cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vascular Calcification: It's All the RAGE!

Macrovascular calcification increasingly afflicts our aging and dysmetabolic population.1 Once considered only a passive process of dead and dying cells, data from multiple laboratories worldwide have converged to reveal that vascular calcification is in great part an actively regulated form of matrix mineral metabolism.2 A uniquely horrendous situation arises in end-stage renal disease.3 Antecedent vasculopathy from diabetes, dyslipidemia, or hypertension interacts with dialysis-modulated uremia—a fluctuating hyperphosphatemic and hyperphosphatemic milieu that increases vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) apoptosis, overwhelms defenses against soft tissue mineralization, and promotes low-grade panvascular inflammation.3,4 Elegant genetic studies by Cecil and Terkeltaub,5 coupled with the enlightening work of Festing et al6 and Li et al7 have highlighted the important role of pyrophosphate and phosphate metabolism in the pathobiology of arterial calcification. In addition, oxidative stress signals (reactive oxygen species [ROS]) elaborated in response to key inflammatory cytokines—namely, interleukin6,8 interleukin 1β,9 and tumor necrosis factor10,11—have been shown to participate in vascular activation of the osteochondrogenic gene programs characteristic of bone formation.12 Only recently, however, has signaling via the receptor for advanced glycosylation end products (RAGE) been implicated as a critical contributor to both ROS-regulated13 and pyrophosphate-regulated5 vascular calcification. RAGE is an …
Impact of a hospital-funded prenatal clinic on infant outcomes and hospital costs

Abstract This study compares the birth outcomes and hospital costs for low income women who received adequate prenatal care from a hospital-funded clinic with women who received inadequate or no prenatal care. Hospital costs for each mother-infant pair and other economic variables were obtained from the hospital's cost accounting system. Demographic characteristics and pregnancy outcomes (birth weight, prematurity, Apgar score, newborn complications, congenital anomalies) were collected from infant birth certificates. For all outcome variables examined, except Apgar score and congenital anomalies, a significantly higher percentage of the inadequate care newborns experienced negative birth outcomes. Compared to adequate care infants, newborns in the inadequate care sample were hospitalized twice as long, required NICU use nearly twice as often, and incurred three times the hospital costs. The combined hospital costs for the mother-infant pairs in the inadequate care group were twice the costs for those who received adequate prenatal care.
MLC: a novel image coder based on multitree local cosine dictionaries

We build a multitree dictionary of local cosine bases and develop a novel image coder that extracts the best basis in such a dictionary with respect to a rate-distortion cost. This dictionary is much larger than standard quadtree-based dictionaries, and therefore, our algorithm needs more overhead bits to encode the basis selection. Despite this, we show that the resulting algorithm outperforms an existing quadtree local cosine image compression algorithm. We also show that our multitree local cosine coder outperforms both SPIHT and a multitree block-DCT method previously developed by us, on several textured images.
Does osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) improves outcomes in patients who develop postoperative ileus: A retrospective chart review

Abstract Introduction The treatment of ileus has been estimated to cost the United States $750 million to $1 billion in a year. In a study by Bennett-Guerrero et al. on 1056 patients who had major non-cardiac surgery, the most frequent problem that delayed discharge was persistent postoperative GI tract dysfunction in 42% of patients. Despite its huge cost to our society, there have been very few advances in our approach to treatment of ileus. Upon reviewing osteopathic literature for treatment of postoperative ileus it seemed that OMT may be of benefit to patients being treated for ileus in the hospital setting. Materials and methods All patients ( n =655) with a discharge diagnosis of ileus (ICD-9-CM International Code 530.1) between 2003 and 2006 were reviewed. There where 331 patients who had undergone abdominal surgery and were included in the study. Patient records were then divided into two groups, those who had received osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) and those who had not received OMT. The data for this study was analyzed using ANCOVA. Results An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) computed on length of stay by group with age as the covariate indicated that the OMT patients had a significantly shorter length of stay than the no treatment group (adjusted mean=14.6 days for the non-treatment group versus 11.8 days for the treatment group) even after controlling for age differences; F (1,308)=4.81, p =0.029. Conclusion The findings of this retrospective chart review indicate that a prospective trial including a more thorough economic cost-benefit analysis would be worthy of consideration.
The Brief Classroom Interaction Observation-Revised: An Observation System to Inform and Increase Teacher Use of Universal Classroom Management Practices.

Schools are increasingly using multi-tiered prevention models to address the academic and behavior needs of students. The foundation of these models is the implementation of universal, or Tier 1, practices designed to support the academic and behavioral needs of the vast majority of students. To support teachers in the use of effective Tier 1 classroom practices, researchers and practitioners need reliable and valid measures of these practices that are sensitive to change over time. The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of the Brief Classroom Interaction Observation–Revised (BCIO-R), which is a direct observation measure of classroom Tier 1 instructional and classroom management practices for use in elementary school classrooms. Findings indicate that the BCIO-R can be reliably implemented in the classroom context. In addition, the measure is associated with important teacher-reported constructs such as efficacy in classroom management and burnout. Furthermore, the measure ...
Design and development of selective muscarinic agonists for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease: characterization of tetrahydropyrimidine derivatives and development of new approaches for improved affinity and selectivity for M1 receptors.

Cholinergic neurons degenerate in Alzheimer's disease, resulting in cognitive impairments and memory deficits, and drug development efforts have focused on selective M1 muscarinic agonists. 5-(3-Ethyl-1,2,4- oxadiazol-5-yl)-1,4,5,6-tetrahydropyrimidine trifluoroacetic acid (CDD-0102) stimulates M1 muscarinic receptors in rat brain [Messer, W.S., Jr., Abuh, Y.F., Liu, Y., Periyasamy, S., Ngur, D.O., Edgar, M.A., El-Assadi, A.A., Sbeih, S., Dunbar, P.G., Roknich, S., Rho, T., Fang, Z., Ojo, B., Zhang, H., Huzl, J.J., III, Nagy, P.I., 1997a. J. Med. Chem. 40, 1230-1246.] and improves memory function in rats with lesions of the basal forebrain cholinergic system. Moreover, CDD-0102 exhibits oral bioavailability, few side effects and low toxicity, and thus represents a viable candidate for clinical studies. Despite the development of functionally selective agonists such as xanomeline and CDD-0102, there is room for improvements in ligand affinity and selectivity. The high degree of amino acid homology within transmembrane domains has hindered the development of truly selective agonists. Site-directed mutagenesis, biochemical and molecular modeling studies have identified key amino acid residues such as Thr192 and Asn382 in the binding of agonist to M1 receptors [Huang, X.P., Nagy, P.I., Williams, F.E., Peseckis, S.M., Messer, W.S., Jr., 1999. Br. J. Pharmacol. 126, 735-745.]. Recent work has implicated residues at the top of transmembrane domain VI in the binding of muscarinic agonists and activation of M1 receptors [Huang, X.P., Williams, F.E., Peseckis, S.M., Messer, W.S., Jr., 1998. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. 286, 1129-1139.]. Thus, residues such as Ser388 represent molecular targets for the further development of agonists with improved M1 receptor affinity, selectivity and activity.
Sublethal Effects of Neurotoxic Insecticides on Insect Behavior

PERSPECTIVES AND OVERVIEWThe behavior of insects, and all animals, is governed by interactions amongneurons within their nervous systems. Insecticides have been selected andsometimes designed for their remarkable ability to kill insects. Most attackspecific sites within the insect’s nervous system (59, 63; see section on modesand sites of action). Therefore it is not surprising that insecticides at levelsthat do not lead to mortality can influence behavior. However, there havebeen few detailed studies concerning the potential behavioral effects ofsublethal doses of insecticides.Studies of the behavioral effects of neurotoxicants are important for severalreasons (89). First, detailed observations of the behavioral symptoms poisoned insects will help to elucidate the modes of action of both novel andconventional insecticides. Second, it is clear that almost all insecticidesinterfere with the normally well-orchestrated behavioral patterns of pestinsects and thus might contribute to management of their populations. Animportant related point is that beneficial insects may be adversely affected bythese compounds in a way that is overlooked by current screening procedures.Lastly, selection may favor those insects that respond to insecticides in theenvironment by minimizing their contact with the toxic material; thus thepotential for evolution of behavioral resistance to insecticides is anotherimportant consideration.Insecticides are the cornerstones upon which pest management practices arebased, and are likely to remain so as long as effective and inexpensivechemicals are available. However, many insect-pest management techniques1490066-4 170/88/0101-0149 $02.00Annual Reviews www.annualreviews.org/aronline
Approximate performance analysis of edge preserving filters

Approximate, asymptotic methods are used to analyze the edge response of a filter. This technique is tractable for the case of filters based on estimators that are expressible as functionals of the empirical distribution of the sample. As an illustration of this approach, the method is used to analyze the modified trimmed mean and a few examples of the class of L-filters. The resulting performance predictions are compared with simulation results. Fairly accurate predictions are obtained for realistic sample sizes. >
Fiber-Optics-Based Fault Detection in Power Systems

A fiber-optics-based sensing network applicable for fault detection in power system is presented. The proposed scheme is secure and immune from interferences. At each monitoring location, passive rugged fiber-Bragg-grating-based sensors are deployed. They use fast and compact magnetostrictive transducers instead of current or potential transformers to translate current-induced magnetic field into optical signal. These sensors can be compensated for temperature drift and easily be integrated into an optical sensing network. A broadband light source at a substation scans the change in reflected optical power at a unique frequency band that corresponds to the surge in magnetic field associated with an increased fault current at a certain location. A unique feature of this real-time scheme is that it only requires current information for fault detections in both radial and networked systems with various pole structures and line configurations. It can easily coordinate with other protective devices and is free from any time-current coordination curves. The proposed scheme has been extensively tested by simulations. They confirm that the proposed scheme is able to detect the faults irrespective of the type and location. It also performs well in presence of harmonics, high impedance, and sensors malfunctions, as well as sensor noise.
Continuities in Gender Relations: a Case of Immigrant Families from Huejuquilla el Alto, Jalisco

El articulo examina la forma como las familias de inmigrantes mexicanos hannegociado sus relaciones de genero durante el proceso de establecimiento en Chicago. Contrario a otros estudios sobre migracion mexicana a los Estados Unidos, he encontrado que los arreglos patriarcales originales (v. g. anteriores a la migracion) en las relaciones de genero, tienden a permanecer a traves del tiempo y estan presentes en las estrategias que las familiasimplementaron durante su establecimiento. Factores tales como cultura, economia - politica y relaciones con su comunidad influyen el proceso.
Use of Yi-Gan San (TJ-54) in patients with motor aphasia who refuse to participate in rehabilitation

Sato S, Bunno K. Use of Yi-Gan San (TJ-54) in patients with motor aphasia who refuse to participate in rehabilitation. Jpn J Compr Rehabil Sci 2010; 7-10. Since aphasic patients have diffi culty communicating, they often have emotional lability, which can make clinical management diffi cult and may even lead to the patients’ refusal to participate in rehabilitation programs. Yi-Gan San (YGS) has recently been shown to improve behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) associated with Alzheimer’s dementia. Recently, 3 patients with motor aphasia were treated with YGS to stabilize psychiatric symptoms, and this treatment helped the patients, who initially refused to undergo rehabilitation, adapt to rehabilitation therapy. Within 1 to 2 weeks of starting the treatment with YGS, there was a marked improvement in the patients’ emotional lability. Since the patients showed improvement within a short period, we think that the serotonin 5-HT1A receptor partial agonist action of YGS is the main factor responsible for these pharmacologic effects. In patients with impaired communication ability, such as those with motor aphasia, YGS may be effective and worthwhile as a supplemental therapy for secondary psychiatric symptoms such as emotional lability.
The Wall and Maastricht: exogenous shocks and the initiation of the EMU and EPU IGCs

Scholars disagree about the role of exogenous shocks in initiating the European political and economic intergovernmental conferences leading to the Maastricht Treaty. Initially, scholars viewed the intergovernmental conferences (IGCs) as a response to German reunification. Over time, the literature began emphasising the role of wider financial market instability. This article reconsiders the role of exogenous shocks prior to and including the fall of the Berlin Wall. It concludes that the initiation of the Maastricht Treaty was significantly influenced by a series of shocks starting well before, but not excluding, the collapse of the Berlin Wall. These shocks provoked the parties, particularly Germany and France, to alter their preferences and align their interests.
Effects, transfer, and fate of RDX from aged soil in plants and worms

The objectives of this study were to provide data that can be used to predict exposure-based effects of RDX in aged soil on multiple endpoint organisms representing two trophic levels. These data can be used for defining criteria or reference values for environmental management and conducting specific risk assessment. Dose–response experiments formed the basis for the evaluation of toxic effects and transfer of contaminants from soil into two trophic levels. Long-term exposure tests were conducted to evaluate chronic, sublethal, toxicity and transfer of aged soil-based explosives, with RDX as main contaminant. In these tests, plants were exposed for 55 days in the greenhouse, biomass was determined and residues of explosives parent compounds and RDX metabolites were analyzed using HPLC techniques. Worms were exposed for 28 days (Eisenia fetida) and 42 days (Enchytraeus crypticus) in the laboratory, biomass and number were determined, and tissues were analyzed for explosives compounds. The plants tolerated concentrations up to 1540 mg RDX kg 1 soil-DW. Biomass of Lolium perenne was not significantly related to soil-RDX concentration, while biomass of Medicago sativa significantly increased. No screening benchmark for RDX in soil for plants was calculated, since concentrations up to 1540 mg kg 1 soil failed to reduce biomass by 20% as required for a LOEC. RDX, RDX-metabolite MNX, and accompanying HMX concentrations in plants were significantly related to concentrations in soil after 55 days of exposure (RDX: R 2 = 0.77–0.89; MNX R 2 = 0.53–0.77; HMX: R 2 = 0.67–0.71). The average bioconcentration factors (BCF) were for RDX 17 in L. perenne and 37 in M. sativa, and for HMX 2 in L. perenne and 44 in M. sativa. The worms also tolerated concentrations up to 1540 mg RDX kg 1 soil-DW. Biomass of E. fetida adults decreased with soil-RDX concentration, and a LOEC of 1253 mg kg 1 soil-DW was estimated. RDX concentrations in E. fetida were significantly related to concentrations in soil after 28-day exposure (R 2 = 0.88). The average BCF in E. fetida for RDX was 1. Because in response to exposure to RDX-contaminated soil the RDX concentrations in plants increased initially and decreased subsequently, while those in worms increased continuously, RDX in worm tissues may accumulate to higher concentrations than in plant tissues, regardless of the low average BCF for worms. � 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Nine Things You Can Do with Old Software

Every new line of code quickly becomes legacy. When that legacy mounts, it forms a significantly massive pile of software, which cannot be ignored. This article discusses what we can do intentionally with such piles, from abandonment to evolution and many things in between.
Are the “Most Advantaged” Children Truly Disadvantaged by Early Maternal Employment?: Effects on Child Cognitive Outcomes

This research examines the effects of early maternal employment on the cognitive ability of 2,040 4- to 6-year-old children drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Some scholars have hypothesized that it is the “most advantaged” of society's children who are disadvantaged or negatively affected by early maternal employment. If this hypothesis is true, the findings should be that advantages such as high levels of cognitive stimulation in the home or household income do not affect cognitive ability as strongly for children of mothers who were employed during early childhood as they do for children whose mothers were not employed. Of 24 possible interaction effects that would confirm this hypothesis, only one is statistically significant (and the nature of that interaction is not completely consistent with the hypothesis). In terms of effects on cognitive outcomes, the most advantaged children are not disproportionately disadvantaged by early maternal employment.
Optimal energy management in series hybrid electric vehicles

This paper deals with the optimization of the instantaneous electrical generation/electrical storage power split in series hybrid electric vehicles (SHEV). Optimal energy management is related to the optimization of the instantaneous generation/storage power split in SHEV. Previously, a power split type solution of the series hybrid energy management problem has been attempted using a rule-based approach. Our approach performs a dynamic programming solution of the problem of determining the optimal power split between both sources of energy, with realistic cost calculation for all considered power trajectories for the combined APU/generator, electric machines and battery efficiencies, and a penalty function formulation for the deviation of the ideal state-of-charge to be sustained over the length of time considered. The discrete state formulation of this dynamic programming approach makes the computation very efficient. Results are obtained for series hybrids for the FUDS drive cycle.
DE-2 mass spectrometer observations relevant to the shuttle glow

A comparison of satellite mass spectrometer data from Dynamics Explorer-2 and Atmosphere Explorer-C and -D provides new evidence supporting the hypothesis that NO2 is the source of the observed continuum glow near ram-facing surfaces of the Space Shuttle. Surface reactions of thermospheric N and O in mass spectrometer ion sources produce NO and NO2 in amounts highly dependent on surface temperature and composition, with direct exposure of ion source surfaces to rammed gas a necessary condition for the production of large amounts of NO2. Initial orbit data indicate that a period of surface conditioning is necessary before these odd nitrogen molecules can be produced efficiently.
An interpretation of Woodward's ambiguity function and its generalization

We suggest a new interpretation of Woodward's ambiguity function as the expected value of an operator. The operator represents the physics of the interaction of the waveform with the object. This approach provides a new approach to understanding the return signal at the receiver and can reveal more detailed understanding of the underlying interactions within the return signal that are not usually brought out by standard signal processing techniques.
Equilibria in abstract economies with a measure space of agents and with an infinite dimensional strategy space

Abstract Khan's result [7, 8] on equilibrium points of non-atomic games is generalized to a setting where agents' preferences need not be ordered.
Association mapping with single-feature polymorphisms.

We develop methods for exploiting “single-feature polymorphism” data, generated by hybridizing genomic DNA to oligonucleotide expression arrays. Our methods enable the use of such data, which can be regarded as very high density, but imperfect, polymorphism data, for genomewide association or linkage disequilibrium mapping. We use a simulation-based power study to conclude that our methods should have good power for organisms like Arabidopsis thaliana, in which linkage disequilibrium is extensive, the reason being that the noisiness of single-feature polymorphism data is more than compensated for by their great number. Finally, we show how power depends on the accuracy with which single-feature polymorphisms are called.
Nest temperature is not related to egg size in a turtle with temperature-dependent sex determination

A recent hypothesis posits that temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD) in reptiles may be maintained if females can assess thermal conditions and lay eggs accordingly to produce the sex benefiting most from maternal investment. Specifically, females should lay large eggs in environments likely to produce the sex benefiting most from larger egg size. This relationship has been demonstrated in diamondback terrapins. To evaluate the generality of this hypothesis, we examined two components of this hypothesis using painted turtles (Chrysemys picta), a reptile with TSD. Vegetation cover around nests at oviposition significantly and negatively influenced nest temperatures during embryonic development, particularly during the period of sexual differentiation. However, no relationship existed between egg mass and either nest temperatures or vegetation cover around nests at oviposition. Therefore, large eggs were not laid in specific thermal microenvironments as a mechanism to match egg size with offspring sex ratio. These results do not support a general relationship between thermally based nest-site choice and maternal investment (egg mass) in reptiles with TSD.
Determinants of conditioned reinforcing effectiveness: Dopamine D2-like receptor agonist-stimulated responding for cocaine-associated stimuli.

Abstract Environmental stimuli associated with drug use can take on conditioned properties capable of promoting drug-seeking behaviors during abstinence. This study investigated the relative importance of the amount of reinforced responding, number of cocaine-stimulus pairings, total cocaine intake, and reinforcing effectiveness of the self-administered dose of cocaine to the conditioned reinforcing effectiveness of cocaine-associated stimuli (CS). Male rats were trained to self-administer cocaine (0.1 [small] or 1.0 mg/kg/inf [large]) under a fixed ratio schedule of reinforcement. A progressive ratio (PR) schedule was used to quantify the reinforcing effectiveness of each dose of cocaine, as well as the conditioned reinforcing effectiveness of the CS following treatment with saline or the dopamine D2-like receptor agonist pramipexole (0.1–3.2 mg/kg). The large dose of cocaine maintained larger final ratios and greater levels of cocaine intake, whereas the small dose resulted in more cocaine-CS pairings. The total amount of responding was comparable between groups. During PR tests of conditioned reinforcement, pramipexole increased responding for CS presentations in both groups; however, the final ratio completed was significantly greater in large- as compared to small-dose group. In addition to highlighting a central role for dopamine D2-like receptors in modulating the effectiveness of cocaine-paired stimuli to reinforce behavior, these results suggest that conditioned reinforcing effectiveness is primarily determined by the reinforcing effectiveness of the self-administered dose of cocaine and/or total cocaine intake, and not the total amount of responding or number cocaine-stimulus pairings. These findings have implications for understanding how different patterns of drug-taking might impact vulnerability to relapse.
Who Will Redevelop Redevelopment?: Power and Pragmatism in California Redevelopment Law

Although California's redevelopment law is among the strictest in the nation, from a layperson's perspective, redevelopment agencies (RDAs) appear to be no more obstructed from their projects in California as they would be in, say, Connecticut. This article addresses a sort of tragedy of the commons problem applied to redevelopment: If redevelopment powers are over-harvested such as to instigate serious political revolt against them, they will become barren and useless, and will no longer be available for the purposes for which they were intended and for which they are still needed. Even assuming that redevelopment is efficacious and necessary, restrictions on redevelopment ought not be vacuous. In a post-Kelo society, redevelopment finds itself in danger of being neutered of its ability to do what it is truly meant to do: to overcome market failure in urban areas and restore and preserve the vitality of our communities. If redevelopment agencies abuse their powers by manipulating the market rather than facilitating it, they expose themselves to political attack in an already volatile property rights climate. We are in need of reform that reminds RDAs why they exist in the first place: market-facilitation, not revenue-generation. The problem cannot be properly addressed at the local level. In the example of 99 Cents Only Stores v. Lancaster Redevelopment Agency, it became clear that unscrupulous businesses will employ hostage-taker strategies to capture the RDA's eminent domain power. Cities are left resorting to economically-cogent-yet-legally-pathetic claims such as future blight in order to appease 800 pound gorillas such as Costco or Wal-Mart. Thus it is not enough simply for local governments to self-regulate their use of eminent domain - it must be regulated from without. Because an ill-conceived redevelopment regime allows rent-seekers to blackmail cities, and entices cities to use coercive bargaining and offend landowners' sensibilities, RDAs are in danger of ruining the tools it needs to achieve the purpose of true blight removal, the purpose for which it was designed. Thus without careful review, RDAs threaten to kill the golden goose. The solution is to remove the blight in our redevelopment law, and redevelop the principles and policies underlying redevelopment agencies.
Lifespan and Healthspan: Past, Present, and Promise

The past century was a period of increasing life expectancy throughout the age range. This resulted in more people living to old age and to spending more years at the older ages. It is likely that increases in life expectancy at older ages will continue, but life expectancy at birth is unlikely to reach levels above 95 unless there is a fundamental change in our ability to delay the aging process. We have yet to experience much compression of morbidity as the age of onset of most health problems has not increased markedly. In recent decades, there have been some reductions in the prevalence of physical disability and dementia. At the same time, the prevalence of disease has increased markedly, in large part due to treatment which extends life for those with disease. Compressing morbidity or increasing the relative healthspan will require "delaying aging" or delaying the physiological change that results in disease and disability. While moving to life expectancies above age 95 and compressing morbidity substantially may require significant scientific breakthroughs; significant improvement in health and increases in life expectancy in the United States could be achieved with behavioral, life style, and policy changes that reduce socioeconomic disparities and allow us to reach the levels of health and life expectancy achieved in peer societies.
The future of health care

George Annas and Sherman Elias, two longtime experts on the medical and social implications of genetics, wrote Genomic Messages to help people figure out how they should use genomic technologies to manage their health and the health of their families. Useful real and hypothetical cases stemming from Elias9s practice as a medical geneticist pepper the book9s chapters. Reviewer Henry T. Greely praises the authors9 efforts to make genomic information accessible to a lay audience, but questions the ambitious scope of the book.
REALLY EXISTING DEMOCRACIES: DEMOCRACY IN A RUSSIAN MIRROR

Abstract: Leading Western and Russian political scientists contributed to this collective study, which covers issues related to the Russian record of democratic rule and operation of the current political regime in the country, as well as comparative analysis of various concepts of democracy and institutional analysis of various organisations and mechanisms of democratic politics. Moreover it examines major incentives and obstacles to consolidation of democracy.
Antibacterial activity produced by molds commonly used in oriental food fermentations.

(1972). Antibacterial Activity Produced by Molds Commonly used in Oriental Food Fermentations. Mycologia: Vol. 64, No. 1, pp. 218-221.
Design, Characterization, and Verification of a Closed Loop Wind Tunnel With Linear Cascade and Upstream Wake Generator

A new cascade wind tunnel has been designed and constructed at the LSU Wind Tunnel Laboratory. The objective was to develop a versatile test facility, suitable for a wide range of experimental studies and measurements on turbine airfoils, especially with regards to film-cooling incorporating realistic unsteady effects due to passing wakes. The test section consists of a four passage linear cascade composed of three full blades and two shaped wall blades. The 2D blade shape profile of the cascade is a high-lift, low-pressure turbine L1A profile provided by the US Air Force Research Laboratories (AFRL), with a 152-mm axial chord. The Reynolds number based on the axial chord length at the nominal freestream velocity of 50 ms−1 is 500,000. A conveyor-based system was designed and fabricated to simulate the passing wakes of the upstream vanes (or blades) on the test blades (or vanes) depending on which airfoil types are put on the stationary frame and the moving frame of the conveyor. The original implementation uses blade profiles on the stationary frame and thick plate wake generators on the translating frame. Results are presented from hot-wire surveys conducted to characterize and qualify the velocity and turbulence intensity distributions and associated spectral characteristics at the cascade test section inlet, in the wake of the vanes and in the wake of the test blade. A blade instrumented with 123 pressure taps was used to acquire static pressure profiles of the cascade central blade, which were compared to the ones from the nominal airfoil design as well as to those obtained from a CFD simulation of the cascade flow. Incoming velocity and temperature profiles were found to be uniform to within a few percentage points, and the pressure coefficient distribution was found to be in good agreement with design values. The passage periodicity of the conveyor-belt-driven, flat-plates was verified and their wake was characterized. These results verified that the cascade wind tunnel operates according to design, thus proving to be a reliable test-bed for film cooling studies with and without unsteady wake effects. The design also incorporates an in-house-designed, miniature periscopic and adjustable laser sheet generating system integrated within the “dummy” blades to enable Particle Image Velocimetry measurements in the intra-blade domain.© 2015 ASME
Planning the Forensic Interview

The overarching goal of forensic interviewing is to seek the truth. Appropriate preinterview planning aids interviewers in accomplishing this goal. In the current chapter, we discuss and make specific recommendations regarding how interviewers should prepare for the child forensic interview. We highlight the potential benefits and risks of conducting interviews with prior knowledge of child and case specific information versus conducting “blind” interviews. We advocate for a hypothesis-testing approach to forensic interviewing and discuss the potential road blocks that preinterview knowledge may have on this process. We ultimately recommend that some child and case specific information is necessary to conduct proper developmentally appropriate forensic interviews. The chapter concludes by providing specific recommendations in preparing for the child forensic interview.
Therapeutic donor insemination: the impact of insemination timing with the aid of a urinary luteinizing hormone immunoassay *

The records of 120 patients undergoing therapeutic donor insemination were reviewed to determine if the use of the enzyme immunoassay of urinary luteinizing hormone (LH) to plan inseminations decreased the number of cycles required to achieve conception. All inseminations were performed with fresh semen. Patients in group 1 (n=26) utilized urinary LH testing in addition to basal body temperature (BBT) and cervical mucus examinations to time their inseminations, while inseminations in group 2 (n=94) were timed with only BBT and cervical mucus examinations. The monthly fecundability of patients in group 1 was 0.13, whereas the monthly fecundability of patients in group 2 was 0.11. The mean number of inseminations was 1.4 and 1.6 per cycle for groups 1 and 2, respectively. There were no significant differences between groups 1 and 2 in regard to the number of cycles required to achieve conception. The use of a urinary LH immunoassay for insemination timing offers no benefit over conventional methods of timing (BBT, cervical mucus) when fresh donor semen is used.
Fabrication and Characterization of Micro-, Nano- and Hierarchically Structured Lotus-Like Surfaces

It has been demonstrated experimentally that roughness changes contact angle (CA) in accordance with the Wenzel model or the Cassie-Baxter model, depending upon whether the surface is hydrophilic or hydrophobic (Bhushan and Jung, Prog. Mater. Sci. 56:1–108, 2011). Yost et al. (Acta Metall. Mater. 45:299–305, 1995) found that roughness enhances wetting of a copper surface with Sn-Pb eutectic solder, which has a contact angle of 15–20° for a smooth surface. Shibuichi et al. (J. Phys. Chem., 100, 19512–19517, 1996) measured the contact angle of various liquids (mixtures of water and 1,4-dioxane) on alkylketene dimmer (AKD) substrate (contact angle not larger than 109° for a smooth surface).
Emotion recognition deficits associated with ventromedial prefrontal cortex lesions are improved by gaze manipulation

Facial emotion recognition is a critical aspect of human communication. Since abnormalities in facial emotion recognition are associated with social and affective impairment in a variety of psychiatric and neurological conditions, identifying the neural substrates and psychological processes underlying facial emotion recognition will help advance basic and translational research on social-affective function. Ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) has recently been implicated in deploying visual attention to the eyes of emotional faces, although there is mixed evidence regarding the importance of this brain region for recognition accuracy. In the present study of neurological patients with vmPFC damage, we used an emotion recognition task with morphed facial expressions of varying intensities to determine (1) whether vmPFC is essential for emotion recognition accuracy, and (2) whether instructed attention to the eyes of faces would be sufficient to improve any accuracy deficits. We found that vmPFC lesion patients are impaired, relative to neurologically healthy adults, at recognizing moderate intensity expressions of anger and that recognition accuracy can be improved by providing instructions of where to fixate. These results suggest that vmPFC may be important for the recognition of facial emotion through a role in guiding visual attention to emotionally salient regions of faces.
One-Way Communication Transfers in Loosely Coupled Systems

This chapter integrates the one-way transfer theory of Boulding (1973) and Mauss (1967) with the loosely coupled systems theory of Weick (1976) to advance the thesis that one-way transfers are plausible events under conditions of slack and ambiguity—the prime dimensions of loosely coupled systems. A field research project of in-depth interviews with retirees is reported in narrative form to verify past theory and to search for new theoretical formulations on giving in the organizational setting. The results of the research show that dramatic reports of organizational life are surfaced in the process of searching for one-way transfers. People taking a risk that produces a positive outcome for someone else is a powerful, if traditional, narrative. The surprising finding of the research shows negative gifts (corrections to alter or reshape behavior that are unappreciated at the time but are later valued) are a constant theme in the data.
Four Standard Approaches

While in the previous chapter we surveyed labels associated with public intellectuals, in this chapter we examine group affiliation using different approaches. Before attending to those approaches, we examine the history and conditions under which public intellectuals were considered to have disappeared or to have lost their luster by the late 20th century. This chapter ends with a discussion about academic freedom and freedom of speech as ways to appreciate the privileged potential for intellectual activities in the public domain, a privilege most often underutilized.
Information-theoretic analysis of stability and bias of learning algorithms

Machine learning algorithms can be viewed as stochastic transformations that map training data to hypotheses. Following Bousquet and Elisseeff, we say that such an algorithm is stable if its output does not depend too much on any individual training example. Since stability is closely connected to generalization capabilities of learning algorithms, it is of theoretical and practical interest to obtain sharp quantitative estimates on the generalization bias of machine learning algorithms in terms of their stability properties. We propose several information-theoretic measures of algorithmic stability and use them to upper-bound the generalization bias of learning algorithms. Our framework is complementary to the information-theoretic methodology developed recently by Russo and Zou.
Iceberg ploughmarks on the upper continental slope, South Carolina

Linear scour depressions observed along the upper slope offshore of South Carolina are among the largest and most extensive iceberg ploughmarks found at subtropical latitudes. These features record the drifting of large, tabular icebergs south from the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS), along the entire length of US Atlantic margin during the last deglaciation (Hill et al. 2008). Over 400 individual, kilometre-length-scale furrows are observed in swath bathymetry along the upper slope (170–380 m water depth) of the southern US Atlantic margin (Fig. 1). The furrows are present along the entire continental slope from Cape Hatteras ( c. 35° N) to the Florida Straits ( c. 24.5° N), but are most prominent and well documented along a shoaling platform offshore of South Carolina ( c. 32.5° N; Hill & Condron 2014). The furrows in this region are orientated predominantly WSW, sub-parallel to regional bathymetric contours (Fig. 1c). While some larger furrows are up to 400 m wide and 20 m deep, the scoured troughs are generally 10–100 m wide and <10 m deep (Fig. 1a, e). The furrows range from linear to arcuate with numerous cross-cutting tracks, particularly in deeper water where the ploughmarks are more densely spaced. Several of the more prominent linear furrows are traceable for more than 30 km along the margin. Many of …
Interaction of femtosecond laser pulses with plants: towards distinguishing weeds and crops using plasma temperature

AbstractThe ability to distinguish between crops and weeds using sensors from a distance will greatly benefit the farming community through improved and efficient scouting for weeds, reduced herbicide input costs and improved profitability. In the present study, we examined the utility of femtosecond laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) for plant species differentiation. Greenhouse-grown plants of dallisgrass, wheat, soybean and bell pepper were evaluated using LIBS under an ambient environment. LIBS experiments were performed on the leaf samples of different plant species using a femtosecond laser system with an inexpensive lightweight detector. Temperatures of laser-induced plasma in plants depend on many parameters and were determined for each of the study species by the constituent elements interacting with femtosecond laser pulses. Using elemental calcium transitions in plant tissue samples to measure plasma temperatures, we report consistent differences among the four study species, with aver...
Cost and survival analysis before and after implementation of Dana-Farber Clinical Pathways for Patients with Stage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

3Background: Oncologists face challenges associated with increasing cost and medical complexity. The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) has created a customized clinical pathways program that seek...
Conceptualizing structured experiences: seeking interdisciplinary integration.

AbstractWhile consensus exists around the importance of providing structured experiences, the industries interested in offering such experiences lack a common body of shared knowledge about how most effectively to do so. Potentially complementary research on structured experiences remains fragmented across multiple fields such as leisure, tourism, and marketing. The purpose of this paper, therefore, was first to review and then integrate this scattered literature into a structured experience framework in order to facilitate experience-related research with broader applicability for both commercial and public organizations interested in providing structured experiences.
Late Toxicity from Hypofractionated Stereotactic Body Radiation

Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) utilizes a three dimensional coordinate system to achieve more reproducible patient set-up [1, 2]. With SBRT, the margins for set-up uncertainty can be reduced, allowing greater volume sparing of the surrounding normal tissues. Since SBRT yields a reduced volume of normal tissue exposure, SBRT has been used to increase the fractional dose of radiation (hypofractionation) in an attempt to intensify the dose delivery without incrementally increasing the risk of normal tissue damage. This is becoming an important approach to treating discrete tumors, and has yielded impressive local control of treated tumors without significant toxicity. The benefit of SBRT is to achieve improved local control compared to conventional radiation, via improved target localization and more intense doles delivery, without the added toxicity. Arguably, SBRT can achieve similar or even improved outcome over surgical resection. One advantage that SBRT has over a limited resection (i.e. one that does not achieve wide margins) is that the penumbra dose around the target treats microscopic disease [3].
Challenges to Achieving High Availability at Scale (Invited Talk)

Facebook is a social network that connects more than 1.8 billion people. To serve these many users requires infrastructure which is composed of thousands of interdependent systems that span geographically distributed data centers. But what is the guiding principle for building and operating these systems? For Facebook’s infrastructure teams the answer is: Systems must always be available and never lose data. This talk will explore this quest. We will focus on three aspects. Availability and consistency. What form of consistency do Facebook’s systems guarantee? Strong consistency makes understanding easy but has latency penalties, weak consistency is fast but difficult to reason for developers and users. We describe our usage of eventual consistency and delve into how Facebook constructs its caching and replicated storage systems to minimize the duration for achieving consistency. We share empirical data that measures the effectiveness of our design. Availability and correctness. With network partitions, relaxed forms of consistency, and software bugs, how do we guarantee a consistent state? We present two systems to find and repair structural errors in Facebook’s social graph, one batch and one real-time. Availability and scale. Sharding is one of the standard answers to operate at scale. But how can we develop one system that can shard storage as well as compute? We will introduce a new Sharding-as-a-Service component. We will show and evaluate how its design and service policies control for latency, failure tolerance and operationally efficiency.
Oxidation-sulfidation behavior of iron-chromium-nickel alloys

Oxidation-sulfidation studies of Fe-Cr-8Ni alloys with 4, 12, and 22 wt. % Cr were conducted at 750 and 875°C in multicomponent gas mixtures that contained CO, CO2, CH4, H2, and H2S. The reaction processes resulted in parabolic kinetics. A chromium concentration in the range 0–12 wt. % in the alloy had a negligible effect on the parabolic rate constant; however, the rate constant for the alloy with 22 wt. % Cr was significantly lower. For a given sulfur partial pressure, the oxygen partial pressures required for the formation of a continuous oxide layer in an Fe-22Cr-8Ni alloy were ∼102 to 103 times those calculated for Cr-Cr2O3 equilibrium at temperatures of 875 and 750° C, respectively.