cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cognitive enhancement therapy for adult autism spectrum disorder: Results of an 18-month randomized clinical trial.

Cognitive remediation is a promising approach to treating core cognitive deficits in adults with autism, but rigorously controlled trials of comprehensive interventions that target both social and non-social cognition over a sufficient period of time to impact functioning are lacking. This study examined the efficacy of cognitive enhancement therapy (CET) for improving core cognitive and employment outcomes in adult autism. Verbal adult outpatients with autism spectrum disorder (N = 54) were randomized to an 18-month, single-blind trial of CET, a cognitive remediation approach that integrates computer-based neurocognitive training with group-based training in social cognition, or an active enriched supportive therapy (EST) comparison focused on psychoeducation and condition management. Primary outcomes were composite indexes of neurocognitive and social-cognitive change. Competitive employment was a secondary outcome. Intent-to-treat analyses indicated that CET produced significant differential increases in neurocognitive function relative to EST (d = .46, P = .013). Both CET and EST were associated with large social-cognitive improvements, with CET demonstrating an advantage at 9 (d = .58, P = 0.020), but not 18 months (d = .27, P = 0.298). Effects on employment indicated that participants treated with CET were significantly more likely to gain competitive employment than those in EST, OR = 6.21, P = 0.023, which was mediated by cognitive improvement. CET is a feasible and potentially effective treatment for core cognitive deficits in adult autism spectrum disorder. The treatment of cognitive impairments in this population can contribute to meaningful improvements in adult outcomes. Autism Res 2018, 11: 519-530. © 2017 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Lay summary Cognitive enhancement therapy (CET), an 18-month cognitive remediation intervention designed to improve thinking and social understanding, was found to be more effective than supportive therapy at improving mental quickness, attention, and employment in adults living with autism. Social understanding was equally improved in CET and supportive therapy. Cognitive remediation interventions are feasible and may confer significant functional benefits to adults with autism.
Delayed asymptomatic progressive intraventricular pneumocephalus in a dog following craniotomy.

Delayed pneumocephalus developed in a 9-year-old dog following transfrontal craniotomy and implantation of an experimental local chemotherapy into a partially resected oligodendroglioma, but the animal appeared to be asymptomatic. MRI evidence of increasing intracranial pressure, including progressive ventricular dilatation and compression of periventricular parenchyma, led to the recommendation for exploratory craniotomy. The barrier between the intracranial cavity and frontal sinus was enhanced, and pneumocephalus resolved on MRI at both 1 and 3 months following the repair.
Integrating staff nurses in antibiotic stewardship: Opportunities and barriers.

Background Nursing has been called for greater participation in antibiotic stewardship. Although many of the functions that are integral to successful stewardship are within the scope of bedside nurses, data evaluating nursing engagement in stewardship are limited. The objective of this study was to identify nurses' roles and confidence in engaging in stewardship practices by conducting a survey of pediatric staff nurses employed at a 354-bed freestanding children's hospital with a well-established prospective audit and feedback stewardship program. Methods An investigator-developed online survey was used to assess 10 identified practices that fall within the responsibility of inpatient nurses and contribute to the stewardship process. Results One hundred and eighty nurses participated in the study. Nurses were highly confident assessing for an adverse drug reaction history, obtaining cultures prior to antibiotics, and participating in patient education. They were less confident in reviewing microbiology results to determine antibiotic appropriateness. Clinical practice and hospital culture influenced perceptions of the nursing role in stewardship. Reported barriers to stewarding included nurses not included in rounds, interdisciplinary power differentials, and nursing input not actively sought. Conclusions Barriers to nurse engagement were identified and could be addressed by improving education in microbiology and principles of antibiotic use along with more consistent inclusion of nurses in bedside rounds while also cultivating an environment where nurse contribution is actively sought.
PROPOSED MECHANISM FOR THE REDUCTIVE GLYCOSIDIC CLEAVAGE OF DAUNOMYCIN (NSC 82151) AND ADRIAMYCIN (NSC 123127)

Publisher Summary This chapter presents a mechanism for the reductive glycosidic cleavage of daunomycin (NSC 82151) and adriamycin (NSC 123127). The chapter presents an experiment in which chelates of the anthracycline drugs were obtained by mixing the anthracycline drugs in ethanol with varying concentrations of cations in ethanol or by mixing aqueous buffered solutions of both. The ultraviolet and visible absorption spectra were recorded on a Beckman DK-2 recording spectrophotometer. The chloride salts of the metal ions were used, and the metabolites and parent drugs were separated by thin-layer chromatography on silica gel, using two solvent systems. To evaluate whether the protons of the dihydroquinone system of the anthracycline drugs are exchangeable, it was shown that the absorption spectra of the anthracycline drugs varied as a function of increased pH showing two new absorption maxima at 445 and 585 nm and decreasing the absorption region at 475–500 nm. Chelates of metals with the anthracycline drugs also showed two new absorption maxima at about 530 and 570 nm, and the absorption in the 475–500 nm region was only slightly decreased by metal ions.
N.M.R. Studies of Glasses and Related Crystalline Solids

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques have been used in recent years in this laboratory to study atomic arrangements and chemical bonds in a variety of glasses [1–15]. The theory and experimental procedures for such studies have been presented elsewhere [1–5], but a brief summary is appropriate here.
Extremal Problems Related to the Cardinality Redundance of Graphs

A dominating set of a graph $G$ is a set of vertices $D$ such that for all $v \in V(G)$, either $v \in D$ or $(v,d) \in E(G)$ for some $d \in D$. The cardinality redundance of a vertex set $S$, $CR(S)$, is the number of vertices in $V(G)$ such that $|N[x] \cap S| \geq 2$. The cardinality redundance of $G$ is the minimum of $CR(S)$ taken over all dominating sets $S$. A set that achieves $CR(G)$ is a $\gamma_{cr}$-set, and the size of the minimum $\gamma_{cr}$-set is $\gamma_{cr}(G)$. We give the maximum number of edges in a graph with a given number of vertices and given cardinality redundance. In the cases that $CR(G)=0$, $1$, or $2$, we give the minimum and maximum number of edges of graphs where $\gamma_{cr}(G)$ is fixed. We give the minimum and maximum values of $\gamma_{cr}(G)$ when the number of edges are fixed and $CR(G)=0,1$, and we give the maximum values of $\gamma_{cr}(G)$ when the number of edges are fixed and $CR(G)=2$.
Minimally Invasive Techniques to Approach Complications of Enterocystoplasty and Continent Catheterizable Channels

Continent lower urinary tract reconstruction is an invaluable tool to treat urinary incontinence, allow accessible intermittent catheterization, and protect the upper urinary tracts from high bladder pressures in children with neuropathic bladders. It has been used extensively in the past few decades around the world, and a large body of evidence has been accumulated as to its surgical outcomes and complications. The majority of these complications are manageable with a combination of medical and minimally invasive surgical interventions. This chapter will outline minimally invasive and injection techniques in the approach to complications such as stomal stenosis, acute inability to catheterize a channel, urinary incontinence, and bladder stones.
Glutamatergic input varies with phrenic motor neuron size.

The distribution of excitatory glutamatergic synaptic input to phrenic motor neurons differs across motor neurons of varying size. These findings support the size principle of motor unit recruitmen...
Review article: forget populism?

Contemporary ‘crisis studies’ seek to advance democracy by emphasizing the threats that technocracy and populism pose to a specific form of it, liberal-democracy. Crisis studies argue that, since t...
Perceptions and use of videoconferencing in forensic mental health assessments: A survey of evaluators and legal personnel

The use of videoconferencing (VC) to conduct forensic mental health assessments (FMHA) is increasing. Yet, little is known about its acceptability among clinicians or legal professionals. In Study ...
An η 3 -Bound Allyl Ligand on Magnesium in a Mechanochemically Generated Mg/K Allyl Complex

Milling two equivalents of K[1,3-(SiMe3 )2 C3 H3 ] (=K[A']) with MgX2 (X=Cl, Br) produces the allyl complex [K2 MgA'4 ] (1). Crystals grown from toluene are of the solvated species [((η6 -tol)K)2 MgA'4 ] ([1⋅2(tol)]), a trimetallic monomer with both bridging and terminal (η1 ) allyl ligands. When recrystallized from hexanes, the unsolvated 1 forms a 2D coordination polymer, in which the Mg is surrounded by three allyl ligands. The C-C bond lengths differ by only 0.028 A, indicating virtually complete electron delocalization. This is an unprecedented coordination mode for an allyl ligand bound to Mg. DFT calculations indicate that in isolation, an η3 -allyl configuration on Mg is energetically preferred over the η1 - (σ-bonded) arrangement, but the Mg must be in a low coordination environment for it to be experimentally realized. Methyl methacrylate is effectively polymerized by 1, with activities that are comparable to K[A'] and greater than the homometallic magnesium complex [{MgA'2 }2 ].
WE'RE SO ANXIOUS! CHALLENGES FACED AND LESSONS LEARNED IN THE MANAGEMENT OF ANXIETY IN OLDER ADULTS

Abstract This session will highlight several challenging and complicated cases of anxiety treated in an interdisciplinary geriatric outpatient clinic and nursing home settings. We will share our lessons learned from these clinical encounters with the assistance of Dr. Tawny Smith, a clinical psychiatric pharmacist. Dr. Lara will discuss a case of a patient with major depressive disorder with psychosis which mimicked new onset anxiety disorder. She will review the diagnostic challenges associated with anxiety disorders masking and exacerbating major depressive disorder and the treatment approach for this patient. In addition, Dr. Scott will discuss a case of a patient distressed by anxiety who was found to be most appropriately diagnosed with mixed features of a bipolar II disorder. She will review the overlap between uncomplicated anxiety and mixed features, and clinical pearls for distinguishing between the two. She will also discuss medication choices for treatment of a mixed episode. Dr. Nettles will discuss a case of a patient with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder who had been managed long term with increasingly high dose benzodiazepines. She will review clinical pearls and challenges of managing this complicated patient and safely tapering high dose benzodiazepines while still managing anxiety. Lastly, Dr. Gonzalez will discuss the pharmacologic management of anxiety in a patient in a nursing home with co-morbid major neurocognitive disorder. Specifically, he will highlight the challenges of utilizing medications that address anxiety and underlying PTSD symptoms, while being mindful of medication side effects that can worsen neurocognitive symptoms. Dr. Smith will review clinical pearls related to the cases presented. In addition, we will share knowledge regarding literature updates, as well as guidelines for treatment of the aging patient with anxiety.
Chapter 66 – Integrin Signaling: Cell Migration, Proliferation, and Survival

Publisher Summary Integrins are a family of heterodimeric, transmembrane receptors that mediate attachment of cells to the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM). Integrins are responsible for sensing many aspects of the microenvironment, including the structure and composition of the ECM as well as biochemical signals generated following growth factor or cytokine stimulation. Integration of these complex signals contributes to the regulation of cellular migration, growth, and survival within an organism. A central function of integrins is to mediate a structural linkage between the dynamic intracellular cytoskeleton and the ECM that conveys both mechanical and chemical signals. Cell migration provides an exceptionally relevant model to study integrin signaling. Migration is a complex cellular process that involves the extension of lamellipodia; adhesion at sites within newly formed lamella, organization of force-generating adhesions, contraction and cell-body displacement, and detachment of the cell rear. The initial steps in cell migration require the formation of protrusive structures (lamellipodia) at the leading edge of the cell, and the stabilization of the protrusion by newly formed adhesion complexes. Cell proliferation is in dynamic balance with cell death. In cancer, increasing evidence indicates that integrins synergize with growth factor receptor signals to promote cell proliferation and to stimulate the migration of tumor cells from the primary site, and function to promote growth and survival at distant metastatic sites. Integrins play a major role in remodeling the tumor microenvironment, and are important regulators of migration and metastatic growth.
Weathering the Financial Storm: A Professional Forecaster Team’s Domain Diffusion of Resilience

This project explores how team resilience enacted in the work domain shapes and is shaped by resilience practices in the non-work domain – a process we label, domain diffusion of resilience. Weathe...
National Routine Adult Immunization Programs among World Health Organization Member States: An Assessment of Health Systems to Deploy Future SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines

Background: As the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic disproportionately affects older adults, future global vaccine response will rely on existing adult immunization infrastr
Available states and available space: static properties that predict self-diffusivity of confined fluids

Although classical density functional theory provides reliable predictions for the static properties of simple equilibrium fluids under confinement, a theory of comparative accuracy for the transport coefficients has yet to emerge. Nonetheless, there is evidence that knowledge of how confinement modifies static behavior can aid in forecasting dynamics. Specifically, recent molecular simulation studies have shown that the relationship between excess entropy and self-diffusivity of a bulk equilibrium fluid changes only modestly when the fluid is isothermally confined, indicating that knowledge of the former might allow semi-quantitative predictions of the latter. Do other static measures, such as those that characterize free or available volume, also strongly correlate with single-particle dynamics of confined fluids? Here, we investigate this question for both the single-component hard-sphere fluid and hard-sphere mixtures. Specifically, we use molecular simulations and fundamental measure theory to study these systems at approximately 103 equilibrium state points. We examine three different confining geometries (slit pore, square channel, and cylindrical pore) and the effects of particle packing fraction and particle–boundary interactions. Although average density fails to predict some key qualitative trends for the self-diffusivity of confined fluids, we provide strong empirical evidence that a new generalized measure of available volume for inhomogeneous fluids correlates excellently with self-diffusivity across a wide parameter space in these systems, approximately independently of the degree of confinement. An important consequence, which we demonstrate here, is that density functional theory predictions of this static property can be used together with knowledge of bulk fluid behavior to semi-quantitatively estimate the self-diffusion coefficient of confined fluids under equilibrium conditions.
Search behavior and decision confidence in equity crowdfunding: An information search process model perspective

Equity crowdfunding allows entrepreneurs to raise much needed capital by selling shares of ownership to individuals while avoiding the challenges associated with an initial public offering. However...
Transition metal ion complexes of thiosemicarbazones derived from 2-acetylpyridine N -oxide. II. The 4 N -dimethyl derivative

Metal ion complexes of 2-acetylpyridineN-oxide4 N-dimethylthiosemicarbazone (HLO4DM), have been prepared and spectroscopically characterised. The presence of two alkyl groups at4 N facilitates loss of the hydrogen from2 N since HLO4DM is found as the anionic ligand in the majority of its complexes. The anionic LO4DM bonds to the metal ions via theN-oxide oxygen, the azomethine nitrogen, and the thiol sulphur atoms. The infrared, electronic, and electron spin resonance spectra of these complexes are compared to 2-acetylpyridineN-oxide4 N-methylthiosemicarbazone as well as 2-acetylpyridine4 N-dimethylthiosemicarbazone.
Cross-Lag Model of Medical Responsibility and Skills in Youth With Spina Bifida

OBJECTIVE This study examined bidirectional associations between mother- and father-reported medical responsibility and medical skill mastery in youth with spina bifida (SB). METHODS Participants were 140 youth with SB and their parents who participated in three waves of a longitudinal study across four years (ages 8-15 years at Time 1). Mother- and father-report of both medical responsibility and medical skill mastery were used, and age and estimated intelligence quotient were included as covariates, in cross-lagged models. RESULTS The cross-lagged model provided evidence for significant bidirectional associations between mother-reported medical responsibility and skill mastery across time (root mean square error of approximation=0.09, comparative fix index=0.97). These paths showed that higher levels of child responsibility predicted an increase in skill mastery and that higher levels of mastery predicted an increase in child responsibility across time. Moreover, based on mother-report, sharing of responsibility had stronger effects on increases in skill mastery (Time 1 to Time 2 β=.25, Time 2 to Time 3 β=.27) than skill mastery had on increases in child responsibility (Time 1 to Time 2 β=.08, Time 2 to Time 3 β=.07). The only significant cross-lagged path for father-report was from Time 1 skill mastery to Time 2 responsibility (β=.34). CONCLUSIONS Mothers perceive a bidirectional relationship between responsibility and skill mastery across time, whereas fathers appear to mainly consider how skills might affect a subsequent increase in responsibility sharing. Thus, it is important to consider both parents' perspectives when working to increase medical autonomy in youth with SB.
Rights-Protecting iCourts: The Curious Case of the OP-ICESCR

Principal-Agent theory predicts that states will only create international courts where the benefits exceed the costs. Recently, a small number of states empowered a quasi-judicial body to receive and adjudicate economic, social and cultural rights complaints under a new Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. This is a surprising occurrence given the highly contested nature of these rights and the unclear benefits that enure to states from this regime. The paper reviews and applies Principal-Agent theory to the Optional Protocol, finding that the theory explains some of its features but not its creation. The paper argues that the creation of the Optional Protocol is the result of three inter-related global phenomena: 1) the proliferation of international courts, 2) the widespread adoption of constitutional review, and 3) the increased acceptance of economic, social and cultural rights. These phenomena are mutually reinforcing and function to socialise key legal specialists within states who are responsible for assessing the benefits and costs of international court creation, resulting in an increased willingness to accept rights-protecting international courts. This socialisation process is thus crucial for understanding how and why international courts have an impact on domestic political and legal systems.
Old age and the English poor law, 1500-1700

This study is a test-case of the old poor law. In its exploration of the virtually unknown world of the aged poor in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century England, it asks how the elderly poor managed to survive in a pre-industrial economy, and answers through focusing on the many factors that make up the experience of old age - status, health, wealth, and local culture - in two Suffolk villages. Botelho demonstrates that the poor law did not, nor did it intend to, provide complete support, and she documents the individual efforts of the poor as they made their own old age arrangements, drawing as heavily upon their own initiatives as upon charity and legislated relief. LYNN BOTELHO is Associate Professor of History, Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Investigation of long term reactive stability of ceria for use in solar thermochemical cycles

Abstract The use of an intermediate reactive material composed of cerium (IV) oxide (ceria) is explored for solar fuel production through a CO2-splitting thermochemical redox cycle. To this end, powder and porous ceria samples are tested with TGA (thermogravimetric analysis) to ascertain their maximum fuel production potential from the CeO2 → CeO2−δ cycle. A maximum value of the non-stoichiometric reduction factor δ of ceria powder was 0.0383 at 1450 °C. The reactive stability of a synthesized porous ceria sample is then observed with carbon dioxide splitting at 1100 °C and thermal reduction at 1450 °C. Approximately 86.4% of initial fuel production is retained after 2000 cycles, and the mean value of δ is found to be 0.0197. SEM (scanning electron microscopy) imaging suggests that the porous ceria structure is retained over 2000 cycles despite apparent loss of some surface area. EDS (energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy) line scans show that oxidation of porous ceria becomes increasingly homogenous throughout the bulk material over an increasing number of cycles. Significant retention of reactivity and porous structure demonstrates the potential of porous ceria for use in a commercial thermochemical reactor.
Increased sensitivity to green light during transition from conditional dormancy to nondormancy in seeds of three species of Solidago (Asteraceae).

Germination responses of nonstratified (conditionally dormant) and of cold-stratified (nondormant) seeds of three Solidago species were tested in darkness at 30/15°C following various lengths of exposure [0 (control), 5 and 30 min, 1, 6 and 14 h] to green (mostly 500–600 nm) or white (400–700 nm) light. Prior to exposures, nonstratified seeds were imbibed in darkness at laboratory conditions for 24 h, and cold-stratified seeds were kept in darkness at 5°C on a moist substrate for 8 wk. Nonstratified seeds of S. altissima , S. nemoralis and S. shortii germinated to 0–46%, 0–25% and 36–99%, respectively, in darkness following 5 min to 14 h of green or white light, whereas cold-stratified seeds germinated to 53–98%, 31–85% and 82–100%, respectively. Thus, sensitivity of seeds to both green and white light increased as they passed from conditional dormancy to nondormancy. Moreover, sensitivity to green and white light was similar to the hierarchy of seed size. Green safe lights must be used with caution in interpreting the results of studies on light/dark responses of seeds.
Research on enterprises of agriculture III: Management of industrial agriculture enterprise and management of regional agriculture enterprise.

The concepts of management of industrial agriculture enterprise and management of regional agriculture enterprise were put forward.The feasibility of the former and the specific models of the latter were studied and their theoretical and practical significance were analyzed.It was concluded that both two established a new direction for institution reform,a new model for overall solving 'three F(farm,farmer and farming)' problem and a new way to raise the level of agriculture and agricultural organization.Some proposals were put forward including to upgrade the theory and practice of management of agriculture enterprise and progress agricultural enterprization throughout the whole country,clearly confirm the role of agriculture enterprises,reestablish the status of peasants as the main body,introspect the present policies of the agriculture enterprise and agricultural industrialization and provide a systematic policy support for the management of agriculture enterprise.
Functional redundancy of CDP-ethanolamine and CDP-choline pathway enzymes in phospholipid biosynthesis: ethanolamine-dependent effects on steady-state membrane phospholipid composition in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Abstract It has been established that yeast membrane phospholipid content is responsive to the inositol and choline content of the growth medium. Alterations in the levels of transcription of phospholipid biosynthetic enzymes contribute significantly to this response. We now describe conditions under which ethanolamine can exert significant influence on yeast membrane phospholipid composition. We demonstrate that mutations which block a defined subset of the reactions required for the biosynthesis of phosphatidylcholine (PC) via the CDP-choline pathway cause ethanolamine-dependent effects on the steady-state levels of bulk PC in yeast membranes. Such an ethanolamine-dependent reduction in bulk membrane PC content was observed for both choline kinase (cki) and choline phosphotransferase (cpt1) mutants, but it was not observed for mutants defective in cholinephosphate cytidylyltransferase, the enzyme that catalyzes the penultimate reaction of the CDP-choline pathway for PC biosynthesis. Moreover, the ethanolamine effect observed for cki and cpt1 mutants was independent of the choline content of the growth medium. Finally, we found that haploid yeast strains defective in the activity of both the choline and ethanolamine phosphotransferases experienced an ethanolamine-insensitive reduction in steady-state PC content, an effect which was not observed in strains defective in either one of these activities alone. The collective data indicate that specific enzymes of the CDP-ethanolamine pathway for phosphatidylethanolamine biosynthesis, while able to contribute to PC synthesis when yeast cells are grown under conditions of ethanolamine deprivation, do not do so when yeast cells are presented with this phospholipid headgroup precursor.
Analysis of the proteoglycans synthesized by corneal explants from embryonic chicken. I. Characterization of the culture system with emphasis on stromal proteoglycan biosynthesis.

Corneal explants with scleral rims were freshly prepared from day 18 chicken embryos and incubated in vitro for 3 h in the presence of various radioactive precursors. Radiolabeled proteoglycans were isolated from the stromal tissue and culture medium for analysis. Two predominant proteoglycans were identified in corneal stroma. One contains dermatan sulfate and the other contains keratan sulfate; a structural analysis of each is reported in the accompanying paper (Midura, R.J., and Hascall, V.C. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 1423-1430). A minor keratan sulfate proteoglycan distinct from the major form, a small amount of heparan sulfate proteoglycan, and some sulfated glycoproteins were also detected in stromal extracts. The biosynthesis of the dermatan sulfate proteoglycan was stable in vitro and in ovo, whereas that of the major keratan sulfate proteoglycan was stable only in ovo. Various treatments were tried to maintain a high rate of keratan sulfate synthesis with time in culture. Cooling the corneal explants to 5 degrees C was the only treatment that reduced this decline in keratan sulfate synthesis in vitro to any significant extent. Three major proteoglycans were observed in the culture medium. Two were dermatan sulfate proteoglycan and appeared to be mainly derived from the scleral tissue surrounding the corneal explant. The third proteoglycan contained keratan sulfate. It was smaller in size and lower in charge density compared to the keratan sulfate proteoglycan found in the stroma, but both appeared to have similar core protein sizes. It seems likely that this proteoglycan was synthesized in the stroma and secreted into the medium. A small amount of heparan sulfate proteoglycan and some sulfated glycoproteins were also detected in the medium.
Accidental Inheritance: Retirement Accounts and the Hidden Law of Succession

Americans currently hold more than $9 trillion in retirement savings accounts. Those accounts, together with the family home, are the principal source of wealth for most working and retired Americans. But when a retirement account holder dies prior to exhausting retirement savings, what governs the distribution of the account? Most often, not the account holder’s will or trust, but a one-page fill-in-the-blanks beneficiary designation form that the accountholder filled out, typically without advice of counsel, when she or he opened the account.When account holders fill out beneficiary designation forms, they are focused on starting a new job or beginning to save for retirement, not on estate planning. Yet the account holder’s beneficiary designations often trump express provisions in a will, trust instrument, prenuptial agreement or divorce decree -- documents prepared with inheritance in mind. Moreover, the account holder may neglect to change the beneficiary designation to take account of changed life circumstances, causing his or her retirement assets to pass to a beneficiary he or she never would have chosen later in life. To make matters worse, although wills doctrine has developed a set of constructional rules to deal with changes of circumstance, those rules do not generally apply to beneficiary designation forms. The current legal framework often frustrates the intent of the account holder. This problem, which has already spawned a significant volume of litigation, will become exponentially worse over the coming decade, as more holders of substantial accounts reach the end of their life expectancy. Reform is critical. The financial intermediaries who currently draft beneficiary designation forms have little incentive to improve them because account holders and employers are unlikely to choose providers based on the quality of their forms. Federal and state legislation is necessary to ensure that these assets are distributed consistently with account holders’ intentions.
Rheological and Rheo-Optical Studies with Nematogenic Solutions of a Rodlike Polymer: A Review of Data on Poly (Phenylene Benzobisthiazole)

Rheological and rheo-optical studies on isotropic and nematic solutions of poly (1,4-phenylene-2, 6-benzobisthiazole), PBT, are reviewed. The linear visco-elastic behavior is compared with theoretical models for the isotropic solutions. A BKZ-type constitutive equation coupled with an experimentally determined distribution of relaxation times is found to represent the nonlinear viscoelastic data reported for the isotropic data; comparisons with theoretical models are made. With the nematic solutions, nonlinear viscoelastic behavior is found even for very slow shearing deformations. This behavior may be related to orientation effects at the bounding surfaces. For more rapid shearing deformations, the bulk of the fluid is strongly oriented, similar to the orientation obtained in the isotropic fluid at high rates of shearing deformation. Comparisons are made among a number of rheological properties for isotropic and nematic solutions for the latter flows.
Folate system correlations in DNA microarray data

Gene expression data is abundantly available from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and various websites. Pathway specific analyses of gene-gene correlations across these datasets remain relatively unexplored, though they could be informative. Folate gene expression data is explored here in two ways: (1) directly, using gene-gene scatter plots and gene expression time course plots; and (2) indirectly, using de novo purine synthesis (DNPS) and de novo thymidylate synthesis (DNTS) flux predictions of a folate model perturbed by relative gene expression modulations of its Vmax parameters. Positive correlations within and between the DNPS and DNTS folate cycles are observed in the folate gene expression data. For steady state measurements across childhood leukemia patients, positive correlations between DNPS and DNTS are consistent with higher proliferative fractions requiring higher levels of both fluxes. For cells exposed to ionizing radiation, transient increases in both pathways are consistent with DNA damage driven dNTP demand, and a steadily decreasing backdrop is consistent with radiation induced cell cycle arrest. By and large, folate model based flux predictions paralleled these findings, the main differences being a gain of correlation information for the TEL-AML1 leukemia data, and the loss of one interesting inference, namely, that RNA repair driven DNPS precedes DNA repair driven DNTS after a 10 gray dose of ionizing radiation. Pathway focused correlation analyses of DNA microarray data can be informative, with or without a mathematical model. Conceptual models are essential. Mathematical model based analyses should supplement, but should not replace, direct data analyses.
A Quality-Control Program Based on the Use of Desk-Top Digital Computer

Programs written for a relatively inexpensive desk-top computer are used to calculate the chemical concentration of any batch of unknowns from a flattened absorbance curve with up to five points produced by single- or dual-channel continuous-flow analyzers and other instrumentation. Any value beyond the limits of the curve is rejected. The programs are then used to evaluate a pooled control serum from previously programmed standard deviation data. The sequence of calculation is such that computation of patient samples stops if the control value lies outside these programmed limits. The system ensures that no patient sample is reported, or even calculated, unless its accompanying control was within acceptable statistical limits. Acceptance of the system by technologists has been outstanding.
The VA's affiliation with academic medicine: an emergency post-war strategy becomes a permanent partnership.

The creation of a cabinet-level department for veterans' programs is an occasion to review medical care of American military veterans, which dates back to colonial times. To meet the medical care crisis caused by large numbers of returning World War II veterans, the Veterans Administration (VA) ente
Formation of membrane domains during the activation of protein kinase C.

The lateral membrane organization of phosphatidylserine, diacylglycerol, substrate, and Ca2+-dependent protein kinase C in large unilamellar vesicles was investigated by using fluorescence digital imaging microscopy. The formation of phosphatidylserine domains could be induced by either Ca2+, the MARCKS peptide, or protein kinase C. However, only Ca2+ could induce diacylglycerol to partition into the phosphatidylserine domains. In the complete protein kinase C assay mixture, two separate triple-labeling experiments demonstrated the colocalization of phosphatidylserine, protein kinase C, diacylglycerol, and the MARCKS peptide in domains. The amounts of all the labeled components in whole vesicles and in domains were measured at various concentrations of either phosphatidylserine, Ca2+, diacylglycerol, or the MARCKS peptide or with the addition of polylysine. The role of each component in forming membrane domains and in mediating the enzyme activity was analyzed. The results indicated that the inclusion of ...
Syphilis and orthostatic shaking limbs.

A 65-year-old man presented to the emergency department of Johns Hopkins Hospital, in April, 1999, for evaluation of possible seizures. He had been diagnosed as having syphilis 27 years before, with a venereal disease research laboratory titre of 1:256 and a positive fluorescent treponernal antibody-ABS test, and was treated twice. He had a history of treated hypertension and was undergoing outpatient evaluation for an aortic-arch aneurysm. His chief complaint was uncontrollable shaking of his left arm and leg. This had been occurring intermittently for a year, but had become increasingly severe and caused falls. The movements occurred every time he stood up and stopped as soon as he sat or lay down. He denied previous seizures, syncope, headaches, fever, tick bites, arthralgias, myalgias, skin rashes, weakness, or paraesthesias. He appeared healthy and comfortable. Blood pressures in his arms were 162/54 on the left (L) and 73/56 on the right (R). Carotid and radial pulses were 3+ (L) and 1+ (R). Heart sounds were normal with an ejection murmur radiating to the left carotid, but not to the right carotid. Lungs were clear. There were no swollen joints or skin rashes. Neurological examination while he was sitting or supine was normal. However, upon each attempt at standing, he developed large-amplitude shaking (3–4 Hz) of his left arm and leg. He could not stand upright long enough for orthostatic measurements of blood pressure and pulse. He remained alert and conversant at all times. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance angiography were normal except for mild small-vessel ischaemic changes.
Genetic architecture of the dog: sexual size dimorphism and functional morphology

Purebred dogs are a valuable resource for genetic analysis of quantitative traits. Quantitative traits are complex, controlled by many genes that are contained within regions of the genome known as quantitative trait loci (QTL). The genetic architecture of quantitative traits is defined by the characteristics of these genes: their number, the magnitude of their effects, their positions in the genome and their interactions with each other. QTL analysis is a valuable tool for exploring genetic architecture, and highlighting regions of the genome that contribute to the variation of a trait within a population.
Inherited microbial symbionts increase herbivore abundances and alter arthropod diversity on a native grass

Some microbial symbionts of plants are maternally inherited and thus functionally increase genetic and phenotypic variation within plant populations. This variation, coupled with that of the host plant and environment, may alter abundances, diversity, and trophic structure of associated plant and animal communities. Fungal endophytes in the genus Neotyphodium are vertically transmitted, asexual microbial symbionts of grasses that remain asymptomatic and rely upon their hosts for resources and transmission via seeds, often providing benefits to their hosts, including protection against herbivores. Endophyte infections may influence associated arthropod communities in agronomic grasses, but the long-term effects of endophytes and variation in host genotype and resource availability on arthropod communities in native grass populations are unknown. We conducted a long-term field experiment with four maternal genotypes of an infected (E+) native grass (Festuca arizonica) from whence the endophyte was experimentally removed (E-) and water availability was controlled, to test the effects of infection, plant genotype, and resources on abundances, biomass, diversity (richness and evenness), and trophic structure of the arthropod community. Generally, E+ grasses harbored more arthropods, including more herbivores, predators, and detritivores, suggesting that the effects of endophytes cascaded upward through trophic levels in terms of abundances, at least in early ontogeny of the host. That E+ plants harbored more herbivorous insects than E- plants suggests that infection does not increase but instead decreases resistance to herbivores, contrary to prevailing concepts of endophytes as defensive mutualists. Infection did not alter overall species richness of the arthropod community or richness of herbivores but reduced natural enemy richness, especially that of parasites, and increased richness of detritivores. Reduced richness and shifts in evenness of natural enemies on E+ plants suggest that endophytes may disproportionately affect diversity at higher trophic levels and may partially explain increases in abundances of herbivorous insects on E+ plants. Biomass of predators, detritivores, and omnivores increased on plants with supplemented water, and arthropod and herbivore biomass varied by plant genotype. Symbiont-mediated phenotypic variation interacts with variation from plant genotype and environmental factors to alter arthropod abundances and diversity, and these effects shift with ontogeny of the host.
Examining the Antecedents and Consequences of Workaholism

The authors examined the various antecedents and consequences of workaholism using a sample of 336 undergraduate students in the United States. Path analysis revealed that perfectionism and negative affect significantly predicted workaholism scores. Further, the effect of workaholism on life satisfaction was significantly mediated by leisure boredom and loneliness. Another path suggested that perfectionism directly predicted loneliness, with greater loneliness being significantly related to lower life satisfaction. The authors discuss the implications for organizational interventions and suggest recommendations for future research.
p38δ regulates p53 to control p21Cip1 expression in human epidermal keratinocytes.

PKCδ suppresses keratinocyte proliferation via a mechanism that involves increased expression of p21Cip1. However, the signaling mechanism that mediates this regulation is not well understood. Our present studies suggest that PKCδ activates p38δ leading to increased p21Cip1 promoter activity and p21Cip1 mRNA/protein expression. We further show that exogenously expressed p38δ increases p21Cip1 mRNA and protein and that p38δ knockdown or expression of dominant-negative p38 attenuates this increase. Moreover, p53 is an intermediary in this regulation, as p38δ expression increases p53 mRNA, protein, and promoter activity, and p53 knockdown attenuates the activation. We demonstrate a direct interaction of p38δ with PKCδ and MEK3 and show that exogenous agents that suppress keratinocyte proliferation activate this pathway. We confirm the importance of this regulation using a stratified epidermal equivalent model, which mimics in vivo-like keratinocyte differentiation. In this model, PKCδ or p38δ knockdown results in reduced p53 and p21Cip1 levels and enhanced cell proliferation. We propose that PKCδ activates a MEKK1/MEK3/p38δ MAPK cascade to increase p53 levels and p53 drives p21Cip1 gene expression. Background: Keratinocytes cease proliferation during differentiation, and the mechanism that mediates these events is not well understood. Results: PKCδ increases p38δ activity, which increases p53 transcription and acts to increase p21Cip1 promoter activity. Conclusion: PKCδ drives a MAPK cascade to increase p53 to control keratinocyte proliferation. Significance: This study provides detailed information regarding the mechanisms that control cell proliferation.
Vibrational spectroscopic study of a low frequency polymer backbone mode in poly(propylene oxide)-sodium thiocyanate complexes

Abstract We report the results of a vibrational spectroscopic study of 3000 molecular weight poly(propylene oxide) complexed with NaSCN at several concentrations. Attention has been focussed on a low frequency mode at about 240 cm −1 which involves segmental motion of the polymer backbone. The bandshape and frequency of this mode is the uncomplexed polymer are almost temperature-independent from 25°C to 265°C, but show striking temperature-dependent changes upon complexation with NaSCN. Infrared transmission spectra establish that the spectral changes are unrelated to the metal-oxygen stretching mode introduced upon complexation, since this mode can be easily seen at 190 cm − .
Structure and oxidation kinetics of the Si(100)- SiO 2 interface

We present first-principles calculations of the structural and electronic properties of Si(001)-${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ interfaces. We first arrive at reasonable structures for the c-$\mathrm{Si}/a\ensuremath{-}{\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ interface via a Monte Carlo simulated annealing applied to an empirical interatomic potential, and then relax these structures using first-principles calculations within the framework of the density-functional theory. We find a transition region at the interface, having a thickness on the order of 20 \AA{}, in which there is some oxygen deficiency and a corresponding presence of suboxide Si species (mostly ${\mathrm{Si}}^{+2}$ and ${\mathrm{Si}}^{+3})$. Distributions of bond lengths and bond angles, and the nature of the electronic states at the interface, are investigated and discussed. The behavior of atomic oxygen in a-${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ is also investigated. The peroxyl linkage configuration is found to be lower in energy than interstitial or threefold configurations. Based on these results, we suggest a possible mechanism for oxygen diffusion in a-${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ that may be relevant to the oxidation process.
Microstimulation in the region of the human thalamic principal somatic sensory nucleus evokes sensations like those of mechanical stimulation and movement.

We explored the region of human thalamic somatic sensory nucleus (ventral caudal, Vc), corresponding to monkey ventral posterior (VP), with threshold microstimulation (TMIS) during stereotactic pro...
Approximation by matrices positive semidefinite on a subspace

Abstract We obtain the best approximation to a matrix by matrices positive semidefinite on a subspace. As a by-product, we present two new characterizations of Euclidean distance matrices.
Optically assisted high-speed analog-to-digital conversion using a recirculating delay loop

This paper presents a new concept for the realization of a high-speed, high-resolution Analog-to-Digital Converted (ADC). The approach modifies an analog fiber optic link with a recirculating optical loop as a means to store a time-limited microwave signal so that it may be digitized by using a slower, conventional electronic ADC. Detailed analytical analysis of the dynamic range and noise figure shows that under appropriate conditions the microwave signal degradation is sufficiently small so as to allow the digitization of a multi-gigahertz signal with a resolution greater than 10 effective bits. Preliminary experimental results are presented to support the theory.
The β3 integrin cytoplasmic tail: protein scaffold and control freak

Platelet integrin alphaIIbbeta3 plays an essential role in thrombus formation through interactions with adhesive ligands. Successful parenteral blockade of these interactions has validated alphaIIbbeta3 as a therapeutic target in cardiovascular medicine. However, oral alphaIIbbeta3 antagonists have not been successful and there is an unmet need for more effective anti-platelet drugs. Growing evidence points to the cytoplasmic tails of alphaIIb and beta3, and the beta3 tail in particular, as scaffolds for intracellular proteins that mediate inside-out signaling and regulate alphaIIbbeta3 affinity for ligands. Intracellular protein interactions with the integrin cytoplasmic tails also regulate outside-in signals to the actin cytoskeleton. Here we focus on recent studies that illustrate the relevance of the beta3 cytoplasmic tail as a regulatory scaffold in vivo. We speculate that this scaffold or its interacting proteins may serve as therapeutic targets for the development of future anti-thrombotic drugs.