cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Framework Algorithm to Compute Optimal Asset Allocation for Retirement with Behavioral Utilities

The question of optimal strategic asset allocation for investors with behavioural utilities saving for retirement is addressed. To date this problem has been studied assuming that an investor is rational in the sense when making investment decisions the preference relation of the investor satisfies all the axioms of choice. Research in behavioural science indicates that investment related decisions of many people do not satisfy the axioms of choice. Our interest is in developing a platform that allows the use of a broader class of utilities that may or may not satisfy the axioms of choice. Such utilities may not be convex. Our interest is in developing a framework algorithm that enables a user considerable flexibility in how their needs may be specified. For illustrative purposes a binomial tree is used to model asset returns, although the method developed can be used with more elaborate models.
Immunotherapy with cytokine gene-transduced tumor cells: the next wave in gene therapy for cancer.

Recently, new tumor vaccine approaches were developed in animal systems that modify tumor cells genetically to secrete certain cytokines. Engineering tumor cells to secrete cytokines in a paracrine fasion can induce powerful local cytokine effects without producing significant systemic toxicity. In
CALCULUS & MATHEMATICA AT THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE ACADEMY RESULTS OF ANCHORED FINAL

ABSTRACT Results of an anchored final exam in a reformed computer-based multivariable calculus course are presented. The reformed course was taught in a computer lab using the Calculus & Mathematica materials, and the final exam was anchored to the final given in the standard calculus course.
Shifting strategies and precarious progress: Nuclear waste management in Canada

Canada has a lengthy history of trying to find a path for dealing with radioactive spent fuel and nuclear waste from its nuclear reactors. In the last decade, it has taken major strides towards this goal by evolving a process through which a site for a geological repository to sequester nuclear waste is to be selected. The Canadian Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is in the early stages of the process of finding a community that is willing to host such a repository. Differences between the broad principles underlying siting and the processes for actually selecting the site have emerged as the NWMO proceeds with engaging local governments and specific communities. These differences and other conflicts, especially over new nuclear reactor construction, might pose hurdles in the path of successfully setting up a repository.
Bilateral renal hypoplasia with oligonephronia

This is the first case report in the English literature of bilateral renal hypoplasia with oligonephronia. Shortly after birth the patient had vomiting, polydipsia, polyuria, hyposthenuria, salt wasting, azotemia, and subsequently renal osteodystrophy and growth retardation. She had demonstrably deficient renal ammonia production. The kidneys were small; the glomeruli were few in number, larger than normal, and had no evidence of inflammatory disease or preceding glomerular destruction. The tubules were dilated. Peritubular, periglomerular, and interstitial fibrosis were widespread. No other congential anomalies were found. The identical twin of the patient had no evidence of renal disease. Although this disease closely resembles nephronophthisis, it may be distinguished from it by careful consideration of clinical and morphologic features.
Adrenocortical function in alcoholics

Abstract The diminished adrenocortical responsiveness of chronic alcoholics to surgical trauma has been investigated. It is concluded that alterations in steroid metabolism and not adrenal cortical function are important accompaniments of chronic alcoholism.
Church Advertising Practices and Perceptions

Abstract In a national survey of the 100 largest Southern Baptist Convention churches, data were collected concerning the variety, amount, and perceived effectiveness of their advertising. Sixty-eight percent of the churches, averaging about 6,000 resident members, responded to the mail survey. Media from which churches ranked both their order of use and their perceived advertising effectiveness were Billboards, Direct Mail (to non-members), Door-to-Door (Fliers), Newspaper Church Page Listing, Newspaper Display Ad, Radio, Television, Transit, Yellow Page Display Ad, and Yellow Page Listing.
Body temperature and autogrooming in the mongolian gerbil, Meriones unguiculatus

The Harderian gland releases lipids and pigments to the external nares of the nose, which are then spread widely over the body by autogrooming. The Harderian material darkens the pelage and increases the rate of body temperature gain under radiant temperatures of 32°C, (D. D. Thiessen, M. L. Pendergrass, & A. E. Harriman, Journal of Thermal Biology, in press). In this study, adult male Harderianectomized and intact gerbils are exposed for 15 min to ambient temperature conditions ranging from 8 to 37°C. Convective and conductive heat are the thermal stimuli. Under ascending ambient temperature conditions, there are increases in body temperature and decreases in autogrooming, but Harderianectomized and intact animals do not differ. Apparently, the Harderian material on the pelage interacts with radiant but not convective and conductive heat, suggesting that it is a specific adaptation to solar radiation.
Effect of modal atmospheric compensation on angular anisoplanatism in optical interferometric imaging

Turbulence-induced phase aberrations cause the fringe pattern observed in an optical interferometer to change randomly. For long exposure measurements, the aperture-averaged mean-square differential phase between apertures comprising the interferometer baseline attenuates fringe visibility measurements, and thus reduces the ability to recover spatial-frequency spectrum information for the object being imaged. Application of modal atmospheric phase correction in each aperture of the interferometer reduces the degradation of visibility measurements when the turbulence-induced phase is measured with a wave front sensing device. For objects of interest in optical interferometric imaging, light levels are insufficient for adequate wave front sensing. Thus, a nearby naturally-occurring source must be used for modal compensation. Since this beacon is separated from the object being imaged, angular anisoplanatic effects are introduced which limit the benefits gained by the turbulence compensation. In this work, we quantify the interaperture correlation of modal aberrations, including finite outer scale and angular anisoplanatic effects. These quantities determine the residual phase upon correction of each aberration mode. For given levels of modal correction and relative aperture diameter Diro, we establish the maximum angular separation between the beacon and the object being imaged that corresponds to an aperture-averaged mean-square residual differential phase less than 1 rad2 . For Diro = 5, we show this limit to be approximately 3 times the isoplanatic angle, 0o . For D/ro = 30, however, the beacon offset is limited to approximately 0.2 0o Keywords: optical interferometry, atmospheric optics , adaptive optics
UVA-induced photo recovery during early zebrafish embryogenesis.

Abstract DNA photorepair has been widely studied in simple aquatic organisms that live in the marine environment, but is less understood in more complex species that live in freshwater. In the present study, we evaluated UVA-induced DNA photo recovery in embryonic stages of zebrafish, Danio rerio, a freshwater model species. Evaluation of UVB exposure and UVA photo recovery of zebrafish embryos revealed different UVB tolerances and capacities for UVA photo recovery at different stages of development. Effective UVA photo recovery was observed at 3 h post-fertilization (hpf), 6–7 hpf, and 12 hpf, but not in the early cleavage stage (2–32 cells). UVA photo recovery was most effective during the gastrula stage (6–7 hpf) of development, and less effective at earlier stages (e.g., 3 hpf) or later stages (e.g., 12 hpf). Embryos at the cleavage stage of development were found to be tolerant to extreme levels of UVB exposure, and possible mechanisms were discussed. For embryos at 6–7 hpf, examination of time window (or delay of UVA exposure) that would still permit recovery from UVB exposure suggested a short time period of 2 h. The transgenic fli-1 zebrafish with fluorescent vascular structure was used to show that embryos with normal morphological appearance could exhibit a disrupted vascular patterning, suggesting that this endpoint could provide a sensitive tool for detection of UV damage.
Correction of deep anterior overbite A report of three cases

The maintenance of deep overbite correction is one of the criteria by which we judge the long-term success of orthodontic treatment. To correct and maintain an excessive overbite, the orthodontist must intrude the overerupted teeth and establish a more ideal interincisal angle. The mechanical means to achieve this have been discussed. Three case reports have been presented to illustrate that attention to these details during treatment is of importance in achieving long term results.
Modeling the strangeness content of hadronic matter

Abstract The strangeness content of hadronic matter is studied in a string-ﬂip modelthat reproduces various aspects of the QCD-inspired phenomenology, suchas quark clustering at low density and color deconﬁnement at high density,while avoiding long range van der Waals forces. Hadronic matter is modeledin terms of its quark constituents by taking into account its internal ﬂavor(u,d,s) and color (red, blue, green) degrees of freedom. Variational Monte-Carlo simulations in three spatial dimensions are performed for the ground-state energy of the system. The onset of the transition to strange matteris found to be inﬂuenced by weak, yet not negligible, clustering correlations.The phase diagram of the system displays an interesting structure containingboth continuous and discontinuous phase transitions. Strange matter is foundto be absolutely stable in the model. PACS 12.39.-x, 24.85.+p, 26.60.+c I. INTRODUCTION Strange matter, a deconﬁned state of quark matter consisting of almost equal amountsof up, down, and strange quarks, has been speculated to be the absolute ground stateof hadronic matter [1,2]. If true, nucleons and nuclei — and thus most of the luminousmatter in the universe — is in a long-lived metastable state. Undoubtedly, the conﬁrmationof such hypothesis would have far reaching consequences on a variety of ﬁelds, rangingfrom astronomy and cosmology all the way to particle and nuclear physics. Stimulated bysuch an exciting possibility, searches for strange matter are currently being conducted atterrestrial laboratories as well as at space-based observatories. Indeed, a substantial eﬀorthas been devoted on experimental searches for strangelets (“strange-matter nuggets”) atboth CERN and Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and more are proposed in thefuture for the relativistic heavy-ion collider (RHIC) and the large-hadronic collider (LHC).These terrestrial experiments are being complemented by observational searches for strangestars. What would be the signature for such exotic objects? Since strange stars are self-bound objects having a mass-radius relation quite diﬀerent than the gravitationally boundneutron stars, they are allowed rotational periods considerably shorter than those predicted1
Wartime Thoracic Injury: Perspectives in Modern Warfare

Background Thoracic injury represents a major source of combat morbidity and mortality. The overall killed-in-action rate has decreased, whereas the died-of-wounds rate has increased; the creation of the Joint Theater Trauma Registry allows for improved documentation. This report seeks to provide a realistic contemporary look at thoracic injury sustained by military forces and civilian casualties during the current wartime experience. Methods The Joint Theater Trauma Registry was queried between 2002 and 2008. Patients receiving treatment for thoracic injuries were identified using International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition, diagnosis and procedure codes. All US soldiers, coalition forces, and local civilians were included in the analysis. Results There were 33,755 casualties identified during the study period, of which 1,660 patients (4.9%) sustained thoracic injury. Blast mechanism was the most prominent mode of injury, accounting for 45.8%. The mean Injury Severity Score in this cohort of patients was 14.9. A total of 4,232 procedures were performed, resulting in an average of 2.5 thoracic procedures per patient. Fifty percent of casualties were civilian, and 34% were US troops, with the remainder occurring in coalition forces. Overall mortality was 12%. Conclusions This report provides a realistic account of current wartime thoracic injury. In contrast to previous wars, the majority of thoracic injury is secondary to blast injury as opposed to penetrating trauma, and the resultant mortality rate is higher. This report breaks down thoracic injuries to both US troops and civilian personal and provides realistic expectations for thoracic injury during future combat planning.
Numerical study of supersonic combustion using a finite rate chemistry model

The governing equations of two-dimensional chemically reacting flows are presented together with a global two-step chemistry model for H2-air combustion. The explicit unsplit MacCormack finite difference algorithm is used to advance the discrete system of the governing equations in time until convergence is attained. The source terms in the species equations are evaluated implicitly to alleviate stiffness associated with fast reactions. With implicit source terms, the species equations give rise to a block-diagonal system which can be solved very efficiently on vector-processing computers. A supersonic reacting flow in an inlet-combustor configuration is calculated for the case where H2 is injected into the flow from the side walls and the strut. Results of the calculation are compared against the results obtained by using a complete reaction model.
Continuum Radiative Flux from Nonisothermal Nongray Atomic Gases

The continuum radiative flux from a nonisothermal stagnation shock layer composed of an atomic gas is the subject of this numerical study in which the fluid dynamics and the radiation are assumed to be uncoupled. Consequently, the temperature profile, which is taken to vary linearly through the shock layer, is unperturbed by the radiation. The importance of the ionization edge location and the influence of various spectral shapes of the bound-free radiative cross sections are emphasized. The results are derived by considering ground to free state radiative transitions. The principal of superposition extends the results to multiple electronic state atomic gases.
Yeast-based carbon paste bioelectrode for ethanol

Abstract An amperometric bioelectrode for primary alcohols based on the incorporation of yeasts into the carbon paste matrix is reported. The response is based on the activity of alcohol dehydrogenase in yeasts. The intimate contact between the biocatalytic and sensing sites results in short response times. The addition of a redox-mediating hexacyanoferrate (III) ion greatly facilitates the detection of the enzymatically produced NADH. The effects of operating potential, carbon paste composition, concentration of coenzyme or redox mediator and other parameters are explored for optimum analytical performance. The dynamic properties of this electrode are exploited for detection in flow-injection systems, with a detection limit of 2 × 10 −6 M (9 ng) of ethanol. The relative standard deviation for repetitive injections of a 1× 10 −3 M ethanol solution over a 100-min period is 2.8%. Applicability to alcoholic beverages is illustrated. The trend in sensitivity toward different alcohols is in agreement with the known biospecificity of yeast alcohol dehydrogenase.
Low birthweight in rats induced by prenatal exposure to testosterone combined with alcohol, pair-feeding, or stress

Pregnant Sprague-Dawley dams were exposed to a liquid ethanol diet (35% ethanol-derived calories), an isocaloric pair-feeding regimen, restraint stress, or no treatment during the last week of pregnancy. Dams in each group received injections of testosterone propionate (TP) or the oil vehicle from days 15 through 20 of gestation. Birthweights of pups from dams administered TP and also exposed to alcohol, pair-feeding, or restraint stress were significantly depressed by as much as 40 percent compared to oil-injected counterparts. Prenatal exposure to alcohol, pair-feeding, or restraint stress in the absence of TP did not significantly depress birthweight, nor was birthweight depressed in animals from dams injected with TP but exposed to no other treatment. Results are discussed with respect to an inhibition of fetal growth produced by a possible synergism between activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and elevated androgen levels.
Ganglionic Action of Angiotensin Contributes to Sympathetic Activity in Renin-Angiotensinogen Transgenic Mice

In addition to central nervous system actions, angiotensin (Ang) II may increase sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) via a direct action on sympathetic ganglia. We hypothesized that sympathetic ganglionic actions of endogenous Ang II contribute to SNA in transgenic mice that overexpress renin and angiotensinogen (R+A+ mice). Renal SNA and arterial pressure were recorded in anesthetized R+A+ and littermate control mice before and after ganglionic blockade, and after additional blockade of angiotensin type 1 (AT1) receptors with losartan. Ganglionic blockade essentially abolished SNA in control mice, but only reduced SNA to 47+/-18% of baseline in R+A+ mice. The residual SNA remaining after ganglionic blockade in R+A+ mice was reduced from 47+/-18% to 8+/-6% of baseline by losartan (P<0.05). The sympathoinhibitory response to losartan was accompanied by an enhanced decrease in arterial pressure in R+A+ mice compared with that observed in control mice. AT1 receptor expression in sympathetic ganglia, as measured by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, was increased approximately 3-fold in R+A+ versus control mice. The results demonstrate that, as anticipated, essentially all of the renal postganglionic SNA in control mice is driven by preganglionic input. The major new finding is that Ang II-evoked ganglionic activity accounts for approximately 40% of total SNA in R+A+ mice. The significant contribution of the direct ganglionic action of Ang II in R+A+ mice likely reflects both increased levels of Ang II and upregulation of AT1 receptors in sympathetic ganglia.
Biochemistry and molecular biology of catecholamine neurons: a single gene or gene family hypothesis.

We postulate that the catecholamine synthesizing enzyme, tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), dopamine B-hydroxylase (DBH) and phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT) are coded for by similar gene coding sequence(s).This is based on the following observations: (1) proteolytic digestion of these enzymes produces similar peptides whose amino acid composition is nearly identical; (2) antibodies to each enzyme coprecipitate more than one of these enzymes from in vitro poly(A)mRNA translation products; (3) using hybrid selection analysis to positively identify the cDNA clones, we discovered that DBH cDNA clones cross-hybridize with PNMT mRNA, and PNMT cDNA cross-hybridize with DBH mRNA; (4) DNA hybridization analysis demonstrated that DBH and PNMT cDNA probes hybridized to several common restriction fragments of total cellular DNA.The evidence suggests that these enzymes are coded for by a single gene or linked genes coding for all catecholamine enzymes.
Macroinvertebrates in North American tallgrass prairie soils: effects of fire, mowing, and fertilization on density and biomass

The responses of tallgrass prairie plant communities and ecosystem processes to fire and grazing are well characterized. However, responses of invertebrate consumer groups, and particularly soil-dwelling organisms, to these disturbances are not well known. At Konza Prairie Biological Station, we sampled soil macroinvertebrates in 1994 and 1999 as part of a long-term experiment designed to examine the effects and interactions of annual fire, mowing, and fertilization (N and P) on prairie soil communities and processes. For nearly all taxa, in both years, responses were characterized by significant treatment interactions, but some general patterns were evident. Introduced European earthworms (Aporrectodea spp. and Octolasion spp.) were most abundant in plots where fire was excluded, and the proportion of the total earthworm community consisting of introduced earthworms was greater in unburned, unmowed, and fertilized plots. Nymphs of two Cicada genera were collected (Cicadetta spp. and Tibicen spp.). Cicadetta nymphs were more abundant in burned plots, but mowing reduced their abundance. Tibicen nymphs were collected almost exclusively from unburned plots. Treatment effects on herbivorous beetle larvae (Scarabaeidae, Elateridae, and Curculionidae) were variable, but nutrient additions (N or P) usually resulted in greater densities, whereas mowing usually resulted in lower densities. Our results suggest that departures from historical disturbance regimes (i.e. frequent fire and grazing) may render soils more susceptible to increased numbers of European earthworms, and that interactions between fire, aboveground biomass removal, and vegetation responses affect the structure and composition of invertebrate communities in tallgrass prairie soils.
Distribution and Dynamics of American Beech in Coastal Southern New England

Fagus grandifolia (American Beech) is uncommon along the coast of southern New England, but occasionally forms unusual monodominant stands with higher beech abundance than is typical for inland areas. This study documents the distribution of beech on Cape Cod and nearby coastal islands, and evaluates envi- ronmental and historical factors that are likely to infl uence its distribution. Tree-ring data from six beech forests in the study region were used to determine age structure and to assess the importance of disturbance history for beech forest development. Beech is irregularly distributed across the coastal region. It is most common and abundant on moraines and in areas that are close to water bodies, presumably as a result of reduced drought stress and increased protection from wildfi re. The largest monodominant beech forest (approximately 1000 ha) known from the eastern US occurs on Naushon Island, but few stands elsewhere in the region exceed 5 ha. In the six intensively studied forests, the relative importance of beech has increased in recent decades. Decreased establishment of oaks and other associated species in the 20 th century has presumably resulted from regional declines in forest harvesting and fi re. Increased beech dominance in the 20 th century corresponds with episodic beech establishment and growth release after several hurricanes in the 1920s-1950s. Thus, unlike the small-scale gap dynamics characteristic of beech in the extensive northern hardwood forests of northern New England and New York, large-scale wind disturbances apparently contribute to local beech dominance in coastal New England where beech is otherwise uncommon.
Evidence-based management of childhood atopic eczema

Atopic eczema often develops during infancy and can have a significant impact on patients' quality of life. However, despite this the condition is often not taken seriously by health-care professionals. Atopic eczema is also a widespread problem, affecting as many as 15-20% of children in Britain. The incidence of atopic eczema has risen over the last few decades and genetic factors are no longer thought to be the only aetiological factor - it is now postulated that environmental may also play a part in the development of the condition. Recent research highlights how a defective skin barrier can be a significant issue for atopic skin. This article looks at how atopic eczema affects the quality of life of patients and details the management techniques that are available.
Antecedents and consequences of psychological and team empowerment in organizations: A meta-analytic review.

This paper provides meta-analytic support for an integrated model specifying the antecedents and consequences of psychological and team empowerment. Results indicate that contextual antecedent constructs representing perceived high-performance managerial practices, socio-political support, leadership, and work characteristics are each strongly related to psychological empowerment. Positive self-evaluation traits are related to psychological empowerment and are as strongly related as the contextual factors. Psychological empowerment is in turn positively associated with a broad range of employee outcomes, including job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and task and contextual performance, and is negatively associated with employee strain and turnover intentions. Team empowerment is positively related to team performance. Further, the magnitude of parallel antecedent and outcome relationships at the individual and team levels is statistically indistinguishable, demonstrating the generalizability of empowerment theory across these 2 levels of analysis. A series of analyses also demonstrates the validity of psychological empowerment as a unitary second-order construct. Implications and future directions for empowerment research and theory are discussed.
Software-defined underwater acoustic networking platform

Currently acoustics is the primary modality for underwater communication even though it presents a difficult channel. To try and cope with the challenges of the channel many MAC protocols and PHY layer techniques have been proposed. In this paper we present a research platform that allows developers to easily implement and compare their protocols in an underwater network and configure them at runtime. We have built our platform using widely supported software that has been successfully used in terrestrial radio and network development. The flexibility of development tools such as software defined radio have provided the ability for rapid growth in the community. Our platform adapts some of these tools to work well with the underwater environment while maintaining flexibility, ultimately providing an end-to-end networking approach for underwater acoustic development.
Characterization of paraplegic disturbance response during FNS standing

The application of functional neuromuscular stimulation (FNS) to paralyzed muscle as a potential method of rehabilitation for paraplegic spinal cord injury and stroke patients is addressed. Feedback control of electrical stimulation to the muscles of the lower extremity, based on knee angle measurements, can be used to maintain stance in the presence of disturbances. This study considers the disturbance response of a paraplegic subject using a combination of open-loop stimulation of the hamstrings, gluteus maximus, and erector spinae and feedback-controlled stimulation of the quadriceps to maintain stance. The characterization of posture involved examination of two different components of postural control: the early automatic responses of the knee under closed-loop control and the later involuntary and voluntary responses of the subject's upper body. Knee recovery was complete within approximately 600 ms after the onset of the disturbance. However, the subject exhibited postural responses which continued to right the upper body up to 1300 ms after the onset of the disturbance. >
Probabilistically complete planning with end-effector pose constraints

We present a proof for the probabilistic completeness of RRT-based algorithms when planning with constraints on end-effector pose. Pose constraints can induce lower-dimensional constraint manifolds in the configuration space of the robot, making rejection sampling techniques infeasible. RRT-based algorithms can overcome this problem by using the sample-project method: sampling coupled with a projection operator to move configuration space samples onto the constraint manifold. Until now it was not known whether the sample-project method produces adequate coverage of the constraint manifold to guarantee probabilistic completeness. The proof presented in this paper guarantees probabilistic completeness for a class of RRT-based algorithms given an appropriate projection operator. This proof is valid for constraint manifolds of any fixed dimensionality.
Laur's final display: suicide by fire

The students at the Tallinn Academyof Arttraditionally build a huge pyre of Christ-The case presented in this issue is an mas trees which Estonian citizens bring tounusual one in that it portrays the death by the seashore after the turning of the New Year.fire of a highly talented but troubled art stu- Huge sculptures are made from the trees,dent in Tallinn, Estonia. The case attracted and these are burned as a fireworks displaygreat attention in Estonia and in the neigh- for everybody to enjoy.boring countries; it was widely publicized Laur was active in preparing for thein the newspapers at the time it occurred. annual show on the last day of his life, jokingDr.AiriVa¨rnick first brought it to my atten- and laughing in the evening. His sculpturetion, interviewed the surviving family, and took the form of a crest with a ring aroundhas written up the case. it. The trees were ignited; the crowd cheered.Laur’s family specifically requested that The huge bonfire rose in flames. After thewe publish their son’s name in this discus- display, Laur joined other celebrating stu-sion, and I have agreed to do so. They had a dents in a cafe´. Loquacious, chatting withstrong sense of his great artistic promise and great charm about his many ideas and proj-want his name remembered. We are grateful ects, he introduced himself to tables of strang-for them for permission to publish this report ers whom he did not know, entertainingof their son’s tragic death. everyone. Laur was amusing and jolly; no-body was offended. He had a great deal todrink. Around 9
Restless legs syndrome and near-infrared light: An alternative treatment option

There are few treatment options in managing restless legs syndrome (RLS); the most frequently used are dopaminergic drugs and movement. New treatment options are highly sought after. This study evaluated the effectiveness of monochromatic near-infrared light treatment in decreasing symptoms associated with RLS. The design used was 2×6 repeated-measures design with two groups (treatment and control) and six repeated measures (baseline, weeks 1-4, and posttreatment). Data collection took place in the university modalities laboratory. Thirty-four volunteers with symptoms of RLS were randomly assigned to a treatment or control group. Over a 4-week period subjects underwent twelve 30-min treatments to their lower legs with near-infrared light. The International RLS rating scale (IRLS) was used to assess and track patient symptoms. There was a steady decrease in symptoms associated with RLS over the 4 weeks in the treatment group. After 4 weeks of treatment the treatment group had a significantly greater improvement in restless legs syndrome symptoms than the control group (p<0.001); improvement was still significant after 4 weeks posttreatment compared to baseline (p<0.001). Treatment with near-infrared light does decrease symptoms associated with RLS as demonstrated in lower IRLS scores. This new noninvasive method of treating RLS might become a valuable new management option. More research is needed to determine the mechanism(s) behind infrared light treatment and RLS.
Reconstitution of immune responses to tuberculosis in patients with HIV infection who receive antiretroviral therapy.

Study objectives: To assess the restoration of immune responses to tuberculosis, as manifested by secretion of T-helper type 1 cytokines (interferon (IFN)-, interleukin (IL)-12, and IL-2) and T-helper type 2 cytokines (IL-10), in HIV-positive patients who receive antiretroviral therapy (ART). Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: University hospital. Patients: Ten HIV-positive patients, all naive to ART and all about to start ART for clinical indications, and 11 healthy, HIV-negative control subjects. Interventions: Assessment of T-cell proliferation and cytokine production after administration of ART to patients with HIV infection. Measurements and results: All patients had a negative tuberculin skin test result at baseline and were anergic. Highly active ART reduced the viral load to very low levels in all patients within a short time after starting therapy. Blood samples were drawn every 2 months after starting therapy, and continued for 1 year while the patients continued to receive ART. There were trends toward increased proliferation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific stimuli, but these were delayed until several months of ART had elapsed. Similar trends were noted in relation to the secretion of IFN-. Neither PBMC proliferation nor IFN- secretion reached levels seen in healthy control subjects. No consistent trends in IL-2, IL-10, or IL-12 production were noted. Conclusion: ART restores immune responses to M tuberculosis, although this restoration is delayed and does not reach levels seen in healthy, HIV-negative control subjects. These results may explain in part the phenomenon of paradoxic reactions to antituberculosis therapy in patients with HIV infection. A larger study in which patients are followed up for a longer period of time will allow the magnitude and timing of this reconstitution to be more precisely defined. (CHEST 2002; 122:597- 602)
A Novel Epoxy-Free Construction Method for Fabricating Dipole Magnets and Test Results

Three model superconducting dipole magnets, lm length and having a bore diameter of 76mm, fabricated without epoxy resins or other adhesives, have been built and the first two have been tested in He I and He II. The conductor is the 23-strand Rutherford-type cable used in the Fermilab Doubler/Saver magnets, and is insulated with Mylar and Kapton. The two-layer winding is highly compressed by a system of structural support rings and tapered collets. Little "training" was required. Quench currents greater than 95 percent of "short sample" were obtained in He I with rise-times of 15 to 20 seconds to a central field of 4.6T; 6.0 T in Helium II.
Hormonal replacement therapy for postmenopausal women: A review of sexual outcomes and related gynecologic effects

The impact of hormonal replacement therapy on sexual behavior and functioning in postmenopausal women was examined. A methodological overview discusses issues of subject characteristics, research design, and the assessment of sexual functioning and related outcomes. Current therapy regimens include estrogen, progestogen, androgen, and combination therapy (e.g., cyclic estrogen and progestogen). With estrogen, significant gynecologic improvement (i.e., reduction in atrophic vaginitis) occurs, and this may in turn provide the context for sexual activity/functioning to proceed unimpaired. Although there are medical indications for the addition of progestogen to an estrogen regimen, there appear to be no improvements in sexual functioning beyond those that occur with estrogen alone. Finally, androgen may affect sexual functioning for specific subgroups of postmenopausal women (i.e., surgically postmenopausal rather than naturally postmenopausal women).
Body Mass Index Standards Based on Agreement with Health-Related Body Fat

Background: Multiple screening tools, such as BMI and skinfold-derived percent body fat (%BF), are available to identify youth at risk of excess adiposity. However, poor classification agreement among these tools can be problematic for those interpreting test results. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of using BMI as an estimate of %BF in youth and to identify optimal BMI thresholds for identifying at-risk children and adolescents based on %BF. Methods: Percent body fat was derived from the skinfold thicknesses of children aged 5-18 years from three cross-sectional waves of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES (1999 -2004); N8269). Stature and body mass from the same data set were used to calculate BMI. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was employed to determine the optimal BMI thresholds for detecting previously created %BF standards. Results: The optimal BMI percentile associated with the low risk %BF threshold was the 83rd and 80th in boys and girls, respectively. The selected BMI percentiles associated with the higher risk threshold were the 92nd and 90th in boys and girls, respectively. Overall, classification accuracy when using BMI percentiles to identify the two %BF risk groups ranged from 86.9% to 89.1%. Conclusions: BMI and skinfold-derived %BF demonstrate reasonable agreement when used to classify adiposity status in children and adolescents. (Am J Prev Med 2011;41(4S2):S100 -S105) © 2011 American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Retention behavior of ions on high performance ion chromatography columns. Part II: Retention behavior and polarizability†

Etude des temps de retention de differents anions tels que fluorure, chlorure, bromure, iodure, sulfate et perchlorate en fonction de la concentration. Les polarisabilites ioniques sont donnees a l'aide d'une relation fonction du facteur de capacite
The Effects of High Dietary Protein and Nitrogen Levels on the Preformed Methyl Group Requirement and Methionine-Induced Growth Depression in Chicks

Abstract The chick's choline and methionine requirements are both increased by high dietary protein level. Studies were conducted to test the hypothesis that the chicks’ need for preformed methyl groups is increased by high protein diets (not methionine or choline per se). Chicks fed 25% isolated soybean protein (ISP) diets responded to methionine supplementation (162 vs. 110 g gained in 14 days) but not to choline (119 g vs. 110 g), while those fed 50% ISP responded to either methionine (174 g vs. 126 g) or choline (181 g vs. 126 g) supplementation. Further, neither cystine nor homocystine could replace methionine in improving the growth of chicks fed the high protein diet. In other experiments, L-methionine and betaine HCl were found to alleviate the growth depression caused by excessive levels of L-glutamic acid. Excessive levels of L-methionine had a protective effect against growth depression caused by L-glutamate and diammonium citrate, and conversely, supplementary L-serine and sodium formate were not protective against glutamic acid- or arginine-induced growth depression. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that the preformed methyl group requirement is increased by high levels of dietary protein or excessive nitrogen from a single amino acid.
Editorial: Independent factors associated with longevity of prosthetic pulmonary valves and valved conduits

C aldarone and associates have reported on a 30-year series of patients who had undergone right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction with a prosthetic valve or valved conduit at one institution [see J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2000;120:1022]. The stated objective of this study is to identify risk factors for valve survival. However, results can be misleading if the only examined indicator of valve failure is valve replacement. Both patient mortality and the presence of valve insufficiency without replacement can be significant contributing factors in the analysis of valve failure. As the authors admit, early deaths are largely the result of influences other than functional valve degeneration. However, early postoperative pulmonary insufficiency resulting from technical difficulties or conduit dilatation can be a contributing factor to early mortality. Late deaths can result from valve failure caused by degeneration or endocarditis, either independently or in combination. The authors state that late death was uncommon, but not nonexistent, in their study population and that those deaths were usually, but not always, attributed to causes other than valve failure. Valve-related late deaths, no matter how insignificant the occurrence rate, should be included in an analysis of valve failure. The presence of valve insufficiency after reconstruction of the right ventricular outflow tract carries important prognostic implications. The early occurrence of pulmonary valve insufficiency is most commonly unrelated to valve degeneration. Nevertheless, its presence in the early postoperative period can affect long-term valve performance and lead to valve failure. Late valve insufficiency, even if not considered as a statistical end point for valve failure, should be presented because it significantly affects decisions regarding selection of the most appropriate valved conduit replacement for the right ventricular outflow tract. Finally, description of surgical technique is of significance in any study that discusses surgical results. A reader can obtain full benefit from the published experience of others only if he or she can assess the article’s relevance to his or her own practice. Valved conduit proximal and distal anastomotic technique, use of patch material or conduit extensions, suture technique, and cardiopulmonary bypass methods are of primary importance. From the Department of Surgery, The Children’s Hospital, Denver, Colo.
Influence of Abiotic Factors on Red Imported Fire Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Mound Population Ratings in Louisiana

Abstract Colony size and reproductive status of Solenopsis invicta (Buren), red imported fire ants, is measured by a rating system developed by Harlan et al. (1981). Because this rating system is commonly used to evaluate chemical controls, especially insect growth regulators, and biological controls such as Thelohania spp., we evaluated the environmental conditions that would affect mound ratings in Louisiana. Increases in relative humidity and mound height were associated with population rating increases. Brood presence in the above ground portion of the nest (mound) was strongly associated with mound temperature. Brood was only found in mounds that had soil temperatures between 25–30°C although mound temperatures may fall below 25°C in the early morning and reached 40°C by early afternoon during the summer in Louisiana. Researchers in warm climates such as Louisiana may consider monitoring mound temperature during sampling and excavating nests below ground surface to ensure that assessments of mound ra...
Inactivation of bacteria by the plasma pencil

Summary: A device capable of generating a relatively long cold plasma plume has recently been developed. The advantages of this device are: plasma controllability and stability, room temperature and atmospheric pressure operation, and low power consumption. These features are what is required from a plasma source to be used reliably in material processing applications, including the biomedical applications. In this communication we describe the device and we present evidence that it can be used successfully to inactivate Escherechia coli in a targeted fashion. More recent experiments have shown that this device inactivates other bacteria also, but these will be reported in the future. Photograph of a He plasma plume launched out of the plasma pencil.
A fuzzy system for automotive fault diagnosis: fast rule generation and self-tuning

This paper describes a fuzzy model that learns automotive diagnostic knowledge through machine learning techniques. The fuzzy model contains the algorithms for automatically generating fuzzy rules and optimizing fuzzy membership functions. The fuzzy model has been implemented to detect a vacuum leak in the electronic engine controller (EEC) as part of the end-of-line test at automotive assembly plants. The implemented system has been tested extensively, and its performance is presented.
Review of Fungal Outbreaks and Infection Prevention in Healthcare Settings During Construction and Renovation

Hospital construction and renovation activities are an ever-constant phenomenon in healthcare facilities, causing dust contamination and possible dispersal of fungal spores. We reviewed fungal outbreaks that occurred during construction and renovation over the last 4 decades as well as current infection prevention strategies and control measures. Fungal outbreaks still occur in healthcare settings, especially among patients with hematological malignancies and those who are immunocompromised. The causative pathogens of these outbreaks were usually Aspergillus species, but Zygomycetes and other fungi were occasionally reported. Aspergillus most commonly caused pulmonary infection. The overall mortality of construction/renovation-associated fungal infection was approximately 50%. The minimal concentration of fungal spores by air sampling for acquisition of fungal infections remains to be determined. Performing infection control risk assessments and implementing the recommended control measures is essential to prevent healthcare-associated fungal outbreaks during construction and renovation.
Once more unto the leech: production of functional motor patterns in leech heart motor neurons

Leech heart motor neurons are the output component of the leech heartbeat pattern generator. Although the inhibitory synaptic input they receive from the central pattern generator (CPG) is the primary determinant of the rhythmic output they produce, the neurons themselves can contribute in a meaningful way to the patterns they produce [1-3]. In this study, we seek to understand the interaction of the inhibitory synaptic inputs, electrical coupling, and active membrane currents, as well as the interaction and balance between membrane currents. Towards this goal, we developed a 7 compartment GEneral NEural SImulation System (GENESIS 2.3) model which incorporated the currents known to be present in leech heart motor neurons. This model was parameterized by the maximal conductance for each of these currents, and an initial instance of this model was hand tuned to produce acceptable activity. We then used a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm (MOEA) to generate model instances which correctly produced a target output pattern within an acceptable error bound given the corresponding input pattern. The MOEA we used was previously applied to models of crustacean stomatogastric ganglion neurons [4]. We adapted it to run on a ~1000 node high-performance computing cluster (ELLIPSE, Emory IT) and to interact with our 7 compartment leech heart motor neuron model. This evolutionary algorithm independently selects the parents for each generation on each fitness metric separately, obviating the need to create a unified fitness function. Thus, a model instance that is excellent on only one metric can contribute to the subsequent generation even if it performs poorly on all other metrics. We executed 5 runs of this evolutionary algorithm with different, randomly selected initial populations and our post-hoc analyses examined the millions of resulting models from all runs of the MOEA. The fitness metrics we used to evaluate model instances are composed of two sets: output attributes that directly affect the muscles which the motor neurons innervate and attributes which capture other key identifying attributes of leech heart motor neurons. The former are the relative phase, as measured against the peristaltic interneuron in ganglion 4, and the intra-burst spike frequency for each neuron simulated. The latter are the duty cycle, spike height, and the slow wave height. The targets for each of these fitness metrics are drawn from our unique database of complete, individual-animal sets of spike time pattern, synaptic weight profile, and output pattern for leech heart motor neurons in ganglia 8 and 12. We have 431 model instances which met our targets on all fitness metrics and thousands that achieved the targets for only ganglia 8 or 12, but not both. We examined the contribution and balance of currents in these models and have found relationships between sets of currents and a strong differential effect of electrical coupling between pairs of leech heart motor neurons in different ganglia.