slightly more effective in causing bacterial conversion of sputum from patients with streptomycin-sensitive M. tuberculosis than combinations of streptomycin and para-aminosalicylic acid, streptomycin and isoniazid, and isoniazid and para-aminosalicylic acid. In addition the conversion of sputum from positive to negative took place somewhat more rapidly with pyrazinamide and isoniazid than with the other forms of treatment. 3.Improvement as recorded by x-ray films was less rapid with pyrazinamide and isoniazid than with the use of the other treatment schedules. 4.Toxicity of pyrazinamide and isoniazid was greater than that obtained with streptomycin and isoniazid, streptomycin and para-aminosalicylic acid, and with isoniazid and para-aminosalicylic acid.
Group Differences in Graduate Students' Concepts of the Ideal Mentor.

Graduate students differ in their conceptualizations of mentoring. This study examined the relationship between students’ demographic and academic characteristics (age, gender, citizenship, academic discipline, and stage of persistence) and their preferences for three styles of mentoring assessed by the Ideal Mentor Scale (IMS): Integrity, Guidance, and Relationship. Students enrolled in Ph.D. programs at one of two Midwestern Research I Universities (n = 537) completed the IMS, rating the importance of each of 34 mentor attributes on a 5-point likert type scale. MANCOVA yielded significant differences for demographic but not academic variables: women scored higher than men on Integrity, international students scored higher than domestic on Relationship, and age was inversely related to Relationship scores. No group differences were found on the Guidance scale. These findings indicate that graduate students’ perceptions of the ideal mentor are influenced somewhat by major socio-cultural factors, but also suggest that individual differences may play a larger role.
Identification of magmatic and meteoric fluid sources and upward- and downward-moving infiltration fronts in a metamorphic core complex

A combined study of O, H, and C isotope variations in the Ruby-East Humboldt Range metamorphic core complex has identified infiltration of aqueous fluids originating from both the surface of the earth, and from deep crustal or mantle levels. At deep structural levels, metamorphic fluids flowed upward and were rich in water, had mantle-like isotopic compositions, and were probably derived from crystallizing magmas. Conversely, at higher structural levels, a major meteoric-hydrothermal system developed in response to rapid uplift, causing meteoric fluids to penetrate downward into plastically deforming metamorphic rocks at depths of 10 to 15 km below the surface. Infiltration fronts associated with both processes have been recognized, allowing us to determine fluid fluxes and flow geometries at mid-crustal levels.
Interactive generation of dynamically feasible robot trajectories from sketches using temporal mimicking

This paper presents a method for generating dynamically-feasible, natural-looking robot motion from freehand sketches. Using trajectory optimization, it handles sketches that are too fast, jerky, or pass out of reach by enforcing the constraints of the robot's dynamic limitations while minimizing the relative temporal differences between the robot's trajectory and the sketch. To make the optimization fast enough for interactive use, a variety of enhancements are employed including decoupling the geometric and temporal optimizations and methods to select good initial trajectories. The technique is also applicable to transferring human motions onto robots with non-human appearance and dynamics, and we use our method to demonstrate a simulated humanoid imitating a golf swing as well as an industrial robot performing the motion of writing a cursive “hello” word.
A Programming Language without Keywords

Computer programming today is far too dependent on one particular natural language, namely English. Mathematics is not dependent on English, and programming should not be, either. In order to eliminate the dependence of programming on English, we have constructed a programming language in which the keywords are replaced by symbols available on standard keyboards. Each of these symbols is chosen to suggest the idea of the keyword it replaces. Many of them have more than one use, but always in a way that a compiler can detect. In this way a professional can write a program without ever having to think in English. Our language is called *, and it also embodies an innovative approach to programming language safety.
Application of the top specified boundary layer (TSBL) approximation to initial characterization of an inland aquifer mineralization: 1. Direct contact between fresh and saltwater

Abstract This paper presents a basic study in generalized terms that originates from two needs: (1) to understand the major mechanisms involved in the mineralization of groundwater of the Great Bend Prairie aquifer of Kansas by saltwater originating from a deeper Permian bedrock formation, and (2) to develop simple, robust tools that can readily be used for local assessment and management activities in the salt-affected region. A simplified basic conceptual model is adopted, incorporating two horizontal layers of porous medium which come into contact at a specific location within the model domain. The top layer is saturated with freshwater, and the bottom layer is saturated with saltwater. The paper considers various stages of approximation which can be useful for simplified simulation of the build-up of the transition zone (TZ) between the freshwater and the saltwater. The hierarchy of approximate approaches leads to the development of the top specified boundary layer (TSBL) method, which is the major tool used in this study for initial characterization of the development of the TZ. It is shown that the thickness of the TZ is mainly determined by the characteristic dispersivity. The build-up of the TZ is completed after a time period equal to the time needed to advect a fluid particle along the whole extent of the TZ. Potential applications and the effects of natural recharge and pumpage on salinity transport in the domain are discussed and evaluated in the context of demonstrating the practicality of the TSBL approach.
Production, composition and sedimentation of salp fecal pellets in oceanic waters

Rates of fecal pellet production have been recorded from seven species of oceanic salps feeding on natural diets. Expressed as μg C defecated per mg salp body C per hour, the values range between 3.7 and 27.7. Carbon: nitrogen ratios of the salp fecal pellets average 11.4; the organic matter of the pellets is mainly protein and carbohydrate. Sinking velocities of the pellets are very high, ranging from 320 to 2 238 m d-1 for pellets from three species. However, the pellets sink slower than would be predicted from extrapolation of rates for crustacean pellets, probably due to the shape of the pellets and their density. The high rates of defecation, large size and rapid sedimentation of salp fecal pellets make them likely mechanisms for rapid transport of small particulate matter from surface waters to deep water and the benthos.
Direct measurement of neon production rates by (α,n) reactions in minerals

The production of nucleogenic neon from alpha particle capture by ^(18)O and ^(19)F offers a potential chronometer sensitive to temperatures higher than the more widely used (U-Th)/He chronometer. The accuracy depends on the cross sections and the calculated stopping power for alpha particles in the mineral being studied. Published ^(18)O(α,n)^(21)Ne production rates are in poor agreement and were calculated from contradictory cross sections, and therefore demand experimental verification. Similarly, the stopping powers for alpha particles are calculated from SRIM (Stopping Range of Ions in Matter software) based on a limited experimental dataset. To address these issues we used a particle accelerator to implant alpha particles at precisely known energies into slabs of synthetic quartz (SiO_2) and barium tungstate (BaWO_4) to measure ^(21)Ne production from capture by ^(18)O. Within experimental uncertainties the observed ^(21)Ne production rates compare favorably to our predictions using published cross sections and stopping powers, indicating that ages calculated using these quantities are accurate at the ∼3% level. In addition, we measured the ^(22)Ne/^(21)Ne ratio and (U-Th)/He and (U-Th)/Ne ages of Durango fluorapatite, which is an important model system for this work because it contains both oxygen and fluorine. Finally, we present ^(21)Ne/^4He production rate ratios for a variety of minerals of geochemical interest along with software for calculating neon production rates and (U-Th)/Ne ages.
The N-methyl-d-aspartate antagonists phencyclidine, ketamine and dizocilpine as both behavioral and anatomical models of the dementias

Abstract Phencyclidine (PCP) and ketamine can induce a model psychosis in drug addicts and exacerbate the symptoms of chronic schizophrenics. The model psychoses these drugs induce mimic a variety of schizophrenic symptoms, including flattened affect, dissociative thought disorder, depersonalization and catatonic states. These symptoms can persist for prolonged periods and chronic PCP and ketamine addicts have persisting memory deficits. Dizocilpine (MK-801) is a simpler drug than PCP or ketamine in its actions, but it shares with both the property of blocking in a non-competitive manner the N-methyl- d -aspartate (NMDA) ion-channel. Behavioral observations and drug-discrimination studies in animals indicate that PCP and dizocilpine are similar in their effects and they both have a neurotoxic effect on neurons in posterior cingulate cortex. Recent studies have indicated that both of these drugs, when given continuously for several days, further induce neuronal degeneration in other limbic structures. These include brain regions of rats related to olfaction, associated limbic structures such as piriform cortex and posterior regions of entorhinal cortex and in it's projections, through the perforant pathway, to dentate gyrus and other cells in ventral hippocampus. These degenerative consequences may be excitatory neurotoxic effects, for these compounds also induce an elevation in glucose metabolism maximal in just those structures where degeneration is observed and the degeneration involves entire cells, with all of their processes. It has been suggested these non-competitive NMDa antagonists induce an increase in firing rate in a limbic circuit which includes the perforant pathway. At least some competitive NMDA antagonists induce the same pattern of degeneration and altered glucose utilization. There is anatomical and functional evidence that alterations in these same limbic structures are present in the dementia syndrome manifested by some schizophrenics and most Alzheimer's patients. This suggests that these non-competitive NMDA antagonists may provide a more complete model of psychoses and memory disturbances than previously recognized, in that they can mimic both persisting symptomatology and neuroanatomical abnormalities. While the neurochemical underpinnings of this effect remain elusive, it appears to be both age and sex dependant. Further studies of the mechanisms by which NMDA antagonists induce increased glucose utilization and neurotoxicity in these limbic structures may clarify these alterations in this simplified Papez-like circuit.
Clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of treatments for patients with chronic pain.

Objective Chronic pain is a prevalent and costly problem. This review addresses the question of the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the most common treatments for patients with chronic pain. Data sources Representative published studies that evaluate the clinical effectiveness of pharmacological treatments, conservative (standard) care, surgery, spinal cord stimulators, implantable drug delivery systems (IDDSs), and pain rehabilitation programs (PRPs) are examined and compared. The cost-effectiveness of these treatment approaches is also considered. Data synthesis Outcome criteria including pain reduction, medication use, health care consumption, functional activities, and closure of disability compensation cases are examined. In addition to clinical effectiveness, the cost-effectiveness of PRPs, conservative care, surgery, spinal cord stimulators, and IDDSs are compared using costs to return a treated patient to work to illustrate the relative expenses for each of these treatments. Conclusions There are limitations to the success of all the available treatments. The author urges caution in interpreting the results, particularly in comparisons between treatments and across studies, because there are broad differences in the pain syndromes and inclusion criteria used, the drug dosages, comparability of treatments, the definition of "chronic" used, the outcome criteria selected to determine success, and societal differences. None of the currently available treatments eliminates pain for the majority of patients. Pain rehabilitation programs provide comparable reduction in pain to alternative pain treatment modalities, but with significantly better outcomes for medication use, health care utilization, functional activities, return to work, closure of disability claims, and with substantially fewer iatrogenic consequences and adverse events. Surgery, spinal cord stimulators, and IDDSs appear to have substantial benefits on some outcome criteria for carefully selected patients. These modalities are, however, expensive. Pain rehabilitation programs are significantly more cost effective than implantation of spinal cord stimulators, IDDSs, conservative care, and surgery, even for selected patients. Research is needed to identify which patients are most likely to benefit from the available treatments and to study combinations of the available treatments since none of them appear capable of eliminating pain or significantly improving functional outcomes for all treated.
Paracoccidioidomycosis (South American Blastomycosis) in the United States.

The findings in a patient with paracoccidioidomycosis (South American blastomycosis) diagnosed by open-lung biopsy and treated successfully with a combination of trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole are reported, and the clinical spectrum of the disease is reviewed. Although paracoccidioidomycosis is rarely encountered in the United States and is clinically similar to other deep mycoses, it should be considered in patients who are suspected of having a fungal infection and have had previous exposure in an area endemic for paracoccidioidomycosis.
Accelerator physics: Surf's up at SLAC

A 'plasma afterburner' just 30 centimetres long accelerates electrons hundreds of times faster than giant conventional accelerators. The result may ultimately open up a low-cost technology for particle colliders. See Letter p.92 Particle colliders that operate at the high-energy frontier using electric fields generated by radio waves are approaching the limits of feasibility in terms of size and cost, but there are other acceleration techniques that could make less expensive and more compact devices. The plasma wakefield accelerator, in which an electron bunch is accelerated by making it 'surf' on a plasma wave excited by another electron bunch, promises an energy gain in the gigaelectron-volt regime over just a few centimetres — an energy gain that requires hundreds of metres using traditional accelerators. Previously, this technique had only been used to accelerate a very small number of electrons at a time. Now, researchers working at FACET, the Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, USA, have achieved acceleration of about half a billion electrons at once with an unprecedented efficiency for a plasma accelerator. This achievement could be a milestone in the development of affordable and compact accelerators for applications ranging from high energy physics to medical and industrial applications.
Fast atom bombardment and tandem mass spectrometry of phosphatidylserine and phosphatidylcholine

Fast atom bombardment (FAB) desorption of phosphatidylserine and various phosphatidylcholines produces a limited number of very informative negative ions. Especially significant is the formation of (M-H)− ions for phosphatidylserine, a compound which does not yield informative high mass ions by other ionization methods. Phosphatidylcholines of not yield (M-H)− ions but instead produce three characteristic high mass ions, (M-CH 3 + _−, [M-HN(CH3) 3 + ]− and [M-HN(CH3 3 + -C2H2]−. Both classes of lipids also yield anions attributed to the carboxylate components of these complex lipids. FAB desorption in combination with collisional activation allows for characterization of fragmentation and determination of structural features. Collisional activation of the carboxylate anion fragments from the complex lipids is especially informative. Structural characterization of the fatty acid chain can be achieved as the released saturated carboxylate anions undergo a highly specific 1,4-elimination of H2, which results in the losses of the elements of CH4, C2H6, C3H8...in a fashion entirely consistent with the chemistry of carboxylate anions desorbed from free fatty acids. These CnH2n+2 losses begin at the alkyl terminus and progress along the entire alkyl chain. Modified fatty acids undergo a similar fragmentation; however, the modification affects the series of CnH2n+2 losses in a manner which permits determining the type of modification and its location on the fatty acid chain.
EFFECTS OF DRAINAGE DITCHES ON VEGETATION PATTERNS IN ABANDONED AGRICULTURAL PEATLANDS IN CENTRAL NEW YORK

Drainage ditches and ground-water gradients in abandoned agricultural sapric peatlands (mucklands) produce distinctive vegetation patterns. Ditches in abandoned mucklands were ineffective in creating ground-water depression in adjacent soil, while ditches in a newly-cleared muckland were effective in doing so. Upon abandonment, drainage ditches are subject to bank erosion and sedimentation. Coupled with years of soil subsidence and an altered hydrologic regime, ditches lose effectiveness in draining and function merely as small-scale topographic depressions, providing linear zones of seasonally high water levels. Species are distributed on abandoned mucklands in association with soil moisture conditions induced by topographic variation at both small (i.e., ditches) and larger (i.e., site-wide) spatial scales. Vegetation that is usually restricted to moist or saturated soils had greater cover closer to or within drainage ditches or in other topographically low areas, while species with low fidelity to saturated soil dominated the remaining drier areas. Some shrub species had slightly greater stem densities either within or immediately adjacent to ditches, resulting in a “parallel” distribution (i.e., illustrating ditch fidelity). Species having higher affinity to lower soil moisture conditions, such as quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides), showed significantly greater stem density in areas farther away from ditches. Ground-water levels are of primary importance in affecting distribution patterns on naturally revegetating, abandoned agricultural mucklands. The accuracy of the wetland indicator status for woody and herbaceous species encountered on these abandoned mucklands is supported quantitatively by direct gradient analysis. The functioning of existing drainage ditch systems should be assessed prior to any mitigation or restoration activities.
Impact of monitoring technology in assisted living: outcome pilot

This paper describes a study designed to assess the acceptance and some psychosocial impacts of monitoring technology in assisted living. Monitoring systems were installed in 22 assisted living units to track the activities of daily living (ADLs) and key alert conditions of residents (15 of whom were nonmemory care residents). Activity reports and alert notifications were sent to professional caregivers who provided care to residents participating in the study. Diagnostic use of the monitoring data was assessed. Nonmemory care residents were surveyed and assessed using the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) instrument. Pre- and post-installation SWLS scores were compared. Older adult participants accepted monitoring. The results suggest that monitoring technologies could provide care coordination tools that are accepted by residents and may have a positive impact on their quality of life
First Year's Experience with the Florida Pharmacist Self-Care Consultant Law: The Pharmacist Perspective

This study examines the attitudes and self-reported prescribing activities of a sample of Florida pharmacists interviewed 6 months and 12 months after enactment of the Florida Pharmacist Self-Care Consultant Law. This law granted a limited, independent prescribing authority to Florida pharmacists. About one-third of Florida pharmacists have prescribed some medications under the provisions of this law. However, the number of prescriptions written has leveled off from Phase 1 to Phase 2 interviews. The main pharmacist variables related to prescribing werc personal enthusiasm for filling this role and age (younger pharmacists were more likely to prescribe than older pharmacists). Prescribers do perceive that the law has had a positive effect on their relationships with patients. They also estimate that the law has resulted in increased requests from patients for advice on OTC products and general health issues. The perceptions of both prescribers and nonprescribers is that the law has not affected their rela...
SU-FF-T-211: Evaluation of Diagnostic Radiation Exposure Risks From CT Scans for a Radiosensitive Patient

Purpose: To estimate the effective radiationdose a radiosensitive patient received from a series of computed tomography(CT) scans and to make estimates for the excessive cancer risk due to that exposure. Method and Materials: The Imaging Performance Assessment of Computed Tomography Scanners/NRPB (ImPACT, St. George's Hospital, Tooting, London) dose estimation spreadsheet was used to estimate effective dose from 14 CTimage series obtained from an Ataxia‐telangiectasia (A‐T) patient. The scans were all taken within 4 months. For each exam, scanner parameters (i.e. kVp, mAs, etc) were retrieved from the dicom header. Excessive leukemia and cancer risks were calculated based upon the findings of a 15‐country long‐term study of nuclear power plant workers (Cardis et al. 2005). Results: The estimated effective dose for the CT scans was a combined 124 mSv and an average dose of 8.9 mSv per exam. The excessive cancer risk was 12% and the excessive leukemia risk was 24%, using estimates for normal subjects. Conclusions: This case indicates that diagnosticradiation exposure can pose an unintentional risk to radiosensitive patients. Given the clinical hypersensitivity to radiation and cancer predisposition for A‐T patients, most have been protected from receiving standard radiation therapy to treat their cancers. On the other hand, they readily undergo diagnostic radiological procedures which incur smaller radiation exposure. The effective dose and cancer risk estimates from this study show a need for monitoring the radiation exposure from all medical sources for radiosensitive patients. Other diagnostic modalities can be suggested for radiosensitive patients in order to monitor medical responses and progress, such as magnetic resonance imaging or ultrasound.
WISDOM: wire spreading enhanced decomposition of masks in double patterning lithography

In Double Patterning Lithography (DPL), conflict and stitch minimization are two main challenges. Post-routing mask decomposition algorithms [1--4] may not be enough to achieve high quality solution for DPL-unfriendly designs, due to complex metal patterns. In this paper, we propose an efficient framework of WISDOM to perform wire spreading and mask assignment simultaneously for enhanced decomposability. A set of Wire Spreading Candidates (WSC) are identified to eliminate coloring constraints or create additional splitting locations. Based on these candidates, an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) formulation is proposed to simultaneously minimize the number of conflicts and stitches, while introducing as less layout perturbation as possible. To improve scalability, we further propose three acceleration techniques without loss of solution quality: odd-cycle union optimization, coloring-independent group computing, and suboptimal solution pruning. The experimental results show that, compared to a postrouting mask decomposition method [2], we are able to reduce the number of conflicts and stitches by 41% and 23% respectively, with only 0.43% wire length increase. Moreover, with proposed acceleration methods, we achieve 9x speed-up.
Second-harmonic pulse compression in the soliton regime

Analytical soliton solutions of the three-wave interaction equations are shown to exhibit high power conversion for a range of nonlinear materials with no satellite peaks and energy conversion close to 100%. Related numerical solutions that yield power conversion up to 10 times those of the initial waves with less than 3% energy in the small satellite peaks and high-energy efficiency are exhibited for KDP crystals; substantial compression of the fundamental pulses is observed in this case.
Effects of Task Complexity and Practice on Performance during Acute Alcohol Intoxication

A battery of psychological tests was administered to 26 medical students in a counterbalanced cross-over design to determine the effects of an acute dose of alcohol on perceptual, perceptual-motor and cognitive capacities. The tests included: temporal acuity (critical flicker fusion threshold), perceptual speed and attention (Stroop), perceptual-motor coordination (Purdue Pegboard), perceptual-motor speed (simple and choice reaction time), immediate memory (WAIS Digit Span), short-term memory (dichotic stimulation), and intellectual and conceptual capacity (Shipley Institute of Living Scale). Three general conclusions were drawn: (1) alcohol exerted a deteriorating effect on performance on all tasks except the Stroop, (2) retesting 48 hr. later showed that practice or familiarity with the task mitigated the effects of the alcohol, and (3) contrary to the hypothesis advanced by Jellineck and McFarland (1940), no systematic relationship was observed between task complexity and degree of impairment from the ...