cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of zirconia doping on additively manufactured alumina ceramics by laser direct deposition

Abstract The ability to additively manufacture functional alumina ceramics has the potential to lower manufacturing costs and development time for complex components. In this study, the doping effects of zirconia on laser direct deposited alumina ceramics were investigated. The microstructure of the printed samples was analyzed in terms of grain size and composition distribution. The addition of zirconia was found to accumulate along alumina grain boundaries and resulted in significant grain refinement. The zirconia doping largely reduced crack formation during processing compared to that of pure alumina samples. In the case of 10 wt% zirconia, cracking during deposition was nearly completely eliminated, but meanwhile porosity was increased. Through grain refinement and crack reduction in 10 wt% zirconia samples, bending strength was shown to increase by nearly four times the value obtained with pure alumina. Fracture toughness was also shown to increase by 1.5 times with addition of 5 wt% zirconia, which was attributed to the crack interaction with zirconia doped grain boundary and stress induced tetragonal to monoclinic transformation of zirconia. These findings indicated the potentials of dopants during laser direct deposition of ceramics and can further be used to tailor the properties of additively manufactured ceramic components.
“Who is this little girl they hired to work here?”: Women’s experiences of marginalizing communication in male-dominated workplaces

Drawing from research on workplace incivility, marginalization, and socialization, this study explored the experiences of 41 women who self-identified as being in the early stages of careers in mal...
"How do I make this thing smile?": An Inventory of Expressive Nonverbal Communication in Commercial Social Virtual Reality Platforms

Despite the proliferation of platforms for social Virtual Reality (VR) communicating emotional expression via an avatar remains a significant design challenge. In order to better understand the design space for expressive Nonverbal Communication (NVC) in social VR we undertook an inventory of the ten most prominent social VR platforms. Our inventory identifies the dominant design strategies for movement, facial control, and gesture in commercial VR applications, and identifies opportunities and challenges for future design and research into social expression in VR. Specifically, we highlight the paucity of interaction paradigms for facial expression and the near nonexistence of meaningful control over ambient aspects of nonverbal communication such as posture, pose, and social status.
Escalating the dose and downgrading the rhythm: the combination of prescribed and non-prescribed medications resulting in an abnormal heart rhythm.

Older patients often have multiple medical issues which predisposes them to complications of polypharmacy and medication interactions. We present a case of an 89-year-old female who presented to the emergency department after a fall. An electrocardiogram (ECG) showed a junctional bradycardia with a ventricular rate of 50 beats per minute (BPM). Her magnesium was 3.5 mg/dl (1.7-2.3 mg/dl). She had recently increased her milk of magnesia use for constipation. Pertinent other medications included verapamil 280 mg daily. On admission 2 grams of calcium gluconate IV were administered and the verapamil was held. An ECG the next morning showed sinus rhythm with a ventricular rate of 76 BPM.
Therapeutic effect of scalp acupuncture combined with rehabilitation training on balance dysfunction in children with spastic hemiplegia

OBJECTIVE To investigate the therapeutic effect of scalp acupuncture and rehabilitation training on balance dysfunction in children with spasmodic hemiplegia so as to provide the reference to the optimization of treatment scheme. METHODS A total of 60 children with spastic hemiplegia were divided into a routine group and a scalp acupuncture group, 30 cases in each one according to random number table. In the routine group, the rehabilitation training was provided, including exercise training, balance training, spasmotherapy apparatus, electromyography biofeedback apparatus and orthoses. In the scalp acupuncture group, on the base of the treatment as the routine group, scalp acupuncture was supplemented at motor area, foot motor sensory area, equilibrium area and parietal temporal anterior oblique line. Separately, before the treatment, after 3 months treatment and after 6 months treatment, the dimension D and E of the gross motor function measure-88 (GMFM-88) and Berg balance scale (BBS) were adopted to evaluate balance related motor functions and equilibrium function. The differences in the above 3 indicators at different time stages were compared in children between the two groups. RESULTS Compared with the score before the treatment, BBS score was obviously increased after 3 and 6 months treatment in the patients of the two groups respectively (P<0.05). The score in the dimension D and E after 6-month treatment was increased significantly as compared with the score before treatment and after 3-month treatment in the same group respectively (P<0.05). Compared with the routine group, the score of dimension D and E of GMFM-88 as well as BBS score were all increased obviously in the scalp acupuncture group after 3 and 6 months treatment (P<0.05). CONCLUSION On the base of routine rehabilitation training, scalp acupuncture can improve balance function of children with spastic hemiplegia better.
Spaces of the A-Temporal: Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities and the Early Modern Imagination

Focusing on Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities, this chapter is concerned with imagined architectures as a form of literary inheritance. It traces consonances between the Italian novelist’s fluid, open-ended built spaces and the plural, liminal spaces of a series of Baroque texts, paintings, architectures and artefacts of the seventeenth century. Its interdisciplinary approach decisively connects Calvino’s literary city to material culture, yet at the same time shows how imagined architectures may reveal a fundamental disbelief in ‘the solidity of our realities’. Todorovic’s concern with imaginative representations of a sense of transience and unbelonging challenges and extends the Heideggerian and Bachelardian foundations of this volume; the architectures that she explores serve as a means of envisaging undwelling, unhousing, unbelonging.
ABUNDANCES IN TURNOFF STARS IN THE OLD, METAL-RICH OPEN CLUSTER, NGC 6791

Open clusters have long been used to illuminate both stellar evolution and Galactic evolution. The oldest clusters, though rather rare, can reveal the chemical and nucleosynthetic processes early in the history of the Galaxy. We have studied two turnoff stars in the old, metal-rich open cluster, NGC 6791. The Keck + HIRES spectra have a resolution of ~45,000 and signal-to-noise ratios of ~40 per pixel. We confirm the high value for [Fe/H] finding +0.30 ± 0.08, in agreement with earlier results from evolved stars in other parts of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. We have also determined abundances for Na, Si, Ca, Ti, Cr, Ni, Y, and Ba. These are compared to a sample of old, metal-rich field stars. With the probable exception of enhanced Ni in the cluster stars, the field and cluster stars show similar abundances of the elements. Model predictions show that the Ni enhancement could result from enrichment of the pre-cluster gas by SN Ia. Orbital evidence indicates that NGC 6791 could have originated near the inner regions of the Galaxy where the metallicity is generally higher than it is in the disk or halo. Subsequent perturbations and migrations may have resulted in its current heliocentric distance of 4 kpc and 1 kpc above the Galactic plane.
Distinguish between Maternal and Fetal ECG Signals

Active research has been done to economically obtain nearly perfect fetal and maternal ECG signals out of a feto-maternal ECG (F/MECG) complex. Researchers gathered multiple techniques to display these signals free of noise, interference and artifacts. The F/MECG complex is a mix of many myographic signals and noise which makes the separation difficult. T he o bjective o f this p aper i s t o a nalyze t he popular procedures used for achieving the goal of representing individual and noise clean ECG signals. It gives a summary of the study on different methods to separate maternal ECG and fetal ECG from F/MECG mix in the mother's abdomen.The paper also incorporates another simple technique of using a moving average filter to attain two signals independently. The study suggests that close to perfect results can be achieved using a simple method.
Correction to: The French welfare state revisited: the puzzling politics of mental health policy

The first sentence of the fourth paragraph under section “Contre la medecine liberale” was published incorrectly.
Intraductal Tissue Sampling Device Designed for the Biliary Tract

Clinical sampling of tissue that is read by a pathologist is currently the gold standard for making a disease diagnosis, but the few minimally invasive techniques available for small duct biopsies have low sensitivity, increasing the likelihood of false negative diagnoses. We propose a novel biopsy device designed to accurately sample tissue in a biliary stricture under fluoroscopy or endoscopic guidance. The device consists of thin blades organized around the circumference of a cylinder that are deployed into a cutting annulus capable of comprehensively sampling tissue from a stricture. A parametric study of the device performance was done using finite element analysis; this includes the blade deployment under combined axial compression and torsion followed by an axial ‘cutting’ step. The clinical feasibility of the device is determined by considering maximum deployment forces, the radial expansion achieved and the cutting stiffness. We find practical parameters for the device operation to be an overall length of 10 mm and a diameter of 3.5 mm for a $50~\mu \text{m}$ blade thickness, which allow the device to be safely deployed with a force of 10N and achieve an expansion over 3x its original diameter. A model device was fabricated with these parameters and a $75~\mu \text{m}$ thickness out of a NiTi superalloy and tested to validate the performance. The device showed strong agreement with an equivalent numerical model, reaching a peak force within 2% of that predicted numerically and fully recovering after compression to 20% of its length. Clinical and Translational Impact Statement –This pre-clinical research conceptually demonstrates a novel expandable device to biopsy tissue in narrow strictures during an ERCP procedure. It can greatly improve diagnostic tissue yield compared to existing methods.
Role of biliary stent and neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the pancreatic tumor microbiome.

Intra-tumor microbiota have been implicated in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) development, treatment response and post-treatment survivorship. Moreover, therapeutic interventions targeting microbiota may improve the response to chemotherapy and immunotherapy, further emphasizing the critical need to understand the origins of and growth of bacteria within the pancreatic tumor microenvironment. Here, we studied the role of several clinical factors on the bacterial colonization of PDAC. We obtained matched tumor and normal pancreatic tissue specimens from 27 patients who had undergone surgical resection for PDAC between 2011 and 2015 from the University of Minnesota Biological Materials Procurement Network (BioNet). We found that 26 (48%) out of 54 pancreatic tissue samples harbored detectable bacterial communities using real-time PCR targeting the 16S rRNA gene. Bacterial colonization was detected significantly more frequently in samples from patients who had pancreatic head tumors, underwent Whipple procedure, or had preoperative biliary stent placement. There was also a significantly greater relative abundance of microbiota from the family Enterobacteriaceae among samples from patients who underwent biliary stent placement or neoadjuvant treatment with a combination of Gemcitabine and Paclitaxel. These findings suggest that biliary stent placement and neoadjuvant chemotherapy are associated with specific alterations that promote the infiltration and growth of intra-tumor bacteria in the setting of PDAC. Further studies exploring whether specific bacterial communities could contribute to increased chemoresistance will be essential for optimizing medical therapies in the future.
Gene Fama's Impact: A Quantitative Analysis

This paper provides a quantitative perspective on Gene Fama’s influence on the scholarly community. He has more than 140,000 Google cites while the median number of citations for the Fellows of the American Finance Association is 32,792. Gene Fama has published highly-cited papers in six decades. His most impactful theoretical work took place earlier than his most impactful empirical work. While Gene Fama’s most impactful empirical asset pricing work was published in the Journal of Financial Economics, his most impactful theoretical/conceptual work was published in the Journal of Finance and in the Journal of Law and Economics. An important dimension of the impact of Gene Fama on the finance profession is through his Ph.D. students. These students include one Nobel prize winner, six AFA presidents, and four editors of top finance journals.
The three E’s—efficiency, equity, and environmental protection—in search of “win–win–win” policies

Abstract Economists are trained to identify the trade-offs in objectives implicit in virtually every type of policy proposal. The purpose of this paper is to show that, in a poor developing country like India, existing policies conspire to damage the environment, reduce the level of income and the rate of growth, and increase income inequality. It uses an environmentally extended computable general equilibrium model (EECGE) for India to demonstrate that simple policy changes can be made which would raise distributional equity, environmental sustainability, and growth-increasing efficiency all at the same time. The results support the hypothesis that sustainable development is generally possible only when there is a thorough integration of economic, distributional, and environmental policies that can collectively “win” in achieving economic growth, equity, and environmental objectives at the same time.
An accurate non-quasistatic MOSFET model for simulation of RF and high speed circuits

An accurate Non-Quasistatic SPICE model based on relaxation time is proposed for ac and transient simulation of high speed and radio frequency (RF) circuits. A method for extracting the relaxation time is also provided. Its dependence on Vgs and Vds and channel length is based on physics and built in the model. Finally the model is verified with both 2D simulation and measurement.
Inferring causal connectivity in epileptogenic zone using directed information

Directed information, an information theoretic quantity, is developed in this paper to infer the causal connectivity from electrocorticography (ECoG) recordings of an epileptic patient. The causal connectivity can be used to infer the optimal electrodes for electrical stimulation based treatments of epilepsy. A parametric estimator for directed information between two ECoG signals is also proposed. The estimator estimates entropy and causally conditioned entropy and their difference is the estimate of DI. The estimator is then applied to ECoG data recorded from the electrodes in the epileptogenic zone (EZ) in two patients with focal epilepsy to learn the changes in causal connectivity during seizures.
Numerical simulations of fission

Hydrodynamic simulation techniques to the fission problem of the lunar origin were applied. It is indicated that, for fluids with the compressibility of stars, dynamic fission instabilities lead to spiral arm ejection of mass and angular momentum in the form of a ring or disk of debris, not as a single body. Some quantitative aspects of these results seem favorable to lunar origin by fission. Fission instabilities in fluid objects with a smaller degree of compressibility, more closely approximating terrestrial material are considered. Although the qualitative features are similar, there are significant quantitative differences for the stiffer equation of state. The implications of the results for the fission hypothesis of lunar origin are discussed. Evolutions illustrating possible approaches to instability are presented.
Adolescent Peer Victimization and Physical Health Problems

OBJECTIVE: Peer victimization (PV) is a key interpersonal stressor that can be traumatizing for youth. This study evaluated the relationships between overt, relational, reputational, and cyber PV and adolescents' somatic complaints and sleep problems. Symptoms of depression and social anxiety were examined as potential mediators. METHOD: Adolescents (N = 1,162; M age = 15.80 years; 57% female; 80% Hispanic) were assessed at three time points, 6 weeks apart, using standardized measures of PV, depression, social anxiety, sleep problems, and somatic complaints. Structural equation modeling evaluated key study aims. RESULTS: Relational, reputational, and cyber PV, but not overt PV, were directly or indirectly associated with subsequent somatic complaints and/or sleep problems. Depression and social anxiety mediated relationships between relational PV and health outcomes, whereas reputational PV was indirectly associated with somatic complaints via depression only. DISCUSSION: The stress of PV may contribute to adolescents' sleep problems and somatic complaints and has implications for pediatric psychologists. Language: en
Fault tolerance and the five-second rule

We propose a new approach to fault tolerance that we call bounded-time recovery (BTR). BTR is intended for systems that need strong timeliness guarantees during normal operation but can tolerate short outages in an emergency, e.g., when they are under attack. We argue that BTR could be a good fit for many cyber-physical systems. We also sketch a technical approach to providing BTR, and we discuss some challenges that still remain.
The Effect of Adventitious Deafness on the Perception and Production of Voice Onset Time in Thai: A Case Study

The perception and production of voice onset time (VOT) was investigated in a Thai patient with an adventitious, profound sensorineural heating loss. Thai exhibits a three-category voicing distinction for bilabial (/b, p, ph/) and alveolar (/d, t, th/) stops, and a two-category distinction for velar (/k, kh/) stops. VOT perception was measured in labeling responses to synthetic speech continua differing in VOT; VOT production was measured in word-initial stops of words produced in isolation. These measurements were compared with previously published VOT data for normal-hearing Thai speakers. The results of acoustic analyses of this subject's productions suggested only minor articulatory perturbations, and the target phonemes were generally identified accurately by normal listeners.
Loss of Afferent Vestibular Input Produces Central Adaptation and Increased Gain of Vestibular Prosthetic Stimulation

Implanted vestibular neurostimulators are effective in driving slow phase eye movements in monkeys and humans. Furthermore, increases in slow phase velocity and electrically evoked compound action potential (vECAP) amplitudes occur with increasing current amplitude of electrical stimulation. In intact monkeys, protracted intermittent stimulation continues to produce robust behavioral responses and preserved vECAPs. In lesioned monkeys, shorter duration studies show preserved but with somewhat lower or higher velocity behavioral responses. It has been proposed that such changes are due to central adaptive changes in the electrically elicited vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR). It is equally possible that these differences are due to changes in the vestibular periphery in response to activation of the vestibular efferent system. In order to investigate the site of adaptive change in response to electrical stimulation, we performed transtympanic gentamicin perfusions to induce rapid changes in vestibular input in monkeys with long-standing stably functioning vestibular neurostimulators, disambiguating the effects of implantation from the effects of ototoxic lesion. Gentamicin injection was effective in producing a large reduction in natural VOR only when it was performed in the non-implanted ear, suggesting that the implanted ear contributed little to the natural rotational response before injection. Injection of the implanted ear produced a reduction in the vECAP responses in that ear, suggesting that the intact hair cells in the non-functional ipsilateral ear were successfully lesioned by gentamicin, reducing the efficacy of stimulation in that ear. Despite this, injection of both ears produced central plastic changes that resulted in a dramatically increased slow phase velocity nystagmus elicited by electrical stimulation. These results suggest that loss of vestibular afferent activity, and a concurrent loss of electrically elicited vestibular input, produces an increase in the efficacy of a vestibular neurostimulator by eliciting centrally adapted behavioral responses without concurrent adaptive increase of galvanic afferent activation in the periphery.
Opioid growth factor tonically inhibits human colon cancer cell proliferation in tissue culture

Native opioid peptides serve as growth factors in a number of normal and neoplastic cells and tissues, including the prevention and delayed growth of human colon cancer xenografts in nude mice. This study examined the hypothesis that opioids exert a direct inhibitory influence on tumor cell growth by the use of a tissue culture model. The naturally occurring pentapeptide [Met5]enkephalin depressed growth of HT-29 human colon cancer cells from 17 to 41% at 12-72 h after administration of 10(-6)M concentration; consistent with previously defined nomenclature, this peptide was termed opioid growth factor (OGF). OGF action exhibited a dose-response relationship, was reversible and not cytotoxic, and was opioid receptor mediated. Growth inhibition by OGF was not dependent on serum, and was noted in the two other human colon cancer cell lines examined WiDr and COLO 205. This peptide continually repressed growth because an increase in cell number was noted when cells were exposed to the potent opioid antagonist naltrexone or an antibody to OGF. Both OGF and its receptor, zeta (zeta), were found in colon cancer cells by immunocytochemistry, and receptor binding assays revealed a nuclear-associated receptor with a dissociation constant of 8.9 nM and a maximum binding capacity of 43 fmol/mg of protein. OGF was produced and secreted by the tumor cells. These results lead to the suggestion that OGF has a direct, tonic, inhibitory action on the growth of human colon cancer cells and contribute to our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the marked antitumor effect of this peptide in nude mice inoculated with human colon cancer cells.
Further Evidence Regarding the Correlation between Solar Activity and Atmospheric Electricity

THE geophysical element which has thus far shown -L the most marked correlation between manifestations of solar activity, as, for example, sunspotted-ness and prominences, is some measure of activity of the earth's magnetism. The range of the magnetic diurnal variation, as shown by observations extending over nearly a century, is known to pass through a definite fluctuation to the extent of 50 per cent., or more, during a sunspot cycle. The synchronism between the solar curve and the magnetic curve is not exact, however, the times of maxima of the two curves differing not infrequently by one year or more. Thus, at the Kew Observatory the absolute daily range of the magnetic declination during the period 1858–1900, or approximately 4 sunspot cycles, passed through a maximum value, three times out of the four cases, one year in advance of the sunspot maximum. During the recent sunspot cycle (1913–1923) the maximum magnetic activity showed a lag of two years with reference to the solar curve. In 1893, when sunspottedness was a maximum, the earth's magnetic activity, after having been increasing for several years previous, was quite markedly lessened, and then rose to a maximum value in 1894.
The width of the 5.11 MeV state in 10B and isovector parity mixing

Abstract We review estimates for effects of parity mixing on the α-capture of vector polarized 6 Li to the 5.16 MeV, 2 + , T = 1 state in 10 B. The cross section depends on the 6 Li polarization direction because of isovector parity mixing with the 5.11 MeV, 2 − , T = 0 state. The effect is enhanced due to isospin conservation. The α-width of the 5.11 MeV state, an important parameter for calculating the enhancement, has been measured to be 0.98 ± 0.07 keV. The consequences of parity mixing are reevaluated using best available values for the relevant parameters.
Wide splitting of the second heart sound without demonstrable heart disease

Abstract Twelve subjects had wide splitting of the second heart sound (S 2 ) during quiet respiration, during a variety of respiratory maneuvers, and in the supine and sitting position. Cardiac hemodynamics were normal. Neither the mechanism nor the incidence of such splitting in the absence of significant heart disease is clear.
The application of the Kalman filter to nonstationary time series through time deformation

. An increasingly valuable tool for modelling a nonstationary time series, X(t), is time deformation. In this procedure time, t, is transformed to a ‘time’ scale, u = g(t), on which the process Y(u) = X(g(t)) is stationary. However, since the time scale is transformed, equally spaced data on the original time scale data become unequally spaced data in transformed time. In practice interpolation in the original time scale is currently used to obtain equally spaced data in transformed time which can then be modelled using the classical autoregressive moving average modelling techniques. In this article, the need for interpolation is eliminated by employing the continuous time autoregressive model and estimating the parameters using the Kalman filter. The resulting improvements include more accurate estimation of the spectrum, and the separation of the data into its time-varying latent components. The technique is applied to simulated and real data for illustrations.
Design of randomized experiments to measure social interaction effects

Abstract We consider randomized experiments with two levels of randomization for measuring social interaction effects. We examine how the randomization should be carried out to estimate the coefficients of interest most precisely.
Observation of giant scattering cross sections in4He

Abstract We have measured absolute integral elastic cross sections for ground state4He-4He scattering at collision energies from 1.35K to 0.5K using a novel atomic beam apparatus built into a dilution refrigerator. Scattering is almost pure s-wave. The effective or average integral cross section ranges from 200A˚2 to 1000A˚2 as collision energy is reduced in our experiment.
Novel packaging of parallel-optical interconnects for high-end servers

A novel packaging concept is demonstrated where parallel-optical subassemblies are mounted on the same substrate as processor chips for processor-to-processor communication within a high-end server. A single-channel bit-error ratio <1.5/spl times/10/sup -15/ was measured at 8 Gbit/s.
Predicting metabolic pathways by logic programming

Abstract This paper discusses logic programming and its application for the expert system I use to simulate the metabolic fate of substances. An expert system called Metabolexpert accepts the formula of the compound to be metabolized and produces a treelike picture of the metabolites generated together with the formula of the compounds. On request, three-dimensional (3D) pictures of the metabolites are also displayed and hydrophobicity (logP) values of the compounds calculated. A retrospective investigation of Metabolexpert's achievement showed that the expert system can reproduce almost all primary, secondary and tertiary metabolites of amphetamine. A compound series has been suggested for benchmark testing of metabolic transformation knowledge bases.
Stilbazulenyl nitrone (STAZN): a nitronyl-substituted hydrocarbon with the potency of classical phenolic chain-breaking antioxidants.

Stilbazulenyl nitrone (STAZN), 8, a nitronyl-substituted hydrocarbon, is a novel second-generation azulenyl nitrone with significantly enhanced potency as a chain-breaking antioxidant vs conventional α-phenyl nitrones previously investigated as antioxidant therapeutics. A convenient 1H NMR-based assay for assessing the potency of chain-breaking antioxidants has shown that STAZN is ca. 300 times more potent in inhibiting the free radical-mediated aerobic peroxidation of cumene than is PBN and the experimental stroke drug NXY-059. Such levels of antioxidant efficacy are unprecedented among archetypal α-phenyl nitrone spin traps. Furthermore, STAZN outperforms such classical phenolic antioxidants as BHT and probucol and rivals the antioxidant potency of Vitamin E in a polar medium comprised of 80% cumene and 20% methanol. The Volodarskii electron-transfer mechanism involving the intermediacy of the STAZN radical cation has been implicated in attempts to ascertain the basis for the increased potency of STAZN ...
Estimating the Effect of Nonignorable Nonresponse in Sample Surveys: An Application of Rubin's Bayesian Method to the Estimation of Community Standards for Obscenity

Rubin (1977) developed a method for estimating, in a subjective sense, the effect of nonignorable nonresponse in sample surveys. Based on Bayesian techniques, this method produces a subjective probability interval for the statistic, such as the mean of a response variable, that would have been calculated if all nonrespondents had responded. Demographic and socioeconomic background information that is recorded for both respondents and nonrespondents plays an important role in sharpening the subjective interval - through the adjustment of a regression equation that uses this information. In this article, Rubin's method-sometimes called the mixture modeling approach to drawing inferences from self-selected samples-is reviewed and applied to real survey and experimental data on community standards for sexually explicit material in which respondents were asked to judge the material's appeal to prurient interest and patent offensiveness (two of the three legal criteria for a determination of obscenity). A criti...
Sepsis Enhances Epithelial Permeability with Stretch in an Actin Dependent Manner

Ventilation of septic patients often leads to the development of edema and impaired gas exchange. We hypothesized that septic alveolar epithelial monolayers would experience stretch-induced barrier dysfunction at a lower magnitude of stretch than healthy alveolar epithelial monolayers. Alveolar epithelial cells were isolated from rats 24 hours after cecal ligation and double puncture (2CLP) or sham surgery. Following a 5-day culture period, monolayers were cyclically stretched for 0, 10, or 60 minutes to a magnitude of 12% or 25% change in surface area (ΔSA). Barrier function, MAPk and myosin light chain (MLC) phosphorylation, tight junction (TJ) protein expression and actin cytoskeletal organization were examined after stretch. Significant increases in epithelial permeability were observed only in 2CLP monolayers at the 12% ΔSA stretch level, and in both 2CLP and sham monolayers at the 25% ΔSA stretch level. Increased permeability in 2CLP monolayers was not associated with MAPk signaling or alterations in expression of TJ proteins. 2CLP monolayers had fewer actin stress fibers before stretch, a more robust stretch-induced actin redistribution, and reduced phosphorylated MLCK than sham monolayers. Jasplakinolide stabilization of the actin cytoskeleton in 2CLP monolayers prevented significant increases in permeability following 60 minutes of stretch to 12% ΔSA. We concluded that septic alveolar epithelial monolayers are more susceptible to stretch-induced barrier dysfunction than healthy monolayers due to actin reorganization.
Proliferation of microglia, but not photoreceptors, in the outer nuclear layer of the rd-1 mouse.

Purpose To establish whether photoreceptor apoptosis in the rd-1 mouse is accompanied by cell cycle progression. Studies of cell cycle proteins in other models of neuronal death provide consistent evidence that a repertoire of proliferative markers accompanies apoptosis. Methods The spatiotemporal progression of photoreceptor loss in rd-1 and control mice at postnatal days (PN)8, -10, -12, -15, and -18 was correlated with markers of G(1)- and S-phase progression. Photoreceptor death was detected by using morphology and terminal dUTP transferase nick end labeling (TUNEL). Cell-cycle-associated markers consisted of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) uptake, and immunolabeling for proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), Ki-67, and cyclin-dependent kinases-2 and -4. The identity of proliferating cells in the outer nuclear layer was established by double immunolabeling with PCNA and either F4/80 or recoverin. Results A population of proliferating cells in the outer nuclear layer accompanies photoreceptor death along a central to peripheral gradient in rd-1 retinas. Double immunolabeling for PCNA and F4/80 readily identified these as microglial cells originating from the inner retina. Cell cycle progression in photoreceptors could not be demonstrated. Conclusions These findings confirm that in rd-1, a preexisting condition for cell cycle progression does not exist as it does in other neurodegenerative conditions. Therefore, in this model, evidence of photoreceptor cell cycle progression in retinas exposed to neurotrophic factors is likely to result from the therapy itself. In addition, the results confirmed that proliferating microglial cells are intimately associated with the degenerative process in rd-1.
Influence of compartmental localization on the function of yeast NADP+-specific isocitrate dehydrogenases.

Abstract Three differentially compartmentalized isozymes of isocitrate dehydrogenase (mitochondrial IDP1, cytosolic IDP2, and peroxisomal IDP3) in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae catalyze the NADP+-dependent oxidative decarboxylation of isocitrate to form α-ketoglutarate. These enzymes are highly homologous but exhibit some significant differences in physical and kinetic properties. To examine the impact of these differences on physiological function, we exchanged promoters and altered organellar targeting information to obtain expression of IDP2 and IDP3 in mitochondria and of IDP1 and IDP3 in the cytosol. Physiological function was assessed as complementation by mislocalized isozymes of defined growth defects of isocitrate dehydrogenase mutant strains. These studies revealed that the IDP isozymes are functionally interchangeable for glutamate synthesis, although mitochondrial localization has a positive impact on this function during fermentative growth. However, IDP2, whether located in mitochondria or in the cytosol, provided the highest level of defense against endogenous or exogenous oxidative stress.
Analysis and implementation of a space resolving spherical crystal spectrometer for x-ray Thomson scattering experiments

The application of a space-resolving spectrometer to X-ray Thomson Scattering (XRTS) experiments has the potential to advance the study of warm dense matter. This has motivated the design of a spherical crystal spectrometer, which is a doubly focusing geometry with an overall high sensitivity and the capability of providing high-resolution, space-resolved spectra. A detailed analysis of the image fluence and crystal throughput in this geometry is carried out and analytical estimates of these quantities are presented. This analysis informed the design of a new spectrometer intended for future XRTS experiments on the Z-machine. The new spectrometer collects 6 keV x-rays with a spherically bent Ge (422) crystal and focuses the collected x-rays onto the Rowland circle. The spectrometer was built and then tested with a foam target. The resulting high-quality spectra prove that a spherical spectrometer is a viable diagnostic for XRTS experiments.
Renal medicine and renal patients at the Seventh I.K.A. Hospital of Athens

Clinical nephrologists are generally aware that bringing chronic renal treatment to all patients who need it is both an economic and a medical challenge. On the medical side, there is the task of giving the most appropriate form of treatment to the individual patient and, so far as it lies within the power of the physician and his staff, of supporting and motivating the patient to maintain a reasonably satisfying and productive life despite the stress of illness and treatment. On the economic side, there are a number of issues concerning the generation of funds for treatment, the utilization of various categories of medical and nonmedical personnel, and the geographic deployment of treatment resources of varying levels of expertise and intensity. For example, the hospital facilities for diabetic dialysis patients who can anticipate periodic complications are more extensive than the more limited back-up facilities needed for well-stabilized "healthy" patients who are managing domiciliary dialysis. These questions have an international aspect, as the nephrology professionals and health administrators in many nations seek to expand their treatment programs for chronic treatment of renal failure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
La investigación del español del Suroeste: Problemas y métodos

This is the second of two articles dealing with the epistemology of the analysis of Spanish in the Southwest of the United States of America. The content of this part is basically linguistic, with social implications, and mostly synchronic. The historical references, however, are never set aside. In the first place, it is important to make a distinction between the real melting languages and theoretical misinterpretations. English and Spanish are combined with social and literary implications in the diverse slang forms of the area: pachuco, calo, among others. Spurious interests, however, have given force to fantastic hypotheses brought to a climax by the invention of an allegedly “new” language, called Spanglish. This lexical choice is unfortunate, because it takes advantage of the existence of a more innocuous use of the word, simply referring to all forms of contact between the two languages. Four aspects are therefore mixed up and mistaken: the invention of an allegedly “new” language, in spite of a total lack of unification; the constant code-switching with different modalities and extent; the bad quality of certain translations; and the cultural relegation of Hispanics to speakers of a ghetto language. The set of two articles ends with a graphical presentation of a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats). The conclusion refers to Judeo-Spanish and the dangers of ghetto languages, as well as to the role of education.
The Changing Role of the Training Function: A Test For the Integration of Human Resource and Business Strategies?

Helen Rainbird, who is Reader in Social Sciences at Nene College, Northampton, draws on detailed case study evidence from 21 undertakings in the public and private sector to consider the organisation of the training function. She finds that, although the integration of the training function into other policy areas, and of employees through involvement in training programmes, had not occurred to a great extent, nevertheless some of the undertakings had shown themselves capable of developing a more strategic approach to training. This was notably the case in two high technology companies, operating in highly competitive international markets, and in the public sector, where there was a stronger tradition and culture of training.
High-current dc power transmission in flexible RE–Ba2Cu3O7 − δ coated conductor cables*

Transmission cables made from high-temperature superconductors have been successfully demonstrated within the electric power grid. These cables carry an ac current of up to 3000 A in a much smaller cross-sectional area than conventional transmission lines, but they are not flexible enough for certain applications that involve very tight cable bends. Certain on-board Air Force applications require 5 MW of dc power transmission at 270 V and current of 18 500 A and would benefit from superconducting transmission in lightweight, flexible cables that would be cooled with helium gas down to about 55 K. To address these needs, we have constructed a 10 mm diameter RE–Ba2Cu3O7 − δ (RE = rare earth) coated conductor cable that is lighter and more flexible than the current generation of superconducting cables, and that has a critical current of 7561 A at 76 K. The cable is expected to have a critical current of more than 20 000 A at 55 K and therefore will likely exceed the requirements for 5 MW on-board power transmission. The cable consists of two electrically insulated phases that can be operated in different modes, which allows us to study the effect of self-field on the cable performance.
Computer-assisted targeted therapy (CATT) for prostate radiotherapy planning by fusion of CT and MRI

In this paper, we present a comprehensive, quantitative imaging framework for improved treatment of prostate cancer via computer-assisted targeted therapy (CATT) to facilitate radiotherapy dose escalation to regions with a high likelihood of disease presence. The framework involves identification of high likelihood prostate cancer regions using computer-aided detection (CAD) classifier on diagnostic MRI, followed by mapping of these regions from MRI onto planning computerized tomography (CT) via image registration. Treatment of prostate cancer by targeted radiotherapy requires CT to formulate a dose plan. While accurate delineation of the prostate and cancer can provide reduced exposure of benign tissue to radiation, as well as a higher dose to the cancer, CT is ineffective in localizing intraprostatic lesions and poor for highlighting the prostate boundary. MR imagery on the other hand allows for greatly improved visualization of the prostate. Further, several studies have demonstrated the utility of CAD for identifying the location of tumors on in vivo multi-functional prostate MRI. Consequently, our objective is to improve the accuracy of radiotherapy dose plans via multimodal fusion of MR and CT. To achieve this objective, the CATT framework presented in this paper comprises the following components: (1) an unsupervised pixel-wise classifier to identify suspicious regions within the prostate on diagnostic MRI, (2) elastic image registration to align corresponding diagnostic MRI, planning MRI, and CT of the prostate, (3) mapping of the suspect regions from diagnostic MRI onto CT, and (4) calculation of a modified radiotherapy plan with escalated dose for cancer. Qualitative comparison of the dose plans (with and without CAD) over a total of 79 2D slices obtained from 10 MR-CT patient studies, suggest that our CATT framework could help in improved targeted treatment of prostate cancer.
Simian retrovirus serogroup 2 constitutive transport element recognizes the ribosomal L10-like protein and translocon gamma subunit-like protein in a yeast three-hybrid assay.

Abstract The simian retrovirus (SRV) serogroup 2 genome contains a constitutive transport element (CTE) within its 3′ intergenic region (IR) that mediates the nuclear export of unspliced SRV RNA. In a previous report [Virology 264 (1999) 37], CTE RNA–protein complexes were detected using UV-crosslinking/sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). To identify these CTE-interacting cellular proteins, we utilized yeast three-hybrid interaction approaches using the complete IR as bait, modified to eliminate transcriptional termination signals recognized by RNA polymerase III, and identified several interactive clones from a Hela cell cDNA activation domain (AD) library. UV-crosslinking of RNA–protein complexes, using Hela cell extracts and the modified IR bait, were conducted prior to library screening, to verify appropriate interaction of CTE RNA–protein complexes. Over one million recombinants were screened, and our yeast hybrid results indicate that the CTE interacts with several molecules involved in cellular translational and translocation machinery, including the ribosomal L10-like protein and the tranlocon protein gamma subunit-like protein. UV-crosslinking/immunoblot assays have verified the interaction of the CTE region with molecules immunologically reactive to antibodies recognizing the ribosomal L10-like protein.
Centralized and Pluralistic Organizational Structures in Public Welfare

Researchers have speculated for some time that organizations are strongly influenced by ideological and social forces present at the forntative period of their history. This study shows that two types of organizational structure-centralized and pluralistic-found in 48 states' public assistance organizations can be partly accounted for by the administrative ideology that was dominant at the formative stage. In addition, the effects of pluralistic and centralized structure tend to have long-lasting effects on some of the internal components of public assistance organizations.
Development of bond-length alternation in very large carbon rings: LDA pseudopotential results

Carbon rings ${\mathrm{C}}_{n}$ and infinite chains ${\mathrm{C}}_{\ensuremath{\infty}}$ are investigated by molecular-orbital and band-structure calculations within the local-density approximation. Carbon rings ${\mathrm{C}}_{4N}$ $(Nl~8)$ exhibit a substantial first-order Jahn-Teller distortion that leads to long/short (single/triple) bond alternation decreasing with increasing $N.$ Rings ${\mathrm{C}}_{4N+2}$ show no alternation (i.e., aromatic behavior is retained) until very large sizes $(Ng~20).$ For the infinite carbon chain uniform Brillouin-zone sampling with an even number of points ${N}_{s}$ gives bond alternation. An odd number of sampling points gives no bond alternation for less than ${N}_{s}=41.$ In the large ${N}_{s}$ limit even and odd sampling lead to an upper and lower bound of ${0.070a}_{0}$ and ${0.065a}_{0}$ for bond alternation and 0.021--0.090 millihartrees/atom for condensation energy.
Critical interfaces in new solar cell materials: organic heterojunctions and heterojunctions involving semiconductor nanoparticles

The heterojunctions formed between different organic dyes (O/O' heterojunctions), organic dyes with contacting oxide or metal electrodes (O/I heterojunctions), and semiconductor nanoparticles with organic host polymers and ligands (SC-NP/ O heterojunctions) must be understood and optimized in order to enhance the energy conversion efficiencies of photovoltaics using these materials as their active components. We have used combinations of UV-photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS/XPS) in the characterization of representative heterojunctions, and extrapolate these studies to the optimization of new photovoltaic and photoelectrochemical energy conversion devices.