cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the Effect of Crosslinking Method of Poly(Vinyl Alcohol) Hydrogels on Thrombogenicity.

Crosslinked poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a biomaterial that can be used for multiple cardiovascular applications. The success of implanted biomaterials is contingent on the properties of the material. A crucial consideration for blood-contacting devices is their potential to incite thrombus formation, which is dependent on the material surface properties. The goal of this study was to quantify the effect of different crosslinking methods of PVA hydrogels on in vitro thrombogenicity. PVA was manufactured using three different crosslinking methods: 30% sodium trimetaphosphate (STMP), three 24 h freeze–thaw cycles (FT), and 2% glutaraldehyde-crosslinked (GA) to produce STMP-PVA, FT-PVA and GA-PVA, respectively. Expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) was used as a clinical control. As markers of thrombus formation, the degree of coagulation factor (F) XII activation, fibrin formation, and platelet adhesion were measured. The GA-PVA material increased FXII activation in the presence of cofactors compared to vehicle and increase platelet adhesion compared to other PVA surfaces. The STMP-PVA and FT-PVA materials had equivalent degrees of FXII activation, fibrin formation and platelet adhesion. This work supports crosslinker dependent thrombogenicity of PVA hydrogels and advances our understanding of how the manufacturing of a PVA hydrogel affects its hemocompatibility.
Needle-based Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy (nCLE) for Evaluation of Pancreatic Cystic Lesions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background and aims Given the variable diagnostic yield of endoscopic ultrasound and endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration for pancreatic cystic lesions (PCLs), novel imaging techniques including needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy (nCLE) have been devised. The aim of this study was to perform a structured systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the diagnostic performance and safety of nCLE for the diagnosis of PCLs. Methods Individualized search strategies were developed in accordance with PRISMA and MOOSE guidelines and meta-analysis analyzed according to the Cochrane Diagnostic Test Accuracy working group methodology. Measured outcomes included diagnostic characteristics and procedure-associated adverse events. A bivariate model was used to compute combined weighted sensitivity, specificity, positive/negative likelihood ratio (LR), diagnostic odds ratio, and summary receiver operating characteristic curve with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results Seven studies (n=324; mean age: 63.99±5.36 y; 52.47% female) were included. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive LR, and negative LR of nCLE was 85% (95% CI, 71-93; I=74.20%), 99% (95% CI, 90-100; I=72.60%), 78.66 (95% CI, 7.99-774.68; I=26.86%), and 0.15 (95% CI, 0.07-0.31; I=75.84%), respectively. Diagnostic accuracy as measured by summary receiver operating characteristic curve was 99% (95% CI, 98-100). The pooled diagnostic odds ratio was 534 (95% CI, 50-5664; I=58.00%). Postprocedure pancreatitis developed in 1% (95% CI, 0-3; I=5.64%) of cases. Conclusions On the basis of this meta-analysis, nCLE appears to be an effective and safe technique for the diagnostic evaluation of PCLs. Although moderate-to-high amounts of heterogeneity were present, our results demonstrated that nCLE has a diagnostic accuracy of 99% with a low rate of adverse events.
Belief of nonexistent inherent relationship and its impact on decisions

The effects of superstitious beliefs in economics have attracted both of psychologists and economists over decades. To date, most studies focus on those beliefs with certain superstitious (religious, mystic, etc.) background stories (sometimes just brief sayings). However, superstitious beliefs without background stories may also exist and affect people’s decisions consequently. These beliefs are often performed as beliefs in a nonexistent inherent relationship. In this research, we introduced a model, based on people’s adjustment in expected utility upon receiving new information, to mathematize the effect of beliefs in nonexistent inherent relationships. This new model reviews such phenomenon in an economical and mathematical view, which could be applied to some unexplained irrational decisions.
Performance Evaluation of Si/SiC Hybrid Switch-Based Three-Level Active NPC Converter

The configuration of a high current-rated silicon (Si) IGBT connected with a low current-rated silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET has been proposed to be used as one basic switching unit. Benefiting from the combined advantages, this Si/SiC hybrid switch (Si/SiC HyS) is expected to present superior performance on semiconductor losses, overload capability, and device cost. Two types of Si/SiC HyS-based three-level active neutral point clamped (3L-ANPC) topologies, including 2-Si/SiC HyS and 4-Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC, are proposed in this paper to achieve higher inverter efficiency and lower device cost. A universal 4.4kW 3L-ANPC prototype has been developed for three evaluated topologies, including the 2-Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC inverter, 4-Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC inverter, and full Si IGBT-based 3L-ANPC inverter. The experimental results demonstrate that the Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC inverters can achieve 2% and 1.8% efficiency improvement at light load and heavy load respectively compared with the conventional full Si IGBT-based 3L-ANPC inverter. Compared with the full SiC MOSFET solution, the two types of Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC inverter both can achieve more than 80% cost reduction on the semiconductor devices. Among the two proposed Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC inverters, the 2-Si/SiC HyS-based 3L-ANPC inverter further reduces the semiconductor device cost and achieves a better balanced junction temperature and higher power output capacity for high power density applications.
Seasonal pasture myopathy/atypical myopathy in North America associated with ingestion of hypoglycin A within seeds of the box elder tree

Reasons for performing study We hypothesised that seasonal pasture myopathy (SPM), which closely resembles atypical myopathy (AM), was caused by ingestion of a seed-bearing plant abundant in autumn pastures. Objectives To identify a common seed-bearing plant among autumn pastures of horses with SPM, and to determine whether the toxic amino acid hypoglycin A was present in the seeds and whether hypoglycin metabolites were present in SPM horse serum or urine. Methods Twelve SPM cases, 11 SPM pastures and 23 control farms were visited to identify a plant common to all SPM farms in autumn. A common seed was analysed for amino acid composition (n = 7/7) by GC-MS and its toxic metabolite (n = 4/4) identified in conjugated form in serum [tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS)] and urine [gas chromatography (GC) MS]. Serum acylcarnitines and urine organic acid profiles (n = 7) were determined for SPM horses. Results Seeds from box elder trees (Acer negundo) were present on all SPM and 61% of control pastures. Hypoglycin A, known to cause acquired multiple acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MADD), was found in box elder seeds. Serum acylcarnitines and urine organic acid profiles in SPM horses were typical for MADD. The hypoglycin A metabolite methylenecyclopropylacetic acid (MCPA), known to be toxic in other species, was found in conjugated form in SPM horse serum and urine. Horses with SPM had longer turn-out, more overgrazed pastures, and less supplemental feeding than control horses. Potential relevance For the first time, SPM has been linked to a toxin in seeds abundant on autumn pastures whose identified metabolite, MCPA, is known to cause acquired MADD, the pathological mechanism behind SPM and AM. Further research is required to determine the lethal dose of hypoglycin A in horses, as well as factors that affect annual seed burden and hypoglycin A content in Acer species in North America and Europe.
El hispanismo ensimismado

La situacion actual del hispanismo en tanto discurso intelectual ha sido considerada, desde diferentes sectores, critica. El articulo analiza las caracteristicas de la(s) supuesta(s) crisis, abordando sus posibles raices y proyecciones, y entablando un dialogo con otras posiciones al respecto
[8] Preparation, characterization, and use of human and rodent lymphocytes, monocytes, and neutrophils

Publisher Summary This chapter describes some simple, concise protocols for the preparation, characterization, and use of leukocytes. The model systems used to examine the role of the nervous and endocrine systems in degenerative and inflammatory disease processes have ranged from simple in vitro proliferative assays to complex in vivo systems. Much of the progress that has been made in understanding the mechanisms of neuroimmunomodulation has come from in vitro studies using primary cultures of leukocytes. The chapter also describes methods that can be used to prepare leukocytes for in vitro studies, as well as methods for lymphocyte activation and analysis of second-messenger production. Several factors should be considered when designing a set of experiments. One of the most important is context.
Making Knowledge Meaningful: Applications of Hypermedia:

This article presents information on a new development in technology called hypermedia. Hypermedia is discussed in relation to the “inert knowledge” problem that pervades much of the instruction in regular and special education. The historical roots of hypermedia are discussed as well as a theoretical rationale for why hypermedia can be a powerful tool for making knowledge meaningful. Finally, examples of prototype hypermedia environments for use with special-needs learners are presented.
Quantum Chemistry and Crystal Physics: Stability of Crystals of Rare Gas Atoms and Alkali Halides in Terms of Three-Atom and Three-Ion Exchange Interactions

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the development of the theory concerning the stability of rare gas crystals and solids of the alkali halides. In the case of rare gas crystals, the problem is to find the source of an extra stabilizing energy for the face-centered cubic structure of neon, argon, krypton, and xenon. It is shown that how this extra energy can arise because of three-atom second-order interactions, involving nearest neighbors of a central atom. These second-order interactions favor triangles with large opening θ; the essential difference between the fcc and the hcp configurations lies in the difference in three-atom interactions for three fcc triangles at θ = 120° compared to three hcp triangles at 109° 28'. In the case of alkali halide crystals, the problem is to find the source of an extra stabilizing energy for the cesium chloride conjigurafion of the heavy salts. In this case, it is shown how this extra energy arises because of three-ion first-order interactions involving nearest neighbors of a central ion. The first-order interactions favor triangles with small opening θ and in this respect the CsCl structure is more stable by a large margin. The validity of the stability analyses discussed in this chapter is tied to the approximate validity of an atomic description of molecular solids in terms of two-atom interactions and of a Born-Mayer model for alkali halide crystals.
Spatial scale and place field stability in a grid-to-place cell model of the dorsoventral axis of the hippocampus

The rodent hippocampus and entorhinal cortex contain spatially modulated cells that serve as the basis for spatial coding. Both medial entorhinal grid cells and hippocampal place cells have been shown to encode spatial information across multiple spatial scales that increase along the dorsoventral axis of these structures. Place cells near the dorsal pole possess small, stable, and spatially selective firing fields, while ventral cells have larger, less stable, and less spatially selective firing fields. One possible explanation for these dorsoventral changes in place field properties is that they arise as a result of similar dorsoventral differences in the properties of the grid cell inputs to place cells. Here, we test the alternative hypothesis that dorsoventral place field differences are due to higher amounts of nonspatial inputs to ventral hippocampal cells. We use a computational model of the entorhinal-hippocampal network to assess the relative contributions of grid scale and nonspatial inputs in determining place field size and stability. In addition, we assess the consequences of grid node firing rate heterogeneity on place field stability. Our results suggest that dorsoventral differences in place cell properties can be better explained by changes in the amount of nonspatial inputs, rather than by changes in the scale of grid cell inputs, and that grid node heterogeneity may have important functional consequences. The observed gradient in field size may reflect a shift from processing primarily spatial information in the dorsal hippocampus to processing more nonspatial, contextual, and emotional information near the ventral hippocampus.
Comparison of Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) Array Flux sensors at 00° 140°W

As part of the transition from the originators of the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) Array, NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL), to the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC), obsolescent sensors that are currently on the TAO Legacy buoys will be replaced by commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) sensors that will be on the TAO Refresh buoys. Side-by-side testing of a number of the moorings is being conducted. One of the comparison sites is at the equator and 140°W, where a flux site is located. A flux site consists of the seventeen sensors that are normally at a TAO buoy site, plus an additional sixteen meteorological and oceanographic sensors. The Refresh mooring at 00° 140°W was deployed for approximately 375 days with a visit eight months after deployment to replace the air temperature - relative humidity sensor and the rain gauge. Therefore, the comparison is separated into two portions.
Multicultural and Global Citizenship in the Transnational Age: The Case of South Korea.

Transnational flows and influx influence perspectives about the concepts of citizenship limited within nation-state borders. The author challenges liberal assimilationist conceptions of citizenship education in order to explore possibilities for the advancement of both multicultural citizenship and global citizenship education. He situates South Korea’s case within this discourse and suggests multicultural citizenship and global citizenship education as alternative, defensible, and appropriate paradigms at the transnational and global age. In the final part of the paper, he discusses the implications of this paradigm for citizenship education in South Korea.
Application of the Augmented Plane Wave Method to Copper

An application of the augmented plane wave method of solving the periodic potential problem has been made to metallic copper. The aim is to investigate the value of the method and to learn details of the energy band structure of copper. The method has been found to converge very rapidly; eigenvalues of three- or four-figure accuracy can be obtained for any point in $k$-space without involving the solution of very large secular determinants. Throughout, good results can be obtained by considering only a single augmented plane wave; these appear to be good one-electron wave functions by themselves, and the possible use of these as a starting point in a self-consistent calculation is discussed. The method proves suitable ground for the application of a high-speed computer, by which the present computation has been carried out.The numerical results for copper are not in agreement with the results of a cellular calculation. Recalculation of certain states by the cellular method indicates that the dominant reason lies in the different potentials employed, the augmented plane wave method dealing with a potential constant in a region between the atoms. The sensitivity of the energy levels upon the exact crystal potential has become more apparent, though copper may be expected to show greater sensitivity than other materials. The present calculation of the width of the $3d$ band is 3.935 ev, compared with 3.46 ev by the cellular method and 2.7 ev by the tight-binding method. The appearance of a high density of states near the top of the $3d$ band is confirmed.
Norepinephrine and potassium fluxes in cardiac Purkinje fibers.

Dog ventricular Purkinje fibers, loaded with42K, were mounted in a tissue bath located over a beta-detector and washed in Tyrode solution. Tissue radioactivity was measured at intervals and transmembrane potential recorded by means of microelectrodes. Relative potassium influx was estimated by re-exposing the fiber to radioactive solution for fixed periods and measuring the tissue radio-activity increase at the end of the uptake period. Potassium efflux was estimated by measuring tissue and effluent radioactivities. After control recordings, administration of norepinephrine caused the following changes during the period it was applied: 1. increase in potassium influx; 2. increase in potassium efflux in nonstimulated fibers; 3. a smaller increase in potassium efflux in fibers stimulated electrically at a constant rate; 4. increase in potassium content in fibers loaded to equilibrium with42K; 5. a smaller increase in K uptake in fibers driven at a high rate; and 6. enhancement of potassium uptake even in the presence of high [K]0. It is concluded that norepinephrine increases both influx and efflux in Purkinje fibers. The larger enhancement of the influx with respect to the efflux and the increase in potassium content suggests that norepinephrine stimulates active transport of potassium. This stimulatory action can be dissociated from the stimulation of automaticity.
Vasoactive intestinal peptide-mediated suppression of apoptosis in the ovary: potential mechanisms of action and evidence of a conserved antiatretogenic role through evolution

Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP)-containing nerve fibers are present in ovarian follicles at all stages of development, and VIP, acting primarily via the cAMP pathway, has been reported to modulate many aspects of granulosa cell function. Herein we examined the effects of VIP and its potential mechanisms of action on apoptosis in antral follicles isolated from ovaries of gonadotropin-primed immature rats and incubated in vitro under serum-free conditions. Additionally, the effects of VIP on apoptosis in isolated avian granulosa cells incubated in vitro were used as a comparative model system to determine whether the ability of VIP to modulate apoptosis in the ovary has been conserved through evolution. Genomic DNA extracted from incubated rat antral follicles exhibited extensive levels of internucleosomal DNA cleavage characteristic of cell death via apoptosis. Treatment of follicles with VIP (1-1000 nM) caused a dose-dependent reduction in the extent of apoptotic DNA breakdown, with a maximal effect a...
Controversies regarding giant cell (temporal, cranial) arteritis.

It is important to establish the diagnosis of temporal arteritis because the disease is treatable; treatment may prevent blindness and even death. Temporal arteritis usually occurs in people older than 51 years of age, althoug very rarely, histologically documented disease occurs in younger people. The onset may be occult, so that there are few finding. A multitude of signs and symptoms may occur such as fever, headaches, malaise, weight loss, anemia, stroke, cranial nerve palsies, polymyalgia rheumatica, aortitis and other large vessel involvement. The eye may suffer from ischemic optic neuropathy (anterior or posterior), central or cilio-retinal arterial occlusion, ophthalmic artery ischemia, or extraocular muscle palsies. An arterial biopsy showing giant cell arteritis establishes the diagnosis. However, a negative biopsy does not rule out the disease because of the occasional presence of skip areas. Arteriography has only rarely yielded a positive temporal artery biopsy when the initial biopsy done elsewhere was negative. As a diagnostic parameter, the erythrocyte sedimentation rate is nonspecific, being elevated in diseases other than temporal arteritis and sometimes being falsely lowered by technical factors. Furthermore, the temporal artery biopsy is occasionally positive despite a normal erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Treatment is aimed at relieving the patient's symptoms and normalizing the erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Because of the wide spectrum of clinical and laboratory finding in temporal arteritis, no one specific treatment regimen with systemic corticosteriods works for all patients. Temporal arteritis is a well known disease of the elderly which is rarely fatal but results in significant visual morbidity (Hinzpeter & Naumann, 1976; Spencer & Hoyt, 1960). Since Hutchinson's (1890) description, more than a thousand articles have been written on the subject (Cohen & Smith, 1974). Despite this, many unanswered questions and controversies remain concerning the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of temporal arteritis. My goal is to review these questions and areas of controversy.
Equation of state for pure sodium chloride

Abstract An equation of state for pure sodium chloride has been developed on the basis of experimental data and results of Monte Carlo simulations for the restricted primitive model (RPM). The experimental data base included limited vapor pressure and saturated liquid density data as well as dimerization equilibrium constants. The liquid densities have been extrapolated to the supercooled region using liquid-phase Monte Carlo data. For this purpose, the parameters of the primitive model have been calculated by assuming that sodium chloride and RPM obey the corresponding states principle over a limited range of conditions. In the near-critical region Monte Carlo data as well as results of cluster calculations have been used with parameters scaled to reproduce the critical temperature obtained by extrapolating saturation data. The RPM parameters employed in the calculations are close to those for crystalline NaCI. The experimental and scaled Monte Carlo data have been reproduced within their accuracy using a van der Waals-type equation of state with two temperature-dependent parameters a and b. The functions representing the temperature dependence of the parameters have been designed to ensure reliable extrapolation to lower and higher temperatures. Formation of Na 2 Cl 2 clusters has been allowed for by using a closed-form term representing the effect of association on the compressibility factor. The performance of the equation has been additionally verified by predicting compressibility factors at low reduced temperatures outside the saturation region and comparing them with scaled Monte Carlo data.
Conditional shortest path routing in delay tolerant networks

Delay tolerant networks are characterized by the sporadic connectivity between their nodes and therefore the lack of stable end-to-end paths from source to destination. Since the future node connections are mostly unknown in these networks, opportunistic forwarding is used to deliver messages. However, making effective forwarding decisions using only the network characteristics (i.e. average intermeeting time between nodes) extracted from contact history is a challenging problem. Based on the observations about human mobility traces and the findings of previous work, we introduce a new metric called conditional intermeeting time, which computes the average intermeeting time between two nodes relative to a meeting with a third node using only the local knowledge of the past contacts. We then look at the effects of the proposed metric on the shortest path based routing designed for delay tolerant networks. We propose Conditional Shortest Path Routing (CSPR) protocol that routes the messages over conditional shortest paths in which the cost of links between nodes is defined by conditional intermeeting times rather than the conventional intermeeting times. Through trace-driven simulations, we demonstrate that CSPR achieves higher delivery rate and lower end-to-end delay compared to the shortest path based routing protocols that use the conventional intermeeting time as the link metric.
An examination of warehouse employee recruitment and retention practices in the USA

Despite the recent economic slowdown and the subsequent increase in unemployment rates across the USA and Europe, many warehouses are still experiencing difficulty in recruiting and retaining qualified labour. Since warehouse productivity can be directly affected by the availability and quality of labour, a warehouse employee shortage may have a lasting effect on a firm's competitiveness. To alleviate a warehouse employee shortage, a growing number of firms have attempted to formulate various warehouse employee recruitment and retention strategies, including pay raises, bonuses, gain sharing and paid time off. This paper aims to help firms assess the extent of the labour shortages in warehouses and their impact on competitiveness, while fostering a more effective employee recruitment and retention strategy based on the findings of our exploratory study of selected US firms. Our findings suggest that warehouse employee shortages have become an industry-wide problem and larger firms are more vulnerable to h...
Balanced Cache: Reducing Conflict Misses of Direct-Mapped Caches

Level one cache normally resides on a processor's critical path, which determines the clock frequency. Directmapped caches exhibit fast access time but poor hit rates compared with same sized set-associative caches due to nonuniform accesses to the cache sets, which generate more conflict misses in some sets while other sets are underutilized. We propose a technique to reduce the miss rate of direct mapped caches through balancing the accesses to cache sets. We increase the decoder length and thus reduce the accesses to heavily used sets without dynamically detecting the cache set usage information. We introduce a replacement policy to direct-mapped cache design and increase the access to the underutilized cache sets with the help of programmable decoders. On average, the proposed balanced cache, or BCache, achieves 64.5% and 37.8% miss rate reductions on all 26 SPEC2K benchmarks for the instruction and data caches, respectively. This translates into an average IPC improvement of 5.9%. The B-Cache consumes 10.5% more power per access but exhibits 2% total memory access related energy saving due to the miss rate reductions and hence the reduction to applications' execution time. Compared with previous techniques that aim at reducing the miss rate of direct-mapped caches, our technique requires only one cycle to access all cache hits and has the same access time of a direct-mapped cache.
A distributed emitter model for solar cells: Extracting an equivalent lumped series resistance

Front-surface grid electrodes are employed in solar concentrator cells to reduce the power losses resulting from lateral current flow in the cell emitter. Because these electrodes also shadow the cell from a portion of the incident light, an optimal grid electrode layout must be determined for a particular cell design. A useful model for this optimization in the early stages of design is to simulate the distributed losses in the cell emitter using an equivalent lumped series resistance. Previously reported 1D analytical calculations showed that the equivalent resistance of one square should simply be one-third of the emitter sheet resistance. However, this calculation ignores local biasing loss. In this work, a quasi-3D model, which includes this local biasing effect, is used to extract an equivalent series resistance of a section of the emitter between grid electrodes for various sheet resistances and optical concentration.
Optimized use of MgO flux in the agglomeration of high-chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite

The optimized use of MgO flux in the agglomeration of high-chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite was investigated systematically through sinter and pellet experiments. MgO was added in the form of magnesite. When the content of MgO in the sinter was increased from 1.95wt% to 2.63wt%, the low-temperature reduction degradation index increased from 80.57% to 82.71%. When the content of MgO in the pellet was increased from 1.14wt% to 2.40wt%, the reduction swelling index decreased from 15.2% to 8.6%; however, the compressive strength of the oxidized pellet decreased dramatically and it was 1985 N with an MgO content of 1.14wt%. This compressive strength does not satisfy the requirements for blast-furnace production. When all of the aforementioned results were taken into account, the sinter with a high MgO content (2.63wt%) matching the pellet with a low MgO content (less than 1.14wt%) was the rational burden structure for smelting high-chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite in blast furnaces.
Students in marketing research: Surrogates vs. role-players

The usefulness of the student surrogate has been debated extensively in the marketing literature. The results discussed here suggest that business students are ineffective role-players with regard to anticipating consumers' and businesspersons' reactions; however, students' own evaluations were very much like those of businesspersons.
The Incidence of Arrhythmias in Acute Myocardial Infarction Studied with a Constant Monitoring System

Sixteen patients with acute myocardial infarction were studied with continuous cardiac monitoring for 1 to 3 weeks. Patients were excluded from the study if arrhythmias were present on admission or if arrhythmias might have occurred as a result of treatment. The results indicate that cardiac arrhythmias occur with a much higher frequency (94 per cent) than previously reported. They may occur many days after the infarction. They occur in asymptomatic patients and may go undetected by conventional observation. Continuous cardiac monitoring has immediate practicality in the management of these patients, and might, if used as a guide to therapy, [see table in the PDF file] reduce the mortality from acute myocardial infarction.
Science-based coastal management in Fiji: Two case studies from the NGO sector

Abstract The effectiveness of coastal management in developing countries is widely perceived to be inhibited by a lack of scientific data on the coastal zone. To try to fill this need for information, donors and big international non-governmental organizations are increasingly initiating large-scale, science-driven conservation programs, with the goal of creating and using management relevant transdisciplinary datasets. In Oceania, these programs are entering a context where local ecological knowledge is already informing existing community-based approaches to coastal management. This paper examines two large-scale programs in Fiji, the Marine Management Area Science initiative and the Vatu-i-Ra and Cakau Levu Reefs Seascape Project, and offers insight relevant to the planning and implementation of similar programs where local management systems are already in place. Research methods used to examine the programs included document analysis, direct observation, and semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders over multiple field visits to Fiji in 2009 and 2010. Results suggest that as donors, non-governmental organizations, and partners move forward in implementing these programs, there must be active steps taken to bridge boundaries between disciplines and among knowledge systems, evaluate the added value of science for all stakeholder groups, and build opportunities for datasets to be used after donor funding ends.
Infrared dispersion frequencies for alkali halides

Abstract Infrared absorption spectra of evaporated thin films of LiI permit completion of the list of infrared dispersion frequencies for all the alkali halides.
Role of vitamin E and oxidative stress in exercise.

Abstract Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role as mediators of skeletal muscle damage and inflammation after strenuous exercise. These ROS arise largely from increases in mitochondrial oxygen consumption and electron transport flux. Bouts of intense exercise are associated with increases in lipid peroxidation, generating malondialdehyde and F 2α -isoprostanes, and the release of muscle enzymes like lactate dehydrogenase and creatine kinase. Dietary and enzymatic antioxidant defenses appear to play a protective role in muscle cells by reducing associated oxidative damage to lipids, nucleic acids, and protein. However, studies of the use of dietary antioxidants like vitamin E to reduce exercise-induced muscle injury have met with mixed success. The equivocal nature of these results appear to reflect a diversity of factors including the antioxidant(s) tested, the nature and timing of the exercise, the age and fitness of the subjects, and the methodology for assessing oxidative stress.
The synthesis of steroidal 1β,2β-methylene derivatives

Abstract The synthesis of 1β,2β-methylene derivatives of a cortical steroid hormone and an androgen analog are described. The 1β,2β-methylene group was introduced stereospecifically by a Simmons-Smith reaction on >1-3β-ols. The properties of the cyclopropyl steroids are discussed, including some anomalous molecular rotation shifts.
Review of ββ decay and dark matter searches with ββ apparatus

Abstract Physics beyond the standard model is being sought in Ge experiments in two quite different ways: looking for neutrinoless double beta decay in 76 Ge and for dark matter collisions with Ge atoms. Lifetime limits on the former, now (5–9) × 10 23 yr, provide severe constraints on (1) lepton number nonconservation; (2) the effective mass of a light Majorana electron neutrino; (3) right-handed currents; (4) the mass of a heavy Majorana neutrino; (5) the ũ squark mass as a function of gaugino mass in supersymmetric theories with R-parity violation; and (6) for a different decay mode, the coupling of a Majoron to the electron neutrino. The dark matter search has eliminated a class of shadow matter and is setting constraints on masses of various kinds of weakly interacting massive particles. In both pursuits new techniques are starting to be used which promise even better results soon.
Sub-thylakoid fractions containing ribosomes.

Abstract A sub-membrane fraction which contains a large portion of any thylakoid-bound ribosomes can be obtained when thylakoids are treated with the detergents Nonidet P-40, or Triton X-100. These ‘pseudopolysome’ fractions contain 50% of thylakoid-bound ribosomes, but less than 0.5% of thylakoid chlorophyll. Triton and Nonidet pseudopolysomes contain about 10%, and 3% of thylakoid protein, respectively. Pseudopolysomes, prepared from thylakoids with low levels of ribosomes, contain about the same proportion of thylakoid protein but proportionately less ribosomes. Pseudopolysomes contain thylakoid polypeptides in addition to chlorophyll, but lack a major membrane polypeptide of M r 50 000. Pseudopolysome chlorophyll, and RNA band at the same buoyant density. However, they band at different densities after pseudopolysomes are treated with trypsin (a procedure which strips thylakoids of ribosomes). Pseudopolysome fractions from thylakoids with low levels of ribosomes have a lower density than the corresponding fractions from thylakoids with high levels of ribosomes. Ribosomes are released from thylakoids, and pseudopolysomes by the same treatments. Subunits are released with KCl and puromycin. Polysomes are released with trypsin. It was concluded the pseudopolysomes consist of ribosomes and a membrane fragment containing the sites to which ribosomes are bound.
Solvent effects in the depolymerization of coal

Abstract The depolymerization reaction of coal in the presence of Friedel-Crafts catalysts in a variety of phenolic and non-phenolic solvents has been investigated. Only the phenolic solvents were found to be useful in this reaction. Some interesting substituent effects were discovered when the isomeric cresols and dihydroxybenzenes were employed as solvents. The influence of temperature and catalyst concentration on the degree of depolymerization has also been examined. With non-phenolic solvents, polymerization is the predominant reaction.
Transcriptional Regulation, Metal Binding Properties and Structure of Pden1597, an Unusual Zinc Transport Protein from Paracoccus denitrificans

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters of the cluster 9 family are ubiquitous among bacteria and essential for acquiring Zn2+ and Mn2+ from the environment or, in the case of pathogens, from the host. These rely on a substrate-binding protein (SBP) to coordinate the relevant metal with high affinity and specificity and subsequently release it to a membrane permease for translocation into the cytoplasm. Although a number of cluster 9 SBP structures have been determined, the structural attributes conferring Zn2+ or Mn2+ specificity remain ambiguous. Here we describe the gene expression profile, in vitro metal binding properties, and crystal structure of a new cluster 9 SBP from Paracoccus denitrificans we have called AztC. Although all of our results strongly indicate Zn2+ over Mn2+ specificity, the Zn2+ ion is coordinated by a conserved Asp residue only observed to date as a metal ligand in Mn2+-specific SBPs. The unusual sequence properties of this protein are shared among close homologues, including members from the human pathogens Klebsiella pneumonia and Enterobacter aerogenes, and would seem to suggest a subclass of Zn2+-specific transporters among the cluster 9 family. In any case, the unusual coordination environment of AztC expands the already considerable range of those available to Zn2+-specific SBPs and highlights the presence of a His-rich loop as the most reliable indicator of Zn2+ specificity. Background: Bacterial cluster 9 ATP binding cassette (ABC) transporters are responsible for import of Zn2+ and Mn2+. Results: A solute-binding protein of the cluster 9 family is shown to preferentially bind Zn2+ in an unusual coordination sphere. Conclusion: A subclass of Zn2+ transporter has been identified with distinct structural properties. Significance: Cluster 9 ABC transporters are important virulence factors.
The contribution of social science to international health training

Abstract Today the comprehensive scope of many international health programs calls for personnel— planners, educators, researchers, and practitioners—trained in a wide range of health related areas. This article explores the contributions which social science knowledge and skills can make to such training. First, it documents the growing importance of social science in international health and delineates several topical areas—ecological, political-economic, socio-cultural, and organizational—where a social science perspective can be particularly useful. Next, it discusses strategies for developing a curriculum that will integrate relevant social science material into health care training. These include the selection of appropriate training staff and the development of competency-based curricula based upon actual work situations. Finally, the article describes specific ‘experiential’ training techniques which can be employed in the classroom as well as in the field to achieve program objectives.
A nonclassical framework for cognitive science

David Marr provided a useful framework for theorizing about cognition within classical, AI-style cognitive science, in terms of three levels of description: the levels of (i) cognitive function, (ii) algorithm and (iii) physical implementation. We generalize this framework: (i) cognitive state transitions, (ii) mathematical/functional design and (iii) physical implementation or realization. Specifying the middle, design level to be the theory of dynamical systems yields a nonclassical, alternative framework that suits (but is not committed to) connectionism. We consider how a brain's (or a network's) being a dynamical system might be the key both to its realizing various essential features of cognition — productivity, systematicity, structure-sensitive processing, syntax — and also to a non-classical solution of (frame-type) problems plaguing classical cognitive science.
Compressive sensing and differential image-motion estimation

Compressive-sensing cameras are an important new class of sensors that have different design constraints than standard cameras. Surprisingly, little work has explored the relationship between compressive-sensing measurements and differential image motion. We show that, given modest constraints on the measurements and image motions, we can omit the computationally expensive compressive-sensing reconstruction step and obtain more accurate motion estimates with significantly less computation time. We also formulate a compressive-sensing reconstruction problem that incorporates known image motion and show that this method outperforms the state-of-the-art in compressive-sensing video reconstruction.
Inflammatory infiltrate (prostatitis) in whole mounted radical prostatectomy specimens from black and white patients is not an etiology for racial difference in prostate specific antigen.

Purpose:: Although black men with and without prostatic carcinoma in general have higher levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA) than other racial groups, the cause is unknown. Previous studies have shown that black men produce greater PSA per cc of benign gland volume. We determined whether prostatic inflammation varied by race and could account for the racial difference in PSA among prostate cancer patients.Materials and Methods:: Between April 1993 and February 1997, 238 patients underwent radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and whole mounted specimens were processed at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology. Cases were reviewed by 2 pathologists (W. Z. and I. A. S.) blinded to clinical information, and scored for inflammation as 0—rare; 1—mild, 10 to 15 small foci; 2—moderate, greater than 15 foci with a large area or greater than 20 small foci; 3—marked, greater than 20 small foci with a large area, and 4—diffuse, multiple large areas. ...
BioSM: metabolomics tool for identifying endogenous mammalian biochemical structures in chemical structure space.

The structural identification of unknown biochemical compounds in complex biofluids continues to be a major challenge in metabolomics research. Using LC/MS, there are currently two major options for solving this problem: searching small biochemical databases, which often do not contain the unknown of interest or searching large chemical databases which include large numbers of nonbiochemical compounds. Searching larger chemical databases (larger chemical space) increases the odds of identifying an unknown biochemical compound, but only if nonbiochemical structures can be eliminated from consideration. In this paper we present BioSM; a cheminformatics tool that uses known endogenous mammalian biochemical compounds (as scaffolds) and graph matching methods to identify endogenous mammalian biochemical structures in chemical structure space. The results of a comprehensive set of empirical experiments suggest that BioSM identifies endogenous mammalian biochemical structures with high accuracy. In a leave-one-o...
Thermo-mechanical effects in elastic wave propagation: A survey

Abstract This paper presents a review of several problems that arise from the mutual interaction of elastic waves and nonstationary temperature fields in solid continua. Particular attention is given both to uncoupled theories, where such interaction occurs as a result of the temperature dependence of the physical properties, and to coupled theories, where the temperature field is influenced by the time rate-of-change of the dilatation. Also discussed is the “second sound” effect: i.e., the conditions under which the finite propagation of heat pulses may become important. Throughout the paper, emphasis is given to relating the various phenomena which can occur, and on reckoning the magnitudes of the effects and the time scales which characterize various thermo-mechanical effects in elastic wave propagation.
Effects of Crotalus venom on integrity of capillary wall

Abstract During studies on the changes in capillary wall permeability provoked by venoms and fractions of venoms a simple method was devised for comparing the deleterious alterations. The methods and results are described in the present note, and while rabbits were used in the original studies, successful experiments have since been carried out in rats. The results obtained in this study have served as controls in subsequent investigations on the effects of venom enzymes on capillary permeability. These studies will be reported elsewhere.
Numerical Study of the Unstable Modes of a Hyperbolic-Tangent Barotropic Shear Flow

Abstract An unbounded hyperbolic-tangent barotropic shear flow is assumed. The complex phase speeds and eigenfunction structure of unstable modes are studied numerically. A reversal of the planetary and shear vorticity gradient is required for these modes to exist. For sufficiently small wavenumber, the unstable modes, which can be associated with the modes of a discontinuous shear layer, are found on both sides of the neutral solution curve in wavenumber-shear parameter space. For sufficiently large wavenumbers, the unstable modes are contiguous to the neutral solution. For an intermediate range of wavenumbers, there are two sets of unstable modes (one contiguous to the neutral solution and one not); one set merges with the zero β unstable mode and one set vanishes for sufficiently small β (or large shear). Above some critical value of wavenumber, the set of modes at fixed wavenumber merging with the neutral solution is contiguous to the neutral boundary, whereas below the critical wavenumber value this ...
Civil religion and secularization: Ideological revitalization in post-revolutionary communist systems

Conventional analyses of secularization typically deal with revealed religions and the increasing disenchantment of their adherents with revealed religious doctrines under conditions of rapid industrialization and urbanization. Very little research, however, has dealt with the rise and decline of religiousity or the impact of secularization in social systems organized around a “civil religion.” This investigation approaches the development of the Bolshevik party in the Soviet Union as an example of a civil religious movement to test Weber's notions of enchantment and disenchantment against the experience of devoted party activists in order to see how increasing industrialization has influenced the civil religion of Marxism-Leninism and the behavior of individual followers of Marxism-Leninism. Hence, this analysis seeks to discover whether or not a dynamic of secularization, perhaps akin to the growing disenchantment among devoted Protestants from the sixteenth through the nineteenth centuries as discussed by Weber, might be found in post-revolutionary communist societies, like the presentday USSR. If such a dynamic of secularization does exist, then the question of “civil religious revivalism,” or revitalization movements, will be addressed to consider how and where such revivalistic movements might develop within post-revolutionary, secularized communist systems.
Tissue oximetry monitoring in microsurgical breast reconstruction decreases flap loss and improves rate of flap salvage.

Background:Since the inception of microvascular free tissue transfer, flap monitoring has been based on clinical signs. Color, capillary refill, and handheld Doppler have been used for monitoring in the postoperative period; however, subjective clinical examination may delay recognition of flap comp