cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Delay of diagnosis and empiric treatment of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor-induced cough in office practice.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the length of time taken to diagnose cough due to the use of an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor and the frequency of interim diagnoses and treatments given in an office practice. DESIGN Retrospective case study. SETTING Two academic group family practice offices. PATIENTS Seventeen solicited cases of patients with suspected or known ACE inhibitor-induced cough over a 2-year period. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Documentation in the patient chart of the nature and complaint of the cough; the time between initiation of therapy with the drug and complaint of the cough; the time between initiation of therapy with the drug and assessment of ACE inhibitor-induced cough or discontinuation of drug treatment; other diagnoses given to explain the cough; and other treatments given. RESULTS There was an average of 14.5 weeks between the initiation of ACE inhibitor therapy and the first documentation of the complaint of cough, and an average of 24.0 weeks between the initiation of ACE inhibitor therapy and documentation of the cough side effect. Physicians made several interim diagnoses prior to recognizing cough as a side effect of ACE inhibitor therapy. Physicians prescribed 30 medications and took two chest radiographs on seven patients experiencing ACE inhibitor-induced cough prior to recognition of this side effect. CONCLUSIONS The investigation found a significant delay in making the final diagnosis of ACE inhibitor-induced cough. Frequently, physicians gave other diagnoses, ordered unnecessary diagnostic tests, and ordered treatments other than the discontinuation of ACE inhibitor therapy. Earlier identification would be more cost-effective.
Bilateral retinal detachment in a patient with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome.

We present a 38-year-old woman with bilateral serous retinal detachments and bilateral panuveitis on fundoscopic exam. CT of the orbits and MRI scans revealed bilateral ocular choroidal thickening and bilateral retinal detachments; however, no other CNS or meningeal lesion was detected. This patient met the clinical criteria for Vogt–Koyanagi–Harada (VKH) Syndrome. Review of VKH syndrome as well as the radiographic findings will be discussed.
Low-velocity knee disclocation associated with sports injury

Abstract A knee dislocation usually involves injury to both the anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament,and to either the medial collateral ligament or the lateral structures of the knee. Acute surgical repair of all structures has led to a high rate of arthrofibrosis. We describe a treatment algorithm for treatment based on the healing potential of each structure. The medial collateral ligament can heal with a short duration of serial casting. The posterior cruciate ligament can heal without treatment, and patients with laxity of 2+ have similar outcomes to patients with less laxity. The anterior cruciate usually does not heal, but ACL reconstruction can be performed on an elective basis when the acute inflammatory response has subsided.
The Sick Building Syndrome

Indoor air pollution is closely associated with health problems and exacerbation of asthmatic symptoms. However, it is difficult to find objective data regarding the nature of these illnesses and the degree of exposure necessary to elicit symptoms in building occupants. Clinicians must be encouraged to take seriously, and without bias, workers' complaints about their work environment. However, this is often a problem because of subjective complaints, potential malingerers, mass hysteria, and lack of impartial clinical and laboratory findings. Clearly, in any building, a major priority must be to provide and maintain an environment conducive to occupant health and well-being. Allowable levels of air pollutants must be scientifically determined by health investigators based on government regulations. Unfortunately, regulations are often ill defined, unenforceable, and burdened by a void as to who is responsible for achieving a healthful indoor environment. The elucidation of the multiple causes of illnesses...
On the solution of a nonlocal transport equation by the Weiner-Hopf method

Abstract A one-dimensional transport model for free molecular flow in ducts, developed earlier, is generalized to allow migration of particles in the duct walls before re-emission at distinct spatial locations. The resulting transport equation is nonlocal in space, with the scattering kernel displaying spatial memory. For an exponential memory kernel of displacement type and a semi-infinite duct, the transport equation is solved exactly by the Laplace transform Wiener-Hopft technique, and numerical results are given for the albedo as a function of incident particle direction, absorption probability in the duct walls, and severity of nonlocal re-emission. The effect of nonlocal transport is to make the system nonconservative even for zero absorption as a result of particle migration in the duct walls and out of the edges before re-emission into the duct can occur.
Building the Responsive Campus: Creating High Performance Colleges and Universities

Introduction Organizational Redesign The New Face of Leadership Organizational Attention Deficit Disorder Evaluating High Performance Faculty Productivity and Organizational Culture The Chiaroscuro of Reform The 21st Century Organization Frequently Asked Questions
GRAPPA 2013 Basic/Translational/Clinical Science Update: Comorbidity Monitoring

It is now well established that psoriatic disease is associated with increased cardiovascular (CV) risk. Screening guidelines and expert recommendations for CV risk factors have been published, but these are primarily directed to specific specialists (e.g., cardiologists or diabetologists) and may not be well known in common practice. The Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) and other organizations are interested in adapting current comorbidity screening guidelines for use by dermatologists and rheumatologists. The resulting checklists and algorithms will need to be evaluated for practicability and performance.
A Hybrid Neural Network Approach for the Development of Friction Component Dynamic Model

In this research, a new hybrid neural network is developed to model engagement behaviors of automotive transmission wet friction component. Utilizing known first principles on the physics of engagement, special modules are created to estimate viscous torque and asperity contact torque as preprocessors to a two-layer neural network. Inside these modules, all the physical parameters are represented by neurons with various activation functions derived from first principles. These new features contribute to the improved performance and trainability over a conventional two-layer network model. Both the hybrid and conventional neural net models are trained and tested with experimental data collected from an SAE#2 test stand. The results show that the performance of the hybrid model is much superior to that of the conventional model. It successfully captures detailed characteristics of the friction component engagement torque as a function of time over a wide operating range.
Measuring Rehabilitation Outcomes

This article is concerned with the measurement of benefits that clients receive as a result of the counseling and rehabilitation services that are provided to them. Twenty-two instruments that may ...
An interactive, cyber-physical read-aloud environment: results and lessons from an evaluation activity with children and their teachers

As we come to live, work and play in an increasingly digital society, the future of interactive systems research, design, and practice will be shaped partly by larger-scale, cyber-physical systems. The cyber-physical LIT KIT enhances children's picturebook reading, both during and after interactive read-alouds, creating a multi-media, mixed-reality experience that transforms everyday environments into an environment evocative of the picturebook being read. The room-filled audio-visual-spatial effects of the LIT KIT contextualize language and provide feedback to the participants. The LIT KIT also acts as a story-extension tool, allowing children to customize environmental effects towards interpreting picturebooks for themselves. This paper offers a scenario of the child-computer interaction afforded by the LIT KIT, elucidates the motivations for its design, and focuses on an evaluation activity and its results. Particularly for DIS researchers in the educational domain, the LIT KIT represents a design exemplar that supports children's enjoyment of learning and meaning-making.
Male Mate Choice in Lemur catta

Though females are generally more selective in mate choice, males may also derive reproductive benefits from exercising mate selectivity if one or more factors limit male reproductive success and females differ in reproductive potential. I used male mating effort as a proxy for male mate choice in ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta). I calculated mating effort as the rate of male-male agonism during each female's estrous period 30 min before and 30 min after the first and last mountings with intromission. I collected data on 1 free-ranging Lemur catta troop during 2 consecutive breeding seasons on St. Catherines Island, USA. In both yrs, male mating effort differed significantly among troop females once I adjusted male-male agonistic rates to reflect agonistic intensity, and I corrected for the number of observed mates per female (2000: χ2 = 27.43, df = 3, p < 0.0001; 2001: χ2 = 21.10, df = 3, p < 0.001). Results strongly suggest male mate choice. Contrary to expectation, males did not expend the greatest mating effort for females with the highest dominance status nor the highest reproductive success. Males preferred females that either: (1) belonged to the age class in which fecundity and infant survival is the highest at this site (4–9 yrs), or 2) were older females (≥10 yrs) with high reproductive success. Female reproductive potential appears to be an important variable determining male mating effort in Lemur catta.
Aerodynamic Sensitivity Theory for Rotary Stability Derivatives

A nonlinear boundary-value problem (BVP) is developed to describe the steady compressible flow about a body moving with nonzero angular rates. It is shown that the most general aerodynamically steady motions are characterized by spiral paths. A continuous sensitivity equation method is then applied to develop a linear BVP that characterizes the sensitivity of the flow to changes in angular velocity. The solutions to the sensitivity BVP are used to compute rotary stability derivatives and comparisons are made to some existing methods. The virtue of this approach is that all rotary derivatives can be estimated based on a single solution for the nonlinear flow equations along with three linear sensitivity equations
Differing Effects of Cattle Grazing on Native and Alien Plants

Habitat managers use cattle grazing to reduce alien plant cover and promote native species in California grasslands and elsewhere in the western United States. We tested the effectiveness of grazing as a restoration method by examining the effects of herbivory on native and alien plants. At Carrizo Plain National Monument, California, we surveyed native and alien species cover in adjacent grazed and ungrazed areas. We also established experimental plots in which plants were clipped or mulch (dead biomass) was removed. In addition, we clipped plants grown in pots and plants in the field that grew with and without competitors. Native species were negatively affected by clipping in 1999, 2000, and 2001, whereas alien species were unaffected. In the experimental field plots, the European annual forb Erodium cicutarium compensated in growth and reproduction following simulated herbivory. In contrast, growth and reproduction of the native perennial bunchgrass Poa secunda were reduced 1 year after clipping. In pots, E. cicutarium overcompensated and grasses undercompensated. In the field, European grasses were unaffected by the removal of competitors. It is unclear by what mechanism E. cicutarium was able to compensate, but the ability may be related to its basal rosette growth form and indeterminately growing inflorescences. The native California grassland community assembled in the absence of grazing herds, whereas invasive European species have been exposed to grazing for centuries. It may be that these invaders have adaptations that better enable them to recover from grazing. In the grassland we studied, the strategy of livestock grazing for restoration is counterproductive. It harms native species and promotes alien plant growth.
A quantitative approach to studying structures and orientation at self-assembled monolayer/fluid interfaces.

Abstract Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) have become a standard tool for exploring surface interactions. Although well characterized, SAMs are known to undergo structural and conformational changes in the presence of solution, yet the ability to quantify these changes remains an obstacle due to limited analytical techniques. In this study, we determine changes in structure and conformation of CH3, OH, and COOH terminated hexadecanethiols on gold in water by means of a new technique known as evanescence reflection spectroscopy. This FTIR application, in conjunction with a semiempirical formalism, is capable of providing both qualitative and quantitative understanding of the molecular structure and orientation at the solid/liquid interface.
Variation in the Habiline Crania – Must it be Taxonomic?

The problem of whether the hominid fossil sample of habiline specimens is comprised of more than one species has received much attention in paleoanthropology. The core of this debate has significant implications about when and how variation must be explained by taxonomy. In this paper, we examine the problem of whether the observed variation in habiline sample must be interpreted to reflect species differences. We test the null hypothesis of no difference by examining the degree of variability in habiline sample in comparison with other single-species early hominid fossil samples from Sterkfontein and Swartkrans (Sterkfontein is earlier than the habiline sample; Swartkrans may be within the habiline time span). We use the standard error test for this analysis, a sampling statistic based on the standard error of the slope of regressions between pairs of specimens that relates all of the homologous measurements each pair shares. We show that the null hypothesis for the habiline sample cannot be rejected. The similarities of specimen pairs within the habiline sample are not more than those observed between the specimens in the two australopithecine samples we analyzed.
Augmented message-matrix approach to deterministic dense-coding theory

A useful method for deriving analytical results applicable to the standard two-party deterministic dense-coding protocol is introduced and illustrated. In this protocol, communication of $K$ perfectly distinguishable messages is attainable via $K$ selected local unitary operations performed on one qudit from a pair of entangled qudits of equal dimension $d$ in a pure state $|\ensuremath{\psi}⟩$ with largest Schmidt coefficient $\sqrt{{\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}}$. The method takes advantage of the fact that the $K$ message states, together with ${d}^{2}\ensuremath{-}K$ augmenting orthonormal state vectors, yield a unitary matrix, thereby implying properties of the $K$ message states which otherwise are not readily recognized. Employing this augmented message matrix, we produce simple proofs of previously established results including (i) ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}\ensuremath{\le}d/K$, (ii) ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}ld/K$ when $K=d+1$, and (iii) the impossibility of finding a $|\ensuremath{\psi}⟩$ that can enable transmission of $K={d}^{2}\ensuremath{-}1$ messages but not ${d}^{2}$. Additional results obtained using the method include proofs that the ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}\ensuremath{\le}d/K$ bound is reduced to at least (i) ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}\ensuremath{\le}(1/2)[1+\sqrt{(d\ensuremath{-}2)/(d+2)}]$ when $K=d+1$ and (ii) ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}\ensuremath{\le}(K\ensuremath{-}m)/(2K\ensuremath{-}m\ensuremath{-}d)$ whenever $(d+1)\ensuremath{\le}K\ensuremath{\le}2d$ and the selected local unitaries include the first $m$ non-negative integral powers of the shift operator $X$.
The incorporation of isotopic carbon 14C into the cerebral glycogen of normal and x-irradiated rats.

C 14 incorporation from labeled glucose into cerebral glycogen of normal and X ray irradiated rats
An alternative monitoring protocol for single-dose methotrexate therapy in ectopic pregnancy.

Objective We sought to determine the sensitivity and specificity of alternative monitoring regimens in predicting the need for a second methotrexate (MTX) dose in women undergoing medical therapy for ectopic pregnancy. Study Design We reviewed 187 women who received MTX for ectopic pregnancy. Results We defined MTX treatment success as a clinically stable patient whose day-7 beta human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) level decreased by ≥50%, compared with the day-of-treatment (DOT) β-hCG. In comparison to the standard MTX monitoring protocol, this model was 100% sensitive and 57.4% specific in predicting the need for a second MTX dose in women whose DOT β-hCG was Conclusion This model is an alternative to the traditional MTX monitoring regimen.
Matrix isolation Raman spectroscopy

Abstract A new primary laboratory measurement is described for testing field standards and measurement techniques used to detect trace amounts of toxic organic substances in water.
Visualization of bilin-linked peptides and proteins in polyacrylamide gels

Biliproteins and bilipeptides subjected to discontinuous sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of zinc acetate form a complex which fluoresces an orange color when viewed under ultraviolet light. The complex between the bilin chromophore and the zinc ion fluoresces at wavelengths which can be selectively visualized in gels by using a red filter. For the biliproteins phytochrome and C-phycocyanin the minimum detectable quantities are 100 and 50 ng, respectively. This is comparable to the sensitivity of Coomassie blue staining. The technique has been used for selective detection of phytochrome in plant extracts and to distinguish chromophore-bearing peptides from those not containing chromophore in proteolytic digests of phytochrome.
A concurrent control architecture for autonomous mobile robots using Asynchronous Production Systems

Abstract The quest for efficient real-time response by autonomous robots in hazardous environments necessitates not only fast computational schemes in expert systems but also requires insights on high performance data structures and concurrent algorithms that lead to elegant problem-solving methods in the AI discipline. towards this objective, this paper presents an Asynchronous Production System (APS) of architecture capable of monitoring and processing real-time information.
From a Hierarchy in Time to a Hierarchy in Space: The Meanings of Sino-Babylonianism in Early Twentieth-Century China:

In 1892, Terrien de Lacouperie (1845—1894), professor of Chinese at University College in London, set out to prove that the Chinese migrated from Mesopotamia in prehistoric times. Despite mixed responses from his colleagues, Lacouperie’s “Sino-Babylonianism” found its way into China and captured the imagination of Chinese historians from the 1900s to 1930s. Whether they supported or opposed Lacouperie’s view, Chinese historians were intrigued by his boldness in linking early China to the global network of trade and cultural exchange. This article examines how Chinese historians adopted, transformed, and appropriated Sino-Babylonianism in their discourse on the nation. It argues that the rise and fall of Sino-Babylonianism coincided with the Chinese perceptions of the world system of nation-states. Sino-Babylonianism was warmly received when the Chinese perceived the world system of nation-states as a hierarchy in temporality, prescribing a process of evolution that all human communities must follow. Sino-...
AU-rich elements in the collagenase 3 mRNA mediate stabilization of the transcript by cortisol in osteoblasts.

Collagenase 3 degrades collagen fibrils and is necessary for bone resorption. Cortisol increases collagenase 3 mRNA in osteoblasts by stabilizing collagenase 3 transcripts. To understand mechanisms involved, we used RNA electrophoretic mobility shift assay and RNA turnover studies. Cortisol increased the binding of Ob cell cytosolic extracts to AU-rich sequences in the collagenase 3 3′-untranslated region (UTR). No cortisol-dependent protein complexes were formed with the coding region or the 5′-UTR. Functional assays, using transient transfections of CMV-driven c-fos collagenase 3′-UTR chimeric constructs, demonstrated that the 3′-UTR of collagenase 3 stabilizes c-fos mRNA in transcriptionally arrested Ob cells, cortisol prolongs the transcript half-life, and mutations of AU-rich sequences destabilize c-fos transcripts precluding the cortisol effect. Purification of osteoblast cytosolic extracts by ultracentrifugation, ion exchange, and RNA affinity chromatography, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis followed by mass spectroscopy identified specific proteins. RNA gel mobility supershift assays demonstrated that vinculin and far upstream element (FUSE)-binding protein 2 interacted with collagenase 3 3′-UTR sequences, and RNA interference demonstrated these proteins altered collagenase mRNA stability. In conclusion, AU-rich sequences of the 3′-UTR of collagenase 3 and vinculin and FUSE-binding protein 2 regulate collagenase mRNA stability in osteoblasts.
Validity of International Normalized Ratio in Expressing Prothrombin Times in Anticoagulated and Nonanticoagulated Patients

We investigated the effect of four thrombo plastins with different International Sensitivity Index (ISI) values on prothrombin times (PTs), expressed as International Normalized Ratios (INRs), of 30 normal plasmas, 30 patients on stable oral anticoagulant (OA) therapy, and 30 patients with prolonged PTs for reasons other than OA therapy. Normal ranges became signifi cantly longer when three thromboplastins of rabbit brain origin were used—the lower the ISI, the wider the normal range. The human placenta-derived thromboplastin had a range similar to the values obtained with the most insen sitive rabbit reagent. Significantly different INR values were noted when normal plasmas and plasmas of patients with prolonged PTs not due to OA therapy were tested. This was not the case when specimens from patients on OAs were tested. When PT values from 212 consecutive ly selected patients were tested with the least sensitive rabbit reagent (ISI 2.477) and the most sensitive human placenta reagent (ISI 1.06), signific...
The direct use of natural gas for conversion of carbonaceous raw materials to fuels and chemical feedstocks

Abstract It appears that natural gas is almost as abundant as petroleum, if not more so, as a natural resource in many parts of the world. Because of its rich hydrogen content, it is probably the lowest cost source of hydrogen wherever it is available. The most abundant fossil energy resource in the world appears to be coal, and the most abundant renewable resource appears to be biomass (trees and plants), both of which contain a deficiency of hydrogen. It is proposed to use natural gas in conjunction with coal and biomass to produce the preferred liquid fuel simulating petroleum products. Processes are described which include methanolysis, i.e. the direct use of methane for gasification and liquefaction of coal and biomass, and for desulfurization of coal derived liquid and gases. The thermal decomposition of methane is described for hydrogen and carbon particulate production. A cyclical process is described for producing a clean particulate carbon from coal for use in a carbon-water fuel mix as a substitute diesel fuel or premium-grade boiler fuel. The hydrogen from methane can be used for flash hydropyrolysis or to produce ammonia fertilizer.
New Theoretical Description of the Carbon-Carbon Triple Bond

We present new theoretical results on the carbon-carbon triple bond which suggests that such bonds may be better described in terms of "bent bonds" than by the traditional combination of $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ and $\ensuremath{\pi}$ bonds. By use of correlated wave functions such behavior is explicitly demonstrated for difluoroacetylene. These represent the first quantitative calculations which document a case where a triple "bent-bond" description is energetically favored over a $\ensuremath{\sigma}\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\pi}$ description.
A general correlation for the minimum spouting velocity

A new general correlation is presented for the minimum spouting velocity based on the annular pressure gradient at the top of the bed at minimum spouting. The correlation fits a wide range of experimental data to 11.6% on average. The normalized minimum spouting velocity ratio. umS/umF, is shown to be a function of three dimensionless parameters. On presente une nouvelle correlation generale pour la vitesse minimale de “spouting”, basee sur le gradient de pression annulaire au sommet du lit pour un “spouting” minimal. La correlation represente une grande variete de resultats experimentaux avec une precision moyenne de 11.6%. On montre que le rapport normalise de vitesse minimale de “spouting” (umS/umF) est une fonction de trois parametres adimensionnels.
Device design considerations for ion implanted n-channel MOSFETs

Device design considerations are presented for ion implanted, n-channel, polysilicon gate, enhancement-mode MOSFETs for dynamic switching applications. A shallow channel implant is used to raise the magnitude of the gate threshold voltage while also maintaining a low substrate sensitivity (i.e., without substantially increasing the dependence of the threshold voltage on the source-to-substrate "backgate" bias). Design trade-offs between channel implantation energy and dose and substrate bias were examined using both computer analyses and experimental devices. The design objective was to identify the combination of these three parameter values that gives both a low substrate sensitivitya nd a steep subthreshold conduction characteristic under the conditions of a gate threshold voltage of 1 V and a substrate bias range of 0 to -1 V. One-dimensional and two-dimensional computer analyses were performed to predict the effect of the device parameters on the electrical characteristics. MOSFETs were then fabricated to investigate the extremes of the design parameter range, and the experimental and predicted device characteristics were compared. An enclosed device structure proved particularly useful in evaluating the subthreshold characteristic at very low values of drain current.
Modes of Labor Control in Cattle-Ranching Economies: California, Southern Brazil, and Argentina, 1820–1860

The ranching economies of California, southern Brazil, and Argentina resorted to different mechanisms of labor control in order to meet the growing demand for their products. Each area used different combinations of slave and wage labor as well as sharecropping arrangements, and these varied over time. I argue that this diversity cannot be explained by differences in the regions' modes of production or relative factor endowments. An alternative interpretive framework that incorporates social conflicts, civil strife, and the interaction between ranchers and the state is needed to explain the differences in modes of labor control.
Plasmacytoma of the larynx

Amyloid is an extracellular proteinaceous low-molecular-weight fibril. In the larynx, amyloid deposits usually represent a benign localized disease. Although laryngeal amyloidosis is an indolent lesion, amyloid deposition in the larynx may actually result from a lymphoproliferative disorder and not isolated amyloidosis. In this case report, we describe a patient referred for laryngeal amyloidosis who was subsequently diagnosed with extramedullary plasmacytoma of the larynx. The report discusses the presentation, diagnosis, and treatment provided. The importance of systemic workup and accurate tissue diagnosis in differentiating primary amyloidosis and secondary amyloid deposition will be highlighted.
Origin and Characteristics of Preferential Adsorption on Different Sites in Cobalt-Exchanged Ferrierite

The catalytic activity of metal-exchanged zeolites for nitrogen oxide (NO x ) reduction in the literature, as measured by the turnover of individual metal atoms, is not constant but generally increases with metal loading. The occupation of specific zeolite environments by metal atoms is also a function of the metal loading, suggesting that the metal-zeolite coordination environment influences the observed catalytic activity. Here, first principles calculations were applied to examine the adsorption of several molecules relevant to de-NO x catalysis for two metal-zeolite environments. For a given adsorbate, the preference for cobalt in the ferrierite B environment over the G environment ranges from negligible to approximately 40 kJ/mol. Two primary characteristics were identified that account for the variable preferential adsorption. First, calculations revealed that cobalt in the B environment is more coordinatively unsaturated than cobalt in the G environment. The second characteristic arises from the adsorbate-induced strain on the local zeolite environments, which is generally larger for the G environment. Additional effects are discussed for molecules capable of forming secondary hydrogen bonds with the zeolite and/or highly polar molecules such as water.
Mercury's craters from earth

Abstract Craters on Mercury were discovered by See in 1901, using the 26-in. Naval Observatory refractor.
Development and Application of Acute Exposure Guideline Levels (AEGLs) for Chemical Warfare Nerve and Sulfur Mustard Agents

Acute exposure guideline levels (AEGLs) have been developed for the chemical warfare agents GB, GA, GD, GF, VX, and sulfur mustard. These AEGLs were approved by the National Advisory Committee for Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Substances after Federal Register publication and comment, and judged as scientifically valid by the National Research Council Committee on Toxicology Subcommittee on AEGLs. AEGLs represent general public exposure limits for durations ranging from 10 min to 8 h, and for three levels of severity (AEGL-1, AEGL-2, AEGL-3). Mild effects are possible at concentrations greater than AEGL-1, while life-threatening effects are expected at concentrations greater than AEGL-3. AEGLs can be applied to various civilian and national defense purposes, including evacuation and shelter-in-place protocols, reentry levels, protective clothing specifications, and analytical monitoring requirements. This report documents development and derivation of AEGL values for six key chemical warfare agents, and makes recommendations for their application to various potential exposure scenarios.
Unobtrusive Testing and the Role of Library Management

Cet article presente plusieurs methodes d'evaluation des performances d'une bibliotheque; depuis l'evaluation par les utilisateurs a l'insu des personnels de bibliotheque (unobstrusive testing) jusqu'aux recommandations et encouragements de la direction en faveur d'une meilleure qualite des services
Thermal degradation of poly((E,E)‐[6.2]paracyclophane‐1,5‐diene)

Thermal degradation of poly ((E,E)-[6.2] paracyclophane-1,5-diene) in helium begins by depolymerization yielding a volatile product capable of abstracting hydrogens from the polymer residue. Multiple hydrogen abstractions result in a variety of volatile species containing benzyl-benzyl bonds. In the presence of oxygen, polymer decomposition is dictated by reactions of peroxy and hydroperoxy radicals. At low temperatures, oxygenated species are the primary products. At higher temperatures, increased unsaturation is detected in the polymer residue
Local moment relaxation in heavy-fermion compounds

The Korringa relaxation rate for a local moment of an impurity in a heavy fermion compound is calculated using the model of Yoshimori and Kasai. Consistent with the recent ESR data for local moments in UBe13, the relaxation rate is found to be unaffected by the heavy fermion renormalizations. This result can be traced to the single-site approximation and the weakk dependence of the conduction electron self-energy.
A Comparison of the Mid-Latitude Eddy Fields in the Western North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans

Abstract Latitudinal distributions of estimates of eddy kinetic energy and off-diagonal component of the horizontal Reynolds stresses are demonstrated to have similar shapes at corresponding (generally western) locations, but at much different depths, in the mid-latitude North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans. This comparison is based on direct current measurements at abyssal depths in the North Atlantic along 55°W, and on indirect estimates of upper-level velocity differences in the vertical for the North Pacific between the Izu (or Izu-Ogasawara or South Honshu) Ridge and the Shatsky Rise. These sections span the more energetic segments of the Kuroshio Extension and Gulf Stream systems.
Zimbabwe's maize-based Green Revolution: Preconditions for replication

Abstract The Green Revolution was launched in 1960 in Zimbabwe, five years before it got underway in India. Since Zimbabwe's Green Revolution was spearheaded by white commercial farmers, however, it was ignored by Africa's new leaders in the 1960s as they experimented with state farms from Moscow, communal farms from China and land settlement schemes from Israel. At Zimbabwe's independence in 1980, the new majority-ruled government introduced a number of programs to help smallholders increase food and cash crop production. Drawing on a backlog of hybrid maize varieties, expanded access to credit, higher guaranteed government maize prices, and marketing subsidies, smallholders doubled maize production during 1980–1986. Zimbabwe's maize-based Green Revolution challenges those who allege that hybrid maize cannot compete with sorghum in low rainfall areas and that it is unsuitable for resource-poor farmers because of the need to purchase new seed each year. Today virtually 100% of Zimbabwe's maize area is under hybrids and short-season hybrids are outcompeting other foodgrains in many low rainfall areas. Zimbabwe's biggest challenge is to develop cost-effective marketing policies and institutions to sustain its maize-based Green Revolution. Countries trying to replicate Zimbabwe's success story should focus on fulfilling four interrelated preconditions: political, technological, economic and institutional.
The Efficiency of Cooling Broilers in Summer as Measured by Growth and Feed Utilization

Abstract The normal diurnal temperature pattern that has been found to exist in the Southern broiler growing areas in the summer months is a 23.9° to 35° to 23.9°C. cycle with a 21° C. dewpoint. With interest in cooling broiler houses in summer months, a study was conducted so bird response data would be available to determine the growth and feed utilization response of broilers if mechanical refrigeration of broiler houses were used. Rearing commercial broilers from 4 to 8 weeks of age under a constant 23.9°C. temperature regime increased male body weight 170 grams and female body weight 111 grams when compared to birds reared in a 23.9° to 35°C. diurnal temperature variation at 8 weeks of age. The temperature regimes tested did not significantly affect feed utilization of broilers at 8 weeks of age. Broilers reared in a constant 29.4° C. temperature responded the same for body weight and feed utilization as broilers reared under a diurnally varying temperature of 23.9° to 35° to 23.9°C. This is important since it is easier and less expensive to collect bird response data in a constant rather than a cyclic environment.
How things fall apart: understanding the nature of internalizing through its relationship with impairment

The literature suggests that internalizing psychopathology relates to impairment incrementally and gradually. However, the form of this relationship has not been characterized. This form is critical to understanding internalizing psychopathology, as it is possible that internalizing may accelerate in effect at some level of severity, defining a natural boundary of abnormality. Here, a novel method-semiparametric structural equation modeling-was used to model the relationship between internalizing and impairment in a sample of 8,580 individuals from the 2000 British Office for National Statistics Survey of Psychiatric Morbidity, a large, population-representative study of psychopathology. This method allows one to model relationships between latent internalizing and impairment without assuming any particular form a priori and to compare models in which the relationship is constant and linear. Results suggest that the relationship between internalizing and impairment is in fact linear and constant across the entire range of internalizing variation and that it is impossible to nonarbitrarily define a specific level of internalizing beyond which consequences suddenly become catastrophic in nature. Results demonstrate the phenomenological continuity of internalizing psychopathology, highlight the importance of impairment as well as symptoms, and have clear implications for defining mental disorder.
The personal vote and voter turnout

The level of electoral turnout is arguably the most widely monitored form of electoral participation. Consequently, electoral systems have often been cited as having a significant effect on turnout levels even though scholars do not agree on the effects of these complex institutions. Since most previous studies have relied on categorical or dichotomous electoral system indicators, this study utilizes Carey and Shugart’s personal vote index to gain theoretical leverage on other electoral system components. In short, I find that where electoral competition is predicated on party, rather than candidates’, reputations, turnout levels rise. The results of a time-series cross-sectional analysis reveal that the personal vote index significantly influences turnout levels even when controlling for a host of other factors.
Probing slow backbone dynamics in proteins using TROSY-based experiments to detect cross-correlated time-modulation of isotropic chemical shifts.

The difference in the relaxation rates of zero-quantum (ZQ) and double-quantum (DQ) coherences is the result of three principal mechanisms. These include the cross-correlation between the chemical shift anisotropies of the two participating nuclei, dipolar interactions with remote protons as well as interference effects due to the time-modulation of their isotropic chemical shifts as a consequence of slow μs-ms dynamics. The last effect when present, dominates the others resulting in large differences between the relaxation rates of ZQ and DQ coherences. We present here four sets of TROSY-based (Salzmann et al., 1998) experiments that measure this effect for several pairs of backbone nuclei including 15N, 13Cα and 13C′. These experiments allow the detection of the presence of slow dynamic processes in the protein backbone including correlated motion over two and three bonds. Further, we define a new parameter χ which represents the extent of correlated motion on the slow (μs–ms) timescale. This methodology has been applied to 15N,13C,REDPRO-2H-labeled (Shekhtman et al., 2002) human ubiquitin. The ubiquitin backbone is seen to exhibit extensive dynamics on the slow timescale. This is most pronounced in several residues in the N-terminal region of the α-helix and in the loop connecting the strands β4 and β5. These residues which include Glu24, Asn25, Glu51 and Asp 52 form a continuous surface. As an additional benefit, the measured rates confirm the dependence of the 13Cα chemical shift tensor on local secondary structure of the protein backbone.
Palaeozoic drift of Gondwana: Palaeomagnetic and stratigraphic constraints

Currently available Palaeozoic palaeomagnetic data from Gondwanan continents can be interpreted in terms of either (a) a migration of the pole from northern Africa to southern Africa between Ordovician and late Palaeozoic times, or (b) a rapid excursion of the pole from northern Africa to southwest of South Africa during late Ordovician to early Silurian times, followed by a return to central Africa in late Devonian times, thereafter continuing southward again. With respect to this uncertainty, pertinent stratigraphical evidence from western Gondwana includes the distribution of glacial deposits and cold-water and warm-water faunas. This record, although meagre and to some extent contradictory, appears to favour a drift history consistent with the second (b) of the APW alternatives that involves a rapid southerly excursion of the pole by early Silurian times.
Dysphoria and Hostile Cognition: The Relationship Depends on Levels of Trait Anger

Previous research has found that persistent hostility was associated with a different pattern of attributions than persistent sadness in dysphoric episodes (W. D. Scott, R. E. Ingram, & W. G. Shadel, 2003). In the present study, we attempted to extend these findings by examining another cognitive correlate of hostility in dysphoria: hostile cognition. Measures of dysphoria, trait anger, and hostile cognition were administered to college students. We found that the relationship between dysphoria and hostile cognition depended on the level of trait anger. Specifically, the presence of high trait anger in dysphoria was associated with high levels of hostile cognition whereas low trait anger in dysphoria was not associated with elevated hostile cognition. Moreover, the relationship between trait anger and hostile cognition was stronger among dysphoric participants. This finding adds to existing evidence of affective confounds in clinical research and suggests that discrete moods should be taken into account when assessing cognitive correlates in dysphoria.
Comparison of the usefulness of the implantable cardioverter-defibrillator and subendocardial resection in patients with sustained ventricular arrhythmias and poor regional wall motion associated with coronary artery disease.

Abstract The implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) and subendocardial resection are effective forms of therapy for sustained ventricular arrhythmias associated with coronary artery disease in selected patients. The relative efficacy of these 2 treatments in equivalently matched patients is not known. A regional wall motion score has been shown to be a powerful predictor of long-term outcome after both ICD implantation and subendocardial resection. This study retrospectively analyzed the long-term outcome of patients with coronary artery disease and ventricular arrhythmias treated during the same period with an ICD (n = 53) or by subendocardial resection (n = 65). Treatment outcomes were compared in subgroups determined by preoperative regional wall motion scores of either ≤16 or >16%. The 3-year cardiac mortality of the 2 therapies was not significantly different among patients with a wall motion score of >16% (0% ICD vs 11% endocardial resection) or of ≤16% (41% ICD vs 35% endocardial resection). Similarly, the 3-year sudden cardiac death mortality was similar among patients with a score of >16% (0% for both ICD and endocardial resection) or of ≤16% (9% ICD vs 14% endocardial resection, p = NS). At 24 months after hospital discharge, the percentage of patients who were in New York Heart Association functional class I or II was similar among patients with a wall motion score of >16% (75% ICD vs 86% endocardial resection, p = NS) or with a wall motion score of ≤16% (26% ICD vs 45% endocardial resection, p = NS). Patients with coronary artery disease and ventricular arrhythmias when risk-stratified by a preoperative regional wall motion score have no significant differences in long-term outcome after treatment with an ICD or with subendocardial resection.
Liver dendritic cells are less immunogenic than spleen dendritic cells because of differences in subtype composition

The unique immunological properties of the liver may be due to the function of hepatic dendritic cells (DC). However, liver DC have not been well characterized because of the difficulty in isolating adequate numbers of cells for analysis. Using immunomagnetic bead and flow cytometric cell sorting, we compared freshly isolated murine liver and spleen CD11c+ DC. We found that liver DC are less mature, capture less Ag, and induce less T cell stimulation than spleen DC. Nevertheless, liver DC were able to generate high levels of IL-12 in response to CpG stimulation. We identified four distinct subtypes of liver DC based on the widely used DC subset markers CD8alpha and CD11b. Lymphoid (CD8alpha+CD11b-) and myeloid (CD8alpha-CD11b+) liver DC activated T cells to a similar degree as did their splenic DC counterparts but comprised only 20% of all liver DC. In contrast, the two more prevalent liver DC subsets were only weakly immunostimulatory. Plasmacytoid DC (B220+) accounted for 19% of liver DC, but only 5% of spleen DC. Our findings support the widely held notion that liver DC are generally weak activators of immunity, although they are capable of producing inflammatory cytokines, and certain subtypes potently activate T cells.
Electronic cigarette exposures reported to texas poison centers

INTRODUCTION: Exposure to the liquid nicotine solutions (LNS) IN: electronic cigarettes E-CIGS: may be dangerous because they are highly concentrated. Little is known about the impact of exposure on public health. This study describes E-CIG: exposures reported to poison centers. METHODS: All E-CIG: exposures reported to Texas poison centers during 2009 to February 2014 were identified. Exposures involving other substances in addition to E-CIGS: and exposures not followed to a final medical outcome were included. The distributions of exposures by demographic and clinical factors were determined. RESULTS: Of 225 total exposures, two were reported in 2009, six in 2010, 11 in 2011, 43 in 2012, 123 in 2013 and 40 through February 2014. Fifty-three percent (n=119) occurred among individuals age 20 years old and 6% (n=13) between 6-19 years. Fifty percent were female. The route of exposure was 78% ingestion. Eighty-seven percent of the exposures were unintentional and 5% intentional. The exposures occurred at patient's own residence in 95% of the cases. The clinical effects reported most often were vomiting (20%), nausea (10%), headache (4%), ocular irritation (5%), dizziness (5%), and lethargy (2%). CONCLUSION: ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES: exposures reported to poison centers are increasing. Most of the patients are young children. The exposures most frequently occur through ingestion. Reported exposures often do not have serious outcomes. Language: en
Unwrapping MR phase maps with Chebyshev moments

Previous polynomial model based phase unwrapping algorithms relied on least squares fitting to determine the polynomial coefficients. This work presents a phase unwrapping algorithm, based on the method of moments, and calculates the polynomial coefficients using integration. The phase unwrapping algorithm is developed using Chebyshev polynomials. The phase unwrapping algorithm implemented in this work is tested on 2-D phase maps obtained from a 3 Tesla magnetic resonance scanner. In this work, the effectiveness of the phase unwrapping algorithm on MR phase maps is investigated.