cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Restoring the Sense of Touch Using a Sensorimotor Demultiplexing Neural Interface: ‘Disentangling’ Sensorimotor Events During Brain-Computer Interface Control

Rationale Paralyzed muscles can be reanimated following spinal cord injury (SCI) using a brain-computer interface (BCI) to enhance motor function alone. Importantly, the sense of touch is a key component of motor function. Simultaneously restoring the sense of touch and movement would meet functional needs for BCI users that seek to enhance upper limb function following SCI. Methods The study met institutional requirements for the conduct of human subjects and is registered on the http://www.ClinicalTrials.gov website (identifier: NCT01997125). The participant was a 27-year-old male with stable, non-spastic C5 quadriplegia resulting from a cervical SCI. The participant underwent implantation of a 96 channel Utah microelectrode recording array (Blackrock Microsystems, Inc.; Salt Lake, Utah) in his left primary motor cortex. The hand area of motor cortex was identified preoperatively by fusing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) activation maps obtained while the participant attempted movements co-registered to the preoperative planning MRI. During experiments, the participant was either completely blinded to the experimental conditions or given brief instructions to complete the necessary actions. Cue and trial parameters were randomized as needed. Results Results are adapted from (Ganzer PD, Colachis 4th SC, Schwemmer MA, Friedenberg DA, Dunlap CF, Swiftney CE, Sharma G in Restoring the sense of touch using a sensorimotor demultiplexing neural interface. Cell 2020). We demonstrate that a human participant with a clinically complete SCI can use a BCI to simultaneously reanimate both motor function and the sense of touch, leveraging residual touch signaling from their own hand. In primary motor cortex (M1), residual subperceptual hand touch signals are simultaneously demultiplexed from ongoing efferent motor intention, enabling intracortically controlled closed-loop sensory feedback. Using the closed-loop demultiplexing BCI almost fully restored the ability to detect object touch, and significantly improved several sensorimotor functions. Conclusion These results demonstrate that subperceptual neural signals can be decoded from human cortex and transformed into conscious perception, significantly augmenting function.
Open-source deep learning-based automatic segmentation of mouse Schlemm's canal in optical coherence tomography images.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to develop an automatic deep learning-based approach and corresponding free, open-source software to perform segmentation of the Schlemm's canal (SC) lumen in optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans of living mouse eyes. A novel convolutional neural network (CNN) for semantic segmentation grounded in a U-Net architecture was developed by incorporating a late fusion scheme, multi-scale input image pyramid, dilated residual convolution blocks, and attention-gating. 163 pairs of intensity and speckle variance (SV) OCT B-scans acquired from 32 living mouse eyes were used for training, validation, and testing of this CNN model for segmentation of the SC lumen. The proposed model achieved a mean Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC) of 0.694 ± 0.256 and median DSC of 0.791, while manual segmentation performed by a second expert grader achieved a mean and median DSC of 0.713 ± 0.209 and 0.763, respectively. This work presents the first automatic method for segmentation of the SC lumen in OCT images of living mouse eyes. The performance of the proposed model is comparable to the performance of a second human grader. Open-source automatic software for segmentation of the SC lumen is expected to accelerate experiments for studying treatment efficacy of new drugs affecting intraocular pressure and related diseases such as glaucoma, which present as changes in the SC area.
Utilization of air medical transport in a large urban environment: a retrospective analysis.

Objective. To determine the utility of air medical transport in a large urban environment. Methods. The authors conducted a retrospective analysis of all air medical transports of patients in the Fire Department of the City of New York EMS (emergency medical services) Command for the period of January 1, 1996, to December 31, 1999. These data were evaluated for frequency of air medical transport, patient condition at time of flight, and necessity of air evacuation. Results. During the study period, some form of air medical transport was used 182 times. Of this number, 32 were for transports of patients from a scene of an incident to a hospital within New York City; 18 for interfacility transport of patients from a hospital facility within New York City to another facility within New York City; 122 for interfacility transfers of patients from medical facilities outside of the New York City area to a facility in New York City; and ten for transport of patients from New York City medical facilities to facili...
Pathogen and chemical transport in the karst limestone of the Biscayne aquifer: 2. Chemical retention from diffusion and slow advection

[1] A tracer experiment, using a nonreactive tracer, was conducted as part of an investigation of the potential for chemical and pathogen migration to public supply wells that draw groundwater from the highly transmissive karst limestone of the Biscayne aquifer in southeastern Florida. The tracer was injected into the formation over approximately 1 h, and its recovery was monitored at a pumping well approximately 100 m from the injection well. The first detection of the tracer occurred after approximately 5 h, and the peak concentration occurred at about 8 h after the injection. The tracer was still detected in the production well more than 6 days after injection, and only 42% of the tracer mass was recovered. It is hypothesized that a combination of chemical diffusion and slow advection resulted in significant retention of the tracer in the formation, despite the high transmissivity of the karst limestone. The tail of the breakthrough curve exhibited a straight-line behavior with a slope of −2 on a log-log plot of concentration versus time. The −2 slope is hypothesized to be a function of slow advection, where the velocities of flow paths are hypothesized to range over several orders of magnitude. The flow paths having the slowest velocities result in a response similar to chemical diffusion. Chemical diffusion, due to chemical gradients, is still ongoing during the declining limb of the breakthrough curve, but this process is dwarfed by the magnitude of the mass flux by slow advection.
Galaxy Formation in Hierarchical Models

High resolution gravity plus smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations are used to study the formation of galaxies within the context of hierarchical structure formation. The simulations have sufficient dynamic range to resolve from ten kpc scale galactic disks up to many Mpc scale filaments. Over this range of scales, we find that hierarchical structure development proceeds through a series of increasingly larger filamentary collapses. The well resolved simulated galaxies contain hundreds to thousands of particles and have varied morphologies covering the entire expected range from disks to tidally distorted objects. The epoch of galaxy formation occurs early, about redshift 2.5 for 10^12 M_sun galaxies. Hierarchical formation naturally produces correlations among the mass, age, morphology, and local density of galaxies which match the trends in the observed morphology--density relation. We also describe a method of spiral galaxy formation in which galactic disks form through the discrete accretion of gas clouds which transport most of the angular momentum to the inner regions. Such a process is characteristic of the somewhat chaotic nature of hierarchical structure formation where simple analytical ideas of spherical collapse appear incongruous.
A method toward design intelligence modeling

One purpose of design is said to think and make artificial things that have never existed in the world. It is, however, very difficult to make such an ideal software system currently. In this report, to answer problems such as -what kinds of design information to be treated -what operations to be adopted -how to derive numerical values and -how to certify the reality of results for the ideal system, a computing model is described from a total view of Design Intelligence, which means balanaced thought and practice in design. It has four sequencial parts, which are (1) idea-occurring to get ideas, (2) Knowledge-binding to modify knowledge, (3) Constraint-solving to get numerical values and (4) Conceptual-forming to certify shapes and their movement. Adding to this, a simple parallel approach is tested using an AND Parallel Prolog for concurrent communications among software modules.
Clinical features of Strongyloides stercoralis infection in an endemic area of the United States.

Abstract Infection with Strongyloides stercoralis, the most common intestinal parasite at our hospital, was encountered in 56 patients over a 3-yr period. The majority of the patients were male adults over 50 years old who had a chronic debilitating associated illness; about half the patients were immunocompromised. Strongyloidiasis was usually a chronic relapsing illness of mild to moderate severity characterized by gastrointestinal complaints (diarrhea, pain, tenderness, nausea, vomiting) and peripheral eosinophilia. Hypoalbuminemia also occurred. Stool examination for larvae was an effective method of diagnosing the parasite, and treatment with thiabendazole was usually successful. The frequent occurrence of S. stercoralis in geriatric patients with other medical problems and the delays in making the diagnosis suggest that the clinical spectrum of strongyloidiasis is greater than generally appreciated by the medical profession. Increased awareness of S. stercoralis is important to prevent the hyperinfection syndrome, which was estimated to occur in 1.5–2.5% of our patients.
Prescription drug insurance and cost-related medication nonadherence among Medicare seniors: findings from two national surveys

Objectives Numerous studies suggest that cost-related nonadherence (CRN) to prescribed medications can have potentially devastating consequences, particularly for seniors with chronic illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease or diabetes. In this study, we examined if and how having drug insurance was associated with the occurrence of CRN among older adults, and assessed the role of chronic health conditions in moderating this relationship. Methods Using two independent and nationally representative data sources, the ongoing Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we estimated the prevalence of CRN among Medicare seniors who reported regularly taking prescribed medication. We then ran multivariable regression models to quantify the relationship between drug insurance and the occurrence of CRN. The potential endogeneity of drug insurance was carefully investigated. Key findings We observed CRN among 2.4% of seniors over the past 12 months (based on MEPS data), and 7.0% of seniors over the past 24 months (based on HRS data). Among seniors with multiple chronic conditions, having insurance was associated with a lower likelihood of CRN, both over the past 12 months (OR = 0.483, 95% CI, 0.281 to 0.830), and over the past 24 months (OR = 0.321, 95% CI, 0.258 to 0.398). Among seniors with one or no chronic conditions this relationship was weaker, both over the past 12 months (OR = 0.667, 95% CI, 0.299 to 1.489), and over the past 24 months (OR = 0.346, 95% CI, 0.247 to 0.486). Conclusions Drug insurance was associated with a lower rate of CRN, particularly among seniors with multiple chronic conditions.
Geriatric Mental Health Disaster and Emergency Preparedness, by John A. Toner, Therese M. Mierswma, and Judith L. Howe (Eds.): New York, NY: Springer, 2010, 429 pages, $72.00 (hardcover).

In February 2012, the New York Times Magazine ran a story with a series of pictures from the 2011 tsunami in Japan. Central to the story were beautiful and haunting pictures taken by photographer D...
Patient factors associated with transfusion practices in Veterans Affairs intensive care units: Implications for further research

Abstract Purpose We sought to describe how patient characteristics influence the frequency of red blood cell (RBC) transfusions among critically ill patients after taking into account hemoglobin (Hgb) level. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study using secondary analysis of administrative data of Veterans Affairs intensive care unit (ICU) admissions. The outcome of interest was RBC transfusion during the first 30 days of ICU admission. Besides Hgb level, explanatory variables included demographics, admission-related information, comorbid conditions, ICU admission diagnosis, and selected laboratory test results. Logistic regression modeling quantified associations between explanatory variables and transfusion. Results For 259 281 ICU admissions from 2001 to 2005, the overall incidence of RBC transfusion was 12.5%. Increased age, male gender, admission for acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and comorbid heart disease were independently associated with transfusion. Compared with admission for reference diagnoses, transfusions were more likely for admissions for AMI, unstable angina, and congestive heart failure only at Hgb levels below 11, 9, and 6 g/dL, respectively. Conclusions Intensive care unit patients admitted for AMI, unstable angina, and congestive heartfailure had higher likelihood of receiving RBC transfusions below specific Hgb levels varying from 6 to 11 g/dL. Further research is needed to determine how these transfusion practices influence outcomes.
DAILY MEATAL CARE FOR PREVENTION OF CATHETER-ASSOCIATED BACTERIURIA : RESULTS USING FREQUENT APPLICATIONS OF POLYANTIBIOTIC CREAM

Objective: To determine the efficacy of meatal treatment with a polyantibiotic cream in the prevention of bacteriuria during transurethral bladder catheterization. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Setting: Community teaching hospital. Intervention: Adult patients who underwent closed urinary catheter drainage for short and intermediate durations (two to 30 days). Intervention: Polyantibiotic cream containing polymyxin B sulfate, neomycin sulfate, and gramicidin was applied to the urethral meatus-catheter interface three times daily from the first day of catheterization until bacteriuria was found. The onset of bacteriuria was defined as the day the colonizing species first achieved a colony count of >1000 colonies/ml. Patients randomized to the control group received routine meatal care with cleansing of the meatal surface during daily bathing. Results: Among 2,923 patients who were randomly allocated to receive either the protocol meatal care or routine care, the evaluable study population consisted of 747 patients who were nonbacteriuric and who remained catheterized for more than two days. Overall, 26 (6.8%) of 383 patients given the polyantibiotic treatment acquired bacteriuria, as compared to 37 (10.1%) of 364 patients not given this treatment (p = .167). A Cox proportional hazards regression analysis showed that, among putative risk factors including lack of meatal care, only female gender, a meatal swab culture yielding gram-negative rods or enterococci, and lack of antibiotic use during catheterization were independently associated with the development of bacteriuria. Conclusions: The adverse effect of meatal care noted in earlier studies of a disinfectant ointment applied twice daily was not found in this study of an antimicrobial preparation in a cream vehicle applied three times daily. However, the results do not support meatal care as an efficacious method to prevent catheter-associated bacteriuria in all patients.
Magnon and acoustic-phonon light scattering from Bi-doped yttrium iron garnet.

Light scattering in Bi-substituted yttrium iron garnet has revealed different excitation-wavelength-dependent cross sections for the acoustic phonons and magnons. Analysis of the magnon and phonon frequencies showed a quadratic and linear dependence, respectively, with wave vector and models for these results indicate that the spin-wave stiffness constant is increased, while the sound velocity is reduced, by the substitution of Y with Bi. With the reduction of excitation wavelength, which is accompanied by an increase in the light absorption, a line broadening, and finally a double peak with a continuous band in between, is observed in magnon scattering.
Seven-year trends in employee health habits from a comprehensive workplace health promotion program at Vanderbilt University.

Objective:To assess long-term changes in health risks for employees participating in Vanderbilt University's incentive-based worksite wellness program.Methods:Descriptive longitudinal trends were examined for employees' health risk profiles for the period of 2003 to 2009.Results:The majority of risk
An algorithm for calculating indices in Fàa di Bruno's formula

This paper presents a fast algorithm for generating the-non zero indices used in Faa di Bruno's formula for the higher order derivatives of compositions of functions. The application of this formula to the solution of functional equations and to some problems in queueing theory is indicated.
Apoptosis, necrosis, and cell proliferation induced by S-(1,2-dichlorovinyl)-L-cysteine in primary cultures of human proximal tubular cells.

Apoptosis, necrosis, and cell proliferation induced by S-(1,2-dichlorovinyl)-L-cysteine (DCVC), the cysteine conjugate of the environmental and occupational contaminant trichloroethylene, were studied in primary cultures of human proximal tubular (hPT) cells. Cells from male and female donors were incubated with a range of concentrations of DCVC (10 to 1000 microM) for up to 48 h, and assessments of cellular morphology (phase-contrast microscopy), necrosis (lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release), apoptosis(cell cycle analysis, annexin V staining, and caspase activation), and proliferation (cell cycle analysis and DNA synthesis) were made. Time- and concentration-dependent changes in cellular morphology, including elongation of cell shape, formation of intracellular vesicles, and formation of apoptotic bodies, were observed. Significant increases in LDH release occurred in hPT cells incubated with < or =100 microM DCVC for at least 24 h. hPT cells from males were modestly more sensitive to DCVC than those from females, with maximal LDH release of 78 and 65% in cells from males and females, respectively. Flow cytometry analysis of propidium iodide-stained and DCVC-treated hPT cells showed that apoptosis occurred at markedly lower concentrations (10 microM) and at much earlier incubation times (2 h) than necrosis. A small increase was also noted in the percentage of cells in S-phase after a 4-h treatment with as little as 10 microM DCVC, suggesting that cell proliferation was stimulated. This was supported further by increased DNA synthesis. These results show that DCVC causes apoptosis and enhances cell proliferation in hPT cells at environmentally relevant doses and at earlier time points and lower concentrations than necrosis.
POTENTIAL SOURCES OF AEROMONAS HYDROPHILA

Aeromonas species are associated with marine and fresh water environments, including natural mineral springs, chlorinated and unchlorinated domestic supplies, and polluted water sheds. Most studies attribute water supplied as the principal source for A. hydrophila. Recently, Aeromonas has been recognized as a potential cause of food-associated gastroenteritis outbreaks. Its actual involvement in large foodborne outbreaks is presently unknown. Aeromonas can be readily isolated from a variety of food sources such as seafoods, meats, dairy products, and poultry. Another potential source is asymptomatic and immuno-compromised individuals, particularly, food-handling workers.
The GAT Domains of Clathrin-associated GGA Proteins Have Two Ubiquitin Binding Motifs

Ubiquitin (Ub) attachment to membrane proteins can serve as a sorting signal for lysosomal delivery. Recognition of Ub as a sorting signal can occur at the trans-Golgi network and is mediated in part by the clathrin-associated Golgi-localizing, γ-adaptin ear domain homology, ARF-binding proteins (GGA). GGA proteins bind Ub via a three-helix bundle subdomain in their GAT (GGA and target of Myb1 protein) domain, which is also present in the Ub binding domain of target of Myb1 protein. Ubiquitin binding by yeast Ggas is required to direct sorting of ubiquitinated proteins such as general amino acid permease (Gap1) from the trans-Golgi network to endosomes. Using affinity chromatography and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we have found that the human GGA3 GAT domain contains two Ub binding motifs that bind to the same surface of ubiquitin. These motifs are found within different helices within the three-helix GAT subdomain. When functionally analyzed in yeast, each motif was sufficient to mediate trans-Golgi network to endosomal sorting of Gap1, and mutation of both motifs resulted in defective Gap1 sorting without defects in other GGA-dependent processes.
The role of the nurse in skin cancer prevention, screening, and early detection

T HE NURSE’S ROLE in skin cancer prevention, screening, and early detection is currently at a crossroads, in much the same way as the nursing profession itself is. There have been substantial changes in the role of the nurse during the past two decades,’ and it is clear that the nurse is now in a unique position to make contributions to the prevention and early diagnosis of skin cancer. use of sunscreens during the first 18 years of life would reduce nonmelanoma skin cancer by 78% and possibly reduce the incidence of melanoma. Behaviors such as avoidance of skin contact with chemicals and other forms of ionizing radiation also play a role in skin cancer prevention. This article focuses on methods of screening and early detection issues of importance to the nurse.
Land Use and Wetland Spatial Position Jointly Determine Amphibian Parasite Communities

Land use change is one of the most commonly cited contributing factors to infectious disease emergence, yet the mechanisms responsible for such changes and the spatial scales at which they operate are rarely identified. The distributions of parasites with complex life cycles depend on interactions between multiple host species, suggesting the net effects of land use on infection patterns may be difficult to predict a priori. Here, we used an information-theoretic approach to evaluate the importance of land use and spatial scale (local, watershed, and regional) in determining the presence and abundance of multi-host trematodes of amphibians. Among 40 wetlands and 160 hosts sampled, trematode abundance, species richness, and the presence and abundance of pathogenic species were strongly influenced by variables at the watershed and regional scales. Based on model averaging results, overall parasite richness and abundance were higher in forested wetlands than in agricultural areas; however, this pattern was influenced by a wetland's proximity to the Mississippi Flyway at the regional scale. These patterns likely reflect the activity of trematode definitive hosts, such as mammals and especially birds, such that infections decreased with increasing distance from the Mississippi River. Interestingly, despite lower mean infections, agricultural wetlands had higher variances and maximum infections. At the wetland scale, phosphorus concentrations and the abundances of intermediate hosts, such as snails and larval amphibians, positively affected parasite distributions. Taken together, these results contribute to our understanding of how altered landscapes affect parasite communities and inform further research on the environmental drivers of amphibian parasite infections.
Platforms and services: understanding the resurgence of Apple

Combining new consumer devices and Internet platforms with online services and content is proving to be a successful strategy.
Suppression of the Macrophage Proteasome by Ethanol Impairs MHC Class I Antigen Processing and Presentation

Alcohol binge-drinking (acute ethanol consumption) is immunosuppressive and alters both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system. Antigen presentation by macrophages (and other antigen presenting cells) represents an important function of the innate immune system that, in part, determines the outcome of the host immune response. Ethanol has been shown to suppress antigen presentation in antigen presenting cells though mechanisms of this impairment are not well understood. The constitutive and immunoproteasomes are important components of the cellular proteolytic machinery responsible for the initial steps critical to the generation of MHC Class I peptides for antigen presentation. In this study, we used an in-vitro cell culture model of acute alcohol exposure to study the effect of ethanol on the proteasome function in RAW 264.7 cells. Additionally, primary murine peritoneal macrophages obtained by peritoneal lavage from C57BL/6 mice were used to confirm our cell culture findings. We demonstrate that ethanol impairs proteasome function in peritoneal macrophages through suppression of chymotrypsin-like (Cht-L) proteasome activity as well as composition of the immunoproteasome subunit LMP7. Using primary murine peritoneal macrophages, we have further demonstrated that, ethanol-induced impairment of the proteasome function suppresses processing of antigenic proteins and peptides by the macrophage and in turn suppresses the presentation of these antigens to cells of adaptive immunity. The results of this study provide an important mechanism to explain the immunosuppressive effects of acute ethanol exposure.
Study of public health careers: some characteristics of industrial physicians.

In a nation-wide questionnaire study of about 10,000 professional public health workers, 767 out of the then 1042 members of the AIHA returned satisfactory replies. Concerning their basic disciplin...
Botnets, and the cybercriminal underground

An underground community of cyber criminals has grown in recent years with powerful technologies capable of inflicting serious economic and infrastructural harm in the digital age. This paper serves as an introduction to the world of botnets and to the efforts of the nonprofit group ldquoThe ShadowServer Foundationrdquo to track them. A data mining exploration is performed on ShadowServerpsilas datasets to investigate possible classification mechanisms for threat assessment.
Optimization and numerical models of silicon solar cells

Abstract The coupling of a numerically intensive model of a silicon solar cell with an optimization algorithm is developed. It is demonstrated that the computational burden of evaluating the optimal design of a solar cell can be significantly decreased if the model is appropriately adapted for use in an optimization environment. It is shown that the resulting tool is extremely useful for performing a systematic analysis of optimal efficiencies and associated optimal designs under different levels of technology and fabrication processes. The paper also demonstrates that true sensitivity analyses can be carried out only in an optimization context.
Differential Reproduction as a Criterion for Evaluating Development Decisions

Differential reproduction, the mechanism by which natural selection operates, is a criterion against which development decisions can be evaluated. The specific decision for which the criterion is used is in determining the relationship between alternatives open to the developers and the mechanisms of social control available to regulatory agencies as each evaluated a housing development along the Willamette River, Oregon.Accepting a global perspective, based on the systems modeling of Forrester, leads to the conclusion that for this housing development and other developments like it, alternatives should be managed to promote rehabilitation and reuse of land and resources, and mechanisms of social control should be established to limit continued resource exploitation. A global perspective, however, is unlikely in development decisions which are made to benefit specific groups of people until the global impacts of their actions can be shown to affect them.
Nosocomial Candidiasis: Emerging Species, Reservoirs, and Modes of Transmission

During the 1980s, the frequency of nosocomial candidiasis increased dramatically. This trend has continued into the 1990s, and Candida species remain a major cause of nosocomial infections. Although Candida albicans remains the most frequent cause of fungemia and hematogenously disseminated candidiasis, a number of reports have documented infections caused by other Candida species: C. tropicalis, C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis, C. krusei, and C. lusitaniae. Many of these infections arise from an endogenous source, and their frequency is influenced by the patient population, the various treatment regimens, and the antibiotics or other supportive care measures employed at specific institutions. Additional infections may be accounted for by exogenous acquisition via the hands of health care workers, contaminated infusates and biomaterials, and the inanimate environment. Ongoing investigation should help improve our understanding of the epidemiology of candidiasis and facilitate the development of rational preventive measures.
Interference reflection microscopic study of dorsal root growth cones on different substrates: assessment of growth cone-substrate contacts.

The contact between dorsal root growth cones and substrates of type IV collagen, fibronectin, poly-L-lysine, and laminin were studied using interference reflection microscopy (IRM) coupled with detaching growth cones from these substrates and observing substrate-associated membrane (SAM). IRM images of growth cones on collagen and fibronectin indicate substantial dark areas of close association between the substrate and basal region of the growth cone. The thin membranous veils and lamellapodia appear bright, indicating a greatly decreased association with the substrate. Filopodia can appear either entirely dark or light but usually are dark interspersed with brighter areas indicating varying degrees of contact. IRM images of growth cones on polylysine and laminin suggest a decreased association between the basal region of the growth cone and the substrate. The appearance of veils and lamellapodia was similar to that observed on collagen and fibronectin. Observations of SAM indicate an increased degree of contact between growth cones and substrates of collagen and fibronectin compared to laminin and polylysine. Collectively these data indicate that simple increases in adhesion are not adequate to explain substrate preference and enhancement of neurite elongation. Overall decreases in adhesion may accomplish, the same phenomena, suggesting that it is perhaps more important to consider the regional distribution of adhesive contacts in relation to growth cone movement.
Multiple colonialism in Western Sahara

The Sahrawi are a hybrid people found in parts of northwest Africa, mostly Western Sahara and they are victims of multiple colonialism. The decision by European powers to include parts of their land in various colonies subjected many Sahrawi to different French and Spanish colonial policies and experiences in Morocco, Algeria, Mauretania and Western Sahara. The Spaniards took control of Western Sahara and when they decided to leave, Morocco, with its irredentist dreams stepped in. Morocco became the new colonial power as it claimed Western Sahara territory as a province. It behaves in the same way as the French did when they claimed that Algeria was a province of France. Morocco exploited the prevailing international climate to advance its colonialistic proclivities at a time when territorial colonialism had become anathema internationally. That climate made the big powers, whether communistic or capitalistic, appear to support Morocco. This way their perceived interests seemed to dictate that they be in good books with Morocco and they thus condoned Morocco's annexationist designs. The fact that Morocco itself used to be colonized by the French and the Spaniards tends to hide the fact that it is a colonial power imposing itself on the Sahrawi. Key words: Western Sahara, colonialism, Morocco, Spain
The effects of single-dose alternate-day prednisone therapy on the immunological status of patients with neuromuscular diseases

Several immunological variables were examined in patients receiving high-single-dose, alternate-day prednisone therapy for neuromuscular diseases. Dose-dependent leukocytosis, lymphopenia, and monocytopenia occurred which were maximal 6 hours after prednisone administration but returned to control levels by the 24-hour point. The lymphopenia involved T-cells, B-cells, and null cells, with the T-cells most affected. Plasma cortisol levels and lymphocyte transformation in response to mitogens were also transiently and reversibly suppressed. There was a persistent decrease in serum IgG. Lymphocyte transformation was also suppressed when normal lymphocytes were incubated with treated patient sera or when treated patient lymphocytes were incubated in autologous pretreatment sera. The suppression factor was not removed from the lymphocytes by extensive washing. Patients whose disease responded to the high-single-dose, alternate-day prednisone regiment were indistinguishable from nonresponders by the immunological responses measured.
Mechanisms of Temporal Auditory Pattern Recognition in Songbirds

Human speech and birdsong share several important features. Both communication systems entail large, acoustically rich repertoires of temporally patterned vocal signals, and both must be learned ea...
Gradients of nutrients, dissolved oxygen and sulfide in wave‐protected and unsheltered stands of Phragmites australis

The horizontal and vertical distribution of TN, TP, TC, and TIC in littoral sediments and O 2 and total soluble sulfide (ΣS 2- ) in the overlying water was determined to assess characteristic patterns and the extent of littoral accumulation in Lake Muggelsee. Wave extinction by helophytes allows the formation of deposition zones at the land/water-interface and inside the reed bed. Organogenic sediments (LOI >60% dm, TP >1.2 mg P/g dm, TN >2% dm) declined non-linear towards open water. Additionally, irregular periods of anaerobiosis and increased Σ S 2- concentrations (1.316 μg S 2 /l) were measured. Wave breakers, which were built in front of mechanically damaged reed significantly promote littoral accumulation and protect deposition zones from erosion. However, embankment with fagots produces a fine-grained organogenic mud towards open water. These sediments revealed significantly increased O 2 consumption rates (610 mg O 2 /m 2 . d) and steeper gradients of NO 3 - , SO 4 2- and CH 4 indicating intensified anaerobic reduction processes when compared with unsheltered sites. The nutrient gradients differed from those of 'natural' accumulation zones and caused diminished O 2 saturation (by 30%) specially in summer months. Σ S 2- concentration was positively, correlated to TC content of sediments and temperature and negatively to distance from shore. The annual mean concentration ranged among 10 and 51 μg S 2- /l and was not affected by wave breakers.
Surface characterization of silicon on insulator material

The surface of ultrathin silicon on insulator (SOI) material has been characterized with surface science analysis techniques including atomic-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy. It is shown that the (100) SOI surface can be fabricated with a comparable degree of structural perfection as the (100) surface of bulk Si. Fermi level pinning by “type C” dimer defects results in a fully depleted and thus effectively insulating Si film.
The response of excess 230Th and extraterrestrial 3He to sediment redistribution at the Blake Ridge, western North Atlantic

The constant-flux proxies excess 230Th (230Thxs) and extraterrestrial 3He (3HeET) are commonly used to calculate sedimentary mass accumulation rates and to quantify lateral advection of sediment at core sites. In settings with significant lateral input or removal of sediment, these calculations depend on the assumption that concentrations of 230Thxs and 3HeET are the same in both advected sediment and sediment falling through the water column above the core site. Sediment redistribution is known to fractionate grain sizes, preferentially transporting fine grains; though relatively few studies have examined the grain size distribution of 230Thxs and 3HeET, presently available data indicate that both are concentrated in fine grains, suggesting that fractionation during advection may bias accumulation rate and lateral advection estimates based on these proxies. In this study, we evaluate the behavior of 230Thxs and 3HeET in Holocene and last glacial samples from two cores from the Blake Ridge, a drift deposit in the western North Atlantic. At the end of the last glacial period, both cores received large amounts of laterally transported sediment enriched in fine-grained material. We find that accumulation rates calculated by normalization to 230Th and 3He are internally consistent despite large spatial and temporal differences in sediment advection. Our analyses of grain size fractions indicate that ~ 70% of 3HeET-bearing grains are in the < 20 μm fraction, with roughly equal amounts in the < 4 and 4–20 μm fractions. 230Thxs is concentrated in <4-μm grains relative to 4- to 20-μm grains by approximately a factor of 2 in Holocene samples and by a much larger factor (averaging a factor of 10) in glacial samples. Despite these enrichments of both constant-flux proxies in fine particles, the fidelity of 230Th- and 3He-based accumulation rate estimates appears to be preserved even in settings with extreme sediment redistribution, perhaps due to the cohesive behavior of fine particles in marine settings.
Knowledge-based support for rapid software prototyping

The authors discusses the computer-aided prototyping system's knowledge base and shows how to apply expert-system technology to the software base management subsystem responsible for finding reusable software components with specified properties. She uses rapid prototyping techniques to allow the detection and correlation of requirement errors early in development. The goal is to automate support for analyzing new problem domains rather than automating the generation of many similar systems in well-understood problem domains. For this reason, the author addresses a general purpose computer-aided prototyping system rather than specialized application generators. The discussion focuses on retrieval strategies, declarative knowledge, and transformations. >
Pretreatment surgical lymph node staging predicts results of trimodality therapy in esophageal cancer.

Objective: Prediction of responders to induction therapy in esophageal cancer (EC) patients is important. In this study, we evaluated the role of thoracoscopic/laparoscopic (Ts/Ls) staging in prediction of treatment response and survival in EC patients with trimodality treatment. Methods: Retrospective study of EC patients who had undergone Ts/Ls staging and received trimodality treatment at the University of Maryland Medical Center and the Baltimore Veterans Administration Hospitals from July, 1991 to December, 1999. Preoperative therapy consisted of concurrent chemotherapy (5-FU 1 cisplatinum) and radiotherapy. Results: Forty-four EC patients who underwent pretreatment Ts/Ls staging during the study period were able to complete concurrent chemoradiotherapy followed by surgical resection. There were 36 men and 8 women aged 40 to 77 (median age 62). Twenty-seven (61.4%) patients were found to have lymph node metastasis by surgical staging. Fourteen patients (31.8%) had a pathologic complete response. Patients with positive lymph nodes had a lower response rate than those with negative lymph nodes (14.8% vs. 58.8%, Pa 0:006). Other clinicopathologic features including gender, weight loss, clinical TNM stage, surgical T stage, and histology did not correlate with treatment response. Univariate analysis showed that weight loss and treatment response were important prognostic factors for disease-free survival (Pa 0:01 and Pa 0:02, respectively). Histology, surgical N stage and surgical TNM stage appeared to be associated with prognosis (Pa 0:067‐0.097). Multivariate analysis revealed that only surgical N status and weight loss were significant prognostic factors (Pa 0:05, and Pa 0:006, respectively). Conclusions: Surgical Ts/Ls staging provides accurate evaluation of tumor spread in EC patients. Pretreatment N status was the single most important predictor of response to induction treatment as well as a reliable prognosticator of survival. q 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Perceived Control and Feedback in Judgment and Memory

Abstract Task decisiveness and effort have previously been found to covary with locus of control. If perceived control operates as a generalized expectancy, then task-relevant feedback may be compared against existing expectancies. Consequently, task-relevant feedback would influence both task decisiveness and effort. In an experiment, 71 subjects received task related feedback and participated in both judgment and memory tasks. It was found that locus of control provided differences in decisiveness only following positive feedback, and differences in effort only following negative feedback. The results were discussed in terms of self-consistency and self-enhancement.
On the electrical polarization of polymer single crystals in suspension

A model is proposed for the electrical polarization that causes the orientation and, hence, the electric birefringence of a suspension containing single crystals of a poly(ethylene oxide)–polystyrene diblock copolymer or a poly(ethylene oxide) homopolymer. It serves to describe how an electric dipole moment lying in the plane of the single crystal can be induced by protons migrating in poly-(ethylene oxide). The resulting Kerr effect is calculated up to saturating fields, and the observed dispersion of the polarization in high frequency fields is explained as a space charge relaxation phenomenon. The estimated relaxation time agrees satisfactorily with published experimental data.
Inference of gene pathways using mixture Bayesian networks

Background Inference of gene networks typically relies on measurements across a wide range of conditions or treatments. Although one network structure is predicted, the relationship between genes could vary across conditions. A comprehensive approach to infer general and condition-dependent gene networks was evaluated. This approach integrated Bayesian network and Gaussian mixture models to describe continuous microarray gene expression measurements, and three gene networks were predicted.
Adsorption of single walled carbon nanotubes onto silicon oxide surface gradients of 3-aminopropyltri(ethoxysilane) described by polymer adsorption theory.

Integration of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) into complex sensing and electronic devices can necessitate the selective placement of individual nanotubes from solution onto custom-prepared surfaces. Existing studies indicate carbon nanotube adsorption can be controlled by creating hydrophilic and/or hydrophobic surfaces, depending on the nanotube surface chemistry and solvent. Various recipes exist for specific conditions, but no quantitative theoretical model describing experimental observations has been developed. This work examines the adsorption behavior of SWNT functionalized with aryl hydroxyl (OH-SWNT) or aryl carboxylic acid groups (COOH-SWNT) onto 3-aminopropyltri(ethoxysilane) (APTES) concentration gradients on SiO2 wafers. For the first time, self-consistent field polymer adsorption theory is utilized to quantitatively describe SWNT adsorption onto planar surfaces. Experimental results indicate SWNT adsorption strongly depends on three key factors: concentration of APTES molecules on the...
Transfinite Function Iteration and Surreal Numbers

Louck has developed a relation between surreal numbers up to the first transfinite ordinal ? and aspects of iterated trapezoid maps. In this paper, we present a simple connection between transfinite iterates of the inverse of the tent map and the class of all the surreal numbers. This connection extends Louck's work to all surreal numbers. In particular, one can define the arithmetic operations of addition, multiplication, division, square roots, etc., of transfinite iterates by conversion of them to surreal numbers. The extension is done by transfinite induction. Inverses of other unimodal onto maps of a real interval could be considered and then the possibility exists of obtaining different structures for surreal numbers.
Nonlinear Dynamics and Stability in a Multi-Group Asset Flow Model

The multi-group asset flow model for asset price dynamics incorporates distinct motivations, e.g., trend and fundamentals (value) and assessments of value by different groups of investors. The stability and bifurcation properties are established for the curve of equilibria. We prove that if all trader groups focus on fundamentals, then all equilibria are stable. For systems in which there is one fundamental and one momentum (trend) group, we establish conditions for stability. In particular, an equilibrium that is stable becomes unstable as the time scale on which momentum investors focus diminishes. The computations examine the excursions, which we define as the maximum deviation in price of the trajectory from its initial price located near the curve of equilibria.
Adaptive and bystander responses in human and rodent cell cultures exposed to low level ionizing radiation: the impact of linear energy transfer.

To understand the potential impact on risk from exposure to low-level ionizing radiation, we have investigated the modulation of gene expression, induction of DNA damage and of neoplastic transformation in human or rodent cells derived from cultures exposed in vitro to low dose γ-rays (a low linear energy transfer radiation) or very low fluences of α-particles (a high linear energy transfer radiation). Pre-exposure of cells to a low γ-ray dose protected cells from the DNA damaging and killing effects induced by a subsequent acute challenge exposure to γ-rays. Furthermore, a low dose chronic exposure to γ-rays decreased the frequency of micronucleus formation and neoplastic transformation to a level below the spontaneous rate in human and rodent cells respectively. In contrast, when cell cultures were exposed to low fluences of α-particles, wherein a small fraction of cells were irradiated, stressful effects were transmitted from the irradiated to adjoining nonirradiated bystander cells. The mechanisms underlying these effects and their relative contribution to the overall risk to ionizing radiation is discussed.
Adventures in hackademia: leveraging humanitarian free/open source software development in the class room (abstract only)

This poster will briefly describe the components of the Humanitarian Free/Open Source Software Development (HFOSS) course offered by the Department of Interactive Games and Media at Rochester Institute of Technology in Upstate NY. It will depict this model of an "Open" Course (i.e. Open Courseware, Open Curriculum, Open Classroom, and Open Code) informed both by academic theory, and industry best practice. It will show the results of designers, developers, and project leaders, working in tandem with professors, staffers, and administrators to offer students a chance to apply research, and put theory into practice. It will discuss strategies of engagement, metrics of success and failure, and what resources are available for others to do the same.