cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Reye's syndrome: relation of outcome to therapy.

Eleven patients with Reye's syndrome have been treated vigorously for hepatic failure. Therapy has included 10 per cent glucose by vein, cleansing enemas, and neomycin by mouth and by rectum. Exchange transfusion with fresh heparinized blood has been carried out in seven critically ill patients. The results suggest that such a treatment program improves the chance of survival in children with Reye's syndrome. Eight of the 11 children recovered completely. Only one death occurred among nine children who were diagnosed and treated prior to cessation of brainstem functions. Blood ammonia levels obtained during the first 24 hours after the onset of the encephalopathy have had some predictive value regarding the severity of the illness.
Caregivers of Older Clients With Severe Mental Illness: Perceptions of Burdens and Rewards

Approximately 1 million older persons have a severe mental illness (SMI) and this number is expected to double in the coming decades. While research studies have examined the experiences of family members of younger persons with SMI, very little is known about caregivers of older SMI clients. This study examined the characteristics, burdens, and rewards of 60 caregivers of older SMI clients using a modified version of family caregiver scales of Tessler, Fisher, & Gamache (1992). Hierarchical linear regression analyses indicated that increased client symptoms, higher levels of help provided, increased caregiver income, and knowledge about the care recipient's diagnosis were predicative of caregiver burden. Decreased number of client symptoms, care recipient being female, and greater experience of the presence of God predicted caregiver rewards. Implications of these findings are discussed.
A polynomial time algorithm for Zero-Clairvoyant scheduling

Abstract In the design of real-time systems, it is often the case that certain process parameters, such as the execution time of a job are not known precisely. The challenge in real-time system design then, is to develop techniques that efficiently meet the requirements of impreciseness, while simultaneously guaranteeing safety. In a traditional scheduling model, such as the one discussed in [M. Pinedo, Scheduling: Theory, Algorithms, and Systems, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, 1995. [23] ]; [P. Brucker, Scheduling Algorithms, second ed., Springer, 1998. [3] ], the tendency is to either overlook the effects of impreciseness or to simplify the issue of impreciseness by assuming worst-case values. This assumption is unrealistic and at the same time, may cause certain timing constraints to be violated at run-time. Further, depending on the nature of the constraints involved, it is not immediately apparent, what the worst-case value for a given parameter is. Whereas, in traditional scheduling, constraints among jobs are no more complex than those that can be represented by a precedence graph, in case of real-time scheduling, complicated constraints such as relative timing constraints are commonplace. Additionally, the purpose of scheduling is to achieve a schedule that optimizes some performance metric, whereas in real-time scheduling the goal is to ensure that the imposed constraints are met at run-time. In this paper, we study the problem of scheduling a set of ordered, non-preemptive jobs under non-constant execution times. Typical applications for variable execution time scheduling include process scheduling in Real-Time Operating Systems such as Maruti, compiler scheduling, database transaction scheduling and automated machine control. An important feature of application areas such as robotics is the interaction between execution times of various processes. We explicitly model this interaction through the representation of execution time vectors as points in convex sets. This modeling vastly extends previous models of execution times as either single points or range-bound intervals. Our algorithms do not assume any knowledge of the distributions of execution times, i.e. they are Zero-Clairvoyant . We present both sequential and parallel algorithms for determining the existence of a Zero-Clairvoyant schedule. To the best of our knowledge, our techniques are the first of their kind.
Multiple system atrophy presenting with language impairment

Multiple system atrophy (MSA) typically presents with parkinsonism, cerebellar ataxia, corticospinal dysfunction, and autonomic failure.1 We describe a case of pathologically confirmed MSA with semantic language impairment. A 55-year-old right-handed psychiatrist presented with language difficulties since age 50. He had shrinking vocabulary, spelling, and reading difficulties, loss of foreign language skills, and difficulty with comprehension of complex conversations. His speech was fluent, grammatically correct, with occasional anomic pauses and substitution of low-frequency words with general words (e.g., “thing” and “it”). He had hyperreflexia in the right arm and leg, right-sided Babinski, writer's cramp, and mildly impaired fine motor skills in the right hand. Neuropsychological evaluation revealed anomia (Boston Naming Test [BNT] score 35/60, <1%), intact verbal fluency (FAS 88%), surface dysgraphia (“curteus” instead of “courteous,” “medeval” instead of “medieval”), surface dyslexia (could not read “subtlety”), and moderate retrieval-type verbal memory deficit. His receptive vocabulary skills were below expectation given his advanced education (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, 48%). His performance …
Genome-wide admixture mapping for coronary artery calcification in African Americans: the NHLBI Family Heart Study.

Coronary artery calcification (CAC) is an important measure of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis and an independent predictor of coronary heart disease. To identify the genetic loci contributing to CAC, we conducted a genome-wide scan with 374 microsatellite markers by applying admixture mapping to 618 African American participants in the US National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Family Heart Study, in which 868 European American participants from family heart study and 157 Africans genotyped by the Marshfield Medical Genetics Center were used as the two reference founding populations for the African Americans, and a computer program based on a Markov Chain Monte Carlo algorithm, STRUCTURE 2.1, was used to estimate European and African ancestries among African Americans. A permutation test for random repeated sampling regression of CAC score on marker specific African ancestry found 22 markers statistically significant at the 0.05 level and four markers, D10S189 at 10p14, D20S159 at 20q13, D12S1294 at 12q14, and D6S1053 at 6q12, significant at the 0.01 level. D10S189 and D6S1053 were further confirmed at the 0.05 significance level by regression of CAC on allelic copy number, in which individual ancestry was used as a genetic background covariate to control possible stratification in African Americans. On the basis of the results from this and other independent studies, the location of D6S1053 at 80cM on chromosome 6 (6q12) seems to harbor a highly promising quantitative trait loci for atherosclerosis. Genet. Epidemiol. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Buried channel charge-coupled device on gas-source MBE grown InP

The first epitaxial-channel InP CCDs on semi-insulating substrates have been demonstrated using gas-source MBE grown layers. Channel isolation was achieved using a mesa etch, and the two level overlapping gate structure was insulated using indirect plasma enhanced CVD grown SiO2. Initial results indicate stale device operation with charge transfer efficiencies, at 1–3MHz operating frequencies, of ∼0.99.
Evidence for cytosolic glutathione transferase-mediated denitrosation of nitrosocimetidine and 1-methyl-2-nitro-1-nitrosoguanidine.

Nitrosocimetidine (NC) and 1-methyl-2-nitro-1-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) are closely related N-nitrosamidines. NC is the nitrosated derivative of cimetidine (Tagamet), an orally administered compound used extensively in the treatment of gastric ulcers. MNNG is a potent carcinogen capable of initiating tumors close to the site of administration and used experimentally to produce stomach cancer. It has become evident that the primary metabolic fate of both of these agents is denitrosation. We have discovered an activity in the cytosol fraction of hamster liver which is capable of denitrosating these nitrosamidines with an efficiency approaching 100%. The activity is heat sensitive and requires reduced glutathione as a cofactor. Inhibition of the denitrosating activity with compounds which inhibit in parallel the conjugation of glutathione with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB) provides evidence that the activity is glutathione transferase. One molecule of reduced glutathione is consumed in each denitrosation event. Nitrite is formed as denitrosation proceeds with a yield equivalent to 25-50% of the denitrosated product produced. Glutathione disulfide is a minor reaction product, representing 3% of the denitrosation product yield in the MNNG case and 12% in the NC case. Thus far in our survey of N-nitrosamines, N-nitrosamides and N-nitrosamidines, only the nitrosamidines appear to be vulnerable to the cytosolic denitrosating activity. In an attempt to evaluate the importance of the glutathione-dependent reaction in the intact hamster, we have depleted glutathione by pretreatment with the commonly used agents diethyl maleate (DEM) and L-buthionine-S,R-sulfoximine (L-BSO). Nitroso compound was administered i.v. and the circulating blood levels of intact and denitrosated compound 5 min after dosing quantified. NC- and MNNG-derived methylation of organ DNA was also monitored. Pretreatment had no effect on the cytosolic denitrosating or CDNB-conjugating activities. L-BSO pretreatment had no apparent effect on the denitrosative metabolism of NC or MNNG. With DEM pretreatment we obtained clear indications of a decreased rate of denitrosation and observed a 10-fold increase in MNNG-derived liver DNA methylation. The differential effects of these pretreatments are taken as an indication that DEM-sensitive processes other than those requiring glutathione dominate N-nitrosamidine denitrosation in the hamster.
1.2.5 Capstone Design in Education: Systems Engineering and the West Point Way

The United States Military Academy, the nation's first engineering institution, is celebrating its 200th birthday. The Department of Systems Engineering, established in 1989, offers a successful, accredited undergraduate degree in Systems Engineering. Although young by Academy standards, the program has become one of the most popular engineering disciplines at the Academy. Each year, approximately 40 cadets major in Systems Engineering and another 30 cadets choose it as a Field of Study (FOS). Cadets are introduced to the different tools and techniques of systems engineering in their course work. The program culminates with a year long group design experience that allows the cadets to put the various tools and techniques into practice on a real world problem. This paper will focus on how the year-long design study is integrated into our curriculum and has become what we believe is an outstanding experience for our cadets which enables them to enter the Army as confident leaders and engineers.
Influence of a small inhomogeneous broadening of Cr 3+ :LiSrAlF 6 emission line on the laser performance

Abstract Experimental investigations of Cr:LiSAF laser output spectra have shown that its emission line is inhomogeneously broadened. This is clearly evident from the fact that the measured laser line width is always much broader than what is possible due to ‘spatial hole burning’ in a Cr:LiSAF standing-wave resonator, if the Cr:LiSAF emission line is assumed to be homogeneously broadened. By assuming the possibility of a slight inhomogeneous broadening of the Cr:LiSAF emission line, corresponding to the 4 T 2 - 4 A 2 transition of Cr 3+ -ions, the observed laser line width can be explained. We have calculated the extent of laser output reduction due to inhomogeneous broadening, by means of a simple model. By comparing the measured laser output energy with the calculated laser output, the relative spectral inhomogeneity parameter β is estimated to be β =1.6–1.8.
Role of Tyrosine Kinase and Phosphotyrosine Phosphatase in Growth of the Intestinal Crypt Cell (IEC-6) Line

The roles of gastrin and sodium vanadate in proliferation were examined in cultured IEC-6 cells that are mitotically active and derived originally from jejunal crypts of the rat intestine. Incubation of the cells in the presence of gastrin at a concentration of 250 ng/ml or of sodium vanadate at a concentration of 0.2 mM leads to a 60% increase in cell growth in 24 hr. The stimulated growth in both cases was inhibited by genistein, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor. Incubation in the presence of gastrin and sodium vanadate together produced a small, albeit significant, potentiation of growth of the cells. Gastrin as well as sodium vanadate also promoted the phosphorylation on tyrosine of a similar group of proteins with molecular masses of 42, 45, 52, 60, 78, and 120 kDa. The phosphorylations were rapidly occurring as early as 5 min and lasted for only 15 min. Several proteins were detected in normal IEC-6 cells, including GTPase activating protein, raf1 kinase, phospholipase C gamma-1, and phosphoinositide 3-kinase. The results suggest that gastrin and sodium vanadate induce growth of IEC-6 cells by stimulation of tyrosine kinase and/or inhibition of tyrosine phosphatase. The gastrin and sodium vanadate effects also involve the phosphorylation of a number of proteins, the identities of which are not known at present but may include some of the kinases that are frequently associated with cell growth, such as mitogen-activated protein kinase, raf1 kinase, phosphoinositide 3-kinase, and others.
Medical education and family planning: Developing future leaders and improving global health

Well-trained medical professionals are key to improving global reproductive health and reducing rates of unsafe abortion, but medical training often fails to prepare practitioners to provide essential family planning services. The field of medical education is currently undergoing reformation to better meet the needs of a global population, and comprehensive, integrated family planning training will be an important part of those reforms. Family planning training is not only vital to address global reproductive healthcare demand, but integrates effectively with cornerstones of current medical education reform: competency-based education, leadership development, collaboration with practitioners of all levels, and global health context. Examples of successful integration of family planning education are outlined, and recommendations for integrating family planning into medical education detailed at the 2012 FIGO World Congress are discussed.
BOUNDS ON SCATTERING AMPLITUDES.

Abstract The method of Lagrange multipliers, generalized to include inequality constraints, is used to derive bounds on scattering amplitudes based on unitarity and polynomial behavior. Various physical quantities associated with two-body scattering processes are treated, such as the total cross section, elastic cross section, absorptive part and real part of the scattering amplitude. Using these new mathematical techniques, several familiar problems are trated and generalized. In addition, a number of new results are presented. Both asymptotically large energy bounds and finite energy bounds with no arbitrary constants will be given.
Comparison of Short-Term Leaching in Both Radiation-Damaged and Annealed Nuclear Waste Glasses

Curium-doped simulated nuclear waste glasses that received a cumulative ..cap alpha..-recoil dose of 9 x 10/sup 24/ ..cap alpha.. decays/m/sup 3/ were leach-tested under static conditions in deionized water at 90 C for 14 d. Test results indicate a difference of less than a factor of two between annealed and (saturation) radiation-damaged glass in the release of /sup 244/Cm, glass-forming constituents, and simulated waste products. 10 references, 1 table.
Automated Reduction of Calcium Release Site Models Via State Aggregation

Realistic simulations of local control of cardiac EC coupling require Ca release unit (CaRU) models generated using Markov chain models of L-type Ca channels and ryanodine receptors (RyRs) as “building blocks.” Because compositionally defined CaRU models result in a combinatorial explosion of release site states, most whole cell simulations to date have utilized ad hoc CaRU models in an effort to maintain computational efficiency (e.g., modeling RyR clusters as a “megachannel”). To overcome this state-space explosion, we have implemented, validated, and benchmarked several methods for automated reduction of mechanistic CaRU models that feature an automated process of state aggregation and evaluation of reduction error through comparison of the jump probability matrices of full and reduced models. When there is separation of time scales in the single channel model (e.g., fast activation and slow inactivation), we perform numerical fast/slow reduction by categorizing rate constants in the single channel model as either fast or slow, aggregating states in the expanded CaRU model that are connected by fast transitions, and calculating transition rates between lumped states using the conditional probability distribution of states within each group. For large problems where the conditional distributions can not be directly calculated from the full model, we employ iterative aggregation/disaggregation to calculate conditional distributions in a memory-efficient fashion. For problems without time scale separation, how states should be aggregated to yield good reductions can not be determined a priori. Consequently, we implemented a genetic algorithm that evolves potential schemes for state aggregation, ultimately yielding simplified CaRU models with low reduction error. We demonstrate that such automated CaRU reduction procedures can be used to accelerate multiscale models of local control of CICR in cardiac myocytes.
A Bayesian methodology to explore the effects of memory loss in currency markets

Abstract As time goes by, people tend to establish new norms based on more recent events and information. Old norms and standards are eclipsed by new developments. The same type of behavior appears to operate in financial markets. New and unexpected information can jolt a market, but over time market participants adjust to new patterns of information, of data flow, of market volatility, and even of structural change. On another level, one can ask the question of how much weight to give new information relative to old information. Market participants do this naturally, as they weigh new information, such as just-released economic data, compare it to their previously held expectations and then revise their expectations of future data releases and potential market reactions. When the question is viewed in this perspective, it seems quite natural to assume that new pieces of information, such as economic data releases, should be given more weight in assessing expectations of future market behavior than releases of the same type of data several months or even several years previously. That is, the information value of certain specific types of information, such as specific economic data releases, probably decays as time passes. This study proposes the use of a dynamic Bayesian technology to explore the effects of time decay in the value placed on specific bits of information that are received at regular intervals through time. The methodology that is being proposed is the main focus of this study and, to clarify this methodology, it is applied to the currency markets asking questions about the time decay pattern of certain economic data. The results reported in this example are purely for illustrative purposes, since they are specific to the data studied, the model specification of currency market behavior, and a wide variety of other assumptions embedded in this specific approach to currency analysis. Nevertheless, the results are interesting, if only because they demonstrate both the basic idea that new information is more valuable than old information and provide a useful and practical method of analyzing the issue of the time decay factor in how markets process information.
Lymphocyte subpopulations in the skin of patients with chronic urticaria

In order to characterize the nature of the mononuclear cells in the perivascular infiltrates in the skin of 11 patients with CU, skin biopsy specimens were analyzed in situ by an avidin-biotin immunoperoxidase technique. Serial frozen sections were stained for total T cells, helper-inducer T cells, suppressor-cytotoxic T cells, B cells, monocytes/macrophages, and HLA-DR antigen. The infiltrates were found to consist mainly of T cells, whereas B cells and macrophages were rarely seen. Most of the T cells possessed the T4+ helper phenotypes, whereas smaller numbers of infiltrating cells were defined as suppressor-cytotoxic cells. Most of the helper-inducer T cells coexpressed the Ia (HLA-DR) antigen. Several potential pathogenic mechanisms could be implicated in CU based on these observations.
Primary Productivity of Red Alder Ecosystems

Fifty red alder communities from 1 to 65 years old were studied in western Oregon. Highly significant correlations were found between an index of volume and dry weights of whole trees, individual stems, crowns, tops, and roots. Correlations of dry weight with other independent variables (age, dbh, height) were variable and strongly curvilinear. Ratios of crown to stem in dominant trees were higher than those of suppressed or intermediate trees. Biomass of aboveground parts increased rapidly during the first 20 years and of maximum growth (between 10 and 15 years) averaged 26 mt/ha per year. Net assimilation rates ranged from 2.58 to 4.33 mt/mt per year. To produced best yields, red alder stands should be harvested for 20 years of age. See full-text article at JSTOR
Discovery of a New Nearby Star

We report the discovery of a nearby star with a very large proper motion of 5.06 +/- 0.03 arcsec/yr. The star is called SO025300.5+165258 and referred to herein as HPMS (high proper motion star). The discovery came as a result of a search of the SkyMorph database, a sensitive and persistent survey that is well suited for finding stars with high proper motions. There are currently only 7 known stars with proper motions greater than 5 arcsec/yr. We have determined a preliminary value for the parallax of pi = 0.43 +/- 0.13 arcsec. If this value holds our new star ranks behind only the Alpha Centauri system (including Proxima Centauri) and Barnard's star in the list of our nearest stellar neighbours. The spectrum and measured tangential velocity indicate that HPMS is a main-sequence star with spectral type M6.5. However, if our distance measurement is correct, the HPMS is underluminous by 1.2 +/- 0.7 mag.
Radiotherapy in the Management of Clinically Localized Prostate Cancer: Evolving Standards, Consensus, Controversies and New Directions

Major advances have been made in the definitive use of various forms of radiotherapy (RT) in the management of clinically localized prostate cancer (PCa). Despite tremendous gains, the radiation oncology community continues to struggle with several key questions. In general, the areas of controversy pertain to how to improve the therapeutic ratio of RT. Specifically, key issues include dose escalation; the relative benefit of alternative forms of RT (ie, brachytherapy and protons); target localization; the use, timing, and duration of androgen deprivation; and the need for pelvic nodal irradiation. Multiple efforts have been made to address each of these issues; however, there is no consensus on how to resolve them. This review is an evidence-based critique of the available treatment approaches considered for the optimal use of radiotherapy as definitive management of clinically localized PCa.
Linking runoff response to burn severity after a wildfire

Extreme floods often follow wildfire in mountainous watersheds. However, a quantitative relation between the runoff response and burn severity at the watershed scale has not been established. Runoff response was measured as the runoff coefficient C, which is equal to the peak discharge per unit drainage area divided by the average maximum 30 min rainfall intensity during each rain storm. The magnitude of the burn severity was expressed as the change in the normalized burn ratio. A new burn severity variable, hydraulic functional connectivity Φ was developed and incorporates both the magnitude of the burn severity and the spatial sequence of the burn severity along hillslope flow paths. The runoff response and the burn severity were measured in seven subwatersheds (0·24 to 0·85 km2) in the upper part of Rendija Canyon burned by the 2000 Cerro Grande Fire near Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA. A rainfall–discharge relation was determined for four of the subwatersheds with nearly the same burn severity. The peak discharge per unit drainage area was a linear function of the maximum 30 min rainfall intensity I30. This function predicted a rainfall intensity threshold of 8·5 mm h−1 below which no runoff was generated. The runoff coefficient was a linear function of the mean hydraulic functional connectivity of the subwatersheds. Moreover, the variability of the mean hydraulic functional connectivity was related to the variability of the mean runoff coefficient, and this relation provides physical insight into why the runoff response from the same subwatershed can vary for different rainstorms with the same rainfall intensity. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Speech enhancement based on perceptually motivated bayesian estimators of the magnitude spectrum

The traditional minimum mean-square error (MMSE) estimator of the short-time spectral amplitude is based on the minimization of the Bayesian squared-error cost function. The squared-error cost function, however, is not subjectively meaningful in that it does not necessarily produce estimators that emphasize spectral peak (formants) information or estimators which take into account auditory masking effects. To overcome the shortcomings of the MMSE estimator, we propose in this paper Bayesian estimators of the short-time spectral magnitude of speech based on perceptually motivated cost functions. In particular, we use variants of speech distortion measures, such as the Itakura-Saito and weighted likelihood-ratio distortion measures, which have been used successfully in speech recognition. Three classes of Bayesian estimators of the speech magnitude spectrum are derived. The first class of estimators emphasizes spectral peak information, the second class uses a weighted-Euclidean cost function that implicitly takes into account auditory masking effects, and the third class of estimators is designed to penalize spectral attenuation. Of the three classes of Bayesian estimators, the estimators that implicitly take into account auditory masking effect performed the best in terms of having less residual noise and better speech quality.
A practical application of L1 deconvolution for medical ultrasound

The L1 norm (absolute error minimization) deconvolution was applied to medical ultrasound. Its implementation requires a large amount of memory and computing time. A quadrature form of L1 norm deconvolution was derived for narrowband signals, which not only greatly reduced the size of the problem but also lessened the effects of undersampling on medium reflectivities. Preliminary tests on simulated and experimental data showed that L1 norm method performs very well even in the presence of a moderate noise level for both RF and quadrature signals. The time and memory saving in the latter algorithm is remarkable. >
Guild Pricing in the Service Trades

The medieval guilds, 311. — Modern guild regulations in the service trades — the barbers: importance of legislative aid, 312; non-price regulations, 314; price-fixing laws, 316; enforcement of regulations, 323. — Economic aspects of the pricing of barber services: characteristics of the "product" and the market, 325; pricing without restriction on individual action, 328; pricing with concert of action but without benefit of legislation, 330; pricing with minimum price legislation but without extralegal concert of action, 331; pricing with minimum price legislation undergirding extralegal concert of action, 333. — Guild pricing in other trades, 335.
Approximation Methods for Estimating the Eye-Safe Viewing Distances, with or without Atmospheric Transmission Factors Considered, for Aided and Unaided Viewing Conditions

Several first order approximation methods are presented with derivation. These formulae are convenient approximations, which can be used in the determination of eye-safe viewing distances for optical viewing aides (of various input diameters). First order approximations and methods are also presented for the determination of these eye-safe viewing distances while considering atmospheric transmission factors and conditions. These methods are applicable for both aided as well as unaided viewing conditions. These approximation methods can be used for both pulsed and CW lasers.
Ductal Carcinoma In situ and the Emergence of Diversity during Breast Cancer Evolution

Purpose: Human invasive breast cancers (IBC) show enormous histologic and biological diversity. This study comprehensively evaluated diversity in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), the immediate precursors of IBCs. Experimental Design: The extent of diversity for conventional histologic grade and standard prognostic biomarkers assessed by immunohistochemistry was evaluated in a series of pure DCIS ( n = 200) compared with a contemporaneous series of IBCs ( n = 200). A subset of the DCIS ( n = 25) was evaluated by DNA microarrays for the presence of luminal, basal, and erbB2 intrinsic subtypes. The extent of diversity within individual cases of DCIS ( n = 120) was determined by assessing multiple regions independently for histologic (nuclear) grade and several biomarkers by immunohistochemistry, which approximate microarrays in determining intrinsic subtypes. Results: DCIS showed a broad distribution of conventional histologic grades and standard biomarkers ranging from well to poorly differentiated, nearly identical to IBCs. Microarrays showed the same intrinsic subtypes in DCIS as in IBCs. However, higher resolution analysis showed that multiple histologic grades, biomarker phenotypes, and intrinsic subtypes often coexist within the same DCIS, and these diverse regions probably compete for dominance. Diversity within cases of DCIS was highly correlated with mutated p53 ( P = 0.0007). Conclusions: These results support the hypothesis that poorly differentiated DCIS gradually evolve from well-differentiated DCIS by randomly acquiring genetic defects resulting in increasingly abnormal cellular features. This diversity is amplified by defects resulting in genetic instability (e.g., p53 mutation), and the alterations are propagated to IBC in a manner independent of progression to invasion.
The mathematics teacher and curriculum change

Una de las lecciones mas destacadas extraidas de la era de la reforma de la matematica moderna hacia referencia al papel esencial que el profesor de matematicas desempenaba en el cambio del curriculo. Los recientes esfuerzos por cambiar el curriculo de las matematicas escolares estan redescubriendo esta vieja leccion: El profesor es la clave para el cambio. Consecuentemente, cuando los profesores argumentan en contra de las propuestas de cambio curricular, es importante que analicen y discutan los cambios propuestos. Las experiencias recientes en Estados Unidos, donde no existe la misma organizacion curricular centralizada de Portugal pero que experimenta parte de las mismas propuestas y argumentos contra ellas, puede ser util para comprender el papel que los profesores pueden jugar en el proceso social de creacion de un curriculo.
Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer in Biology: Results from Synergistic Studies in Natural and Model Systems

Proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) underpins energy conversion in biology. PCET may occur with the unidirectional or bidirectional transfer of a proton and electron and may proceed synchronously or asynchronously. To illustrate the role of PCET in biology, this review presents complementary biological and model systems that explore PCET in electron transfer (ET) through hydrogen bonds [azurin as compared to donor-acceptor (D-A) hydrogen-bonded networks], the activation of C–H bonds [alcohol dehydrogenase and soybean lipoxygenase (SLO) as compared to Fe(III) metal complexes], and the generation and transport of amino acid radicals [photosystem II (PSII) and ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) as compared to tyrosine-modified photoactive Re(I) and Ru(II) complexes]. In providing these comparisons, the fundamental principles of PCET in biology are illustrated in a tangible way.
Bladder instability and stress incontinence

The relationship between bladder instability and stress incontinence is complex, but the two conditions frequently coexist; when they do, the unstable bladder appears to be etiologically related to the stress incontinence, since surgical repair of the latter resolves symptomatic bladder instability in about 80% of such patients.
Infinite‐dilution oscillatory flow birefringence properties of polystyrene and poly(α‐methylstyrene) solutions

Oscillatory flow birefringence (OFB) measurements have been carried out for an extensive series of solutions containing narrow-distribution, atactic, linear polystyrenes PS (10, 000 or 390, 000 Mw) or poly(α-methylstyrene) PMS (400,000 Mw) in a high-viscosity solvent, Aroclor 1248. The concentration ranges examined are such that the concentration dependence is obtained in both the “dilute” and “semidilute” regimes; the data are sufficiently precise to permit extrapolation to obtain for the first time the infinite-dilution properties. Various plotting formats are explored to determine an appropriate extrapolation procedure. The infinite-dilution OFB properties are compared with the bead-spring model (Zimm) theory which predicts quantitatively the frequency dependence of the observed properties for the PS and PMS solutions studied except for the high-frequency regime. The sensitivity and precision of the OFB experiment is such that the extrapolation curves–and the resulting infinite-dilution properties–show substantially less scatter than comparable visco-elasticity (VE) data. There is no evidence of a change in the character of the concentration dependence for the range of concentrations studied.
Novel cyano‐containing copolymers of vinyl esters for piezoelectric materials

Alternating copolymers of acrylonitrile with vinyl esters are obtained by increasing the electrophilic character of the nitrile monomers by complexation with ZnCl 2 . Copolymers of methyl and ethyl α-cyanoacrylates with vinyl esters are prepared using radical initiators in the presence of 7% acetic acid as inhibitor for anionic polymerization. The copolymers of methyl α-cyanoacrylate with the vinyl esters have T g 's above 140°C. The copolymers of methyl vinylidene cyanide with para-substituted styrenes and vinyl acetate were also prepared. The pyroelectric constants for copolymers of VA with methyl β,β-dicynoacrylate, methyl α-cyanoacrylate or MVCN were in the same range as the vinylidene cyanid/vinyl acetate copolymer
Testosterone stimulates the expression of a social color signal in Yarrow's Spiny Lizard, Sceloporus jarrovii

The sex steroid testosterone has been shown to regulate the development of male-specific coloration in many organisms that exhibit sexual dichromatism, but the role of testosterone is less certain for species in which both sexes express bright coloration. Lizards in the genus Sceloporus possess bright blue patches on their throats and abdomens. These patches, which are used in social signaling, are often regulated by testosterone and are consequently expressed only in males of most species. However, Yarrow's Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus jarrovii, Cope 1875) exhibits a derived condition in which both sexes express bright blue ventral patches despite dramatic sexual differences in circulating testosterone levels throughout postnatal ontogeny. In this study, we used surgical castration and hormone replacement in juvenile males to test the hypothesis that testosterone stimulates the expression of blue ventral coloration in S. jarrovii. In two separate experiments conducted in captivity and the natural field environment, we found that surgical castration decreased the hue and saturation while increasing the brightness of blue throat and abdominal patches. Castration also decreased the amount of black pigment bordering the blue throat patch. Treatment of castrated males with exogenous testosterone restored all aspects of ventral coloration to values similar to those of intact control males. Early organizational effects of testosterone during prenatal development may lead to the expression of blue coloration in both sexes, but the results of our present experiments indicate that subsequent effects of testosterone during sexual maturation further enhance the coloration of males.
Patterned adhesive enables construction of nonplanar three-dimensional paper microfluidic circuits

This article discusses the fabrication of planar and nonplanar 3D paper microfluidic circuits through the use of patterned spray adhesive application and origami techniques. The individual paper layers are held together via semi-permanent adhesive bonds without the need for external clamps. Semi-permanent bonds accommodate the repeated folding and unfolding required by complex origami device structures and allow the device to be unfolded post-use to view internally displayed results. Combinations of adhesive patterns and fluid channel widths were identified that did not prevent the fluid from traveling between layers and through the entire circuit. Further, this method was extended to nonplanar 3D paper microfluidic circuits, demonstrated via multi-fluid wicking within a modified origami peacock. Such nonplanar 3D paper microfluidic circuits are expected to offer an entirely new platform for exploring new designs and functions of paper analytical devices.
SmartSeer: Using a DHT to Process Continuous Queries Over Peer-to-Peer Networks

As the academic world moves away from physical journals and proceedings towards online document repositories, the ability to efficiently locate work of interest among the torrent of newly-generated papers will become increasingly important. To aid in this endeavor, we designed SmartSeer, a system that allows users to register personalized continuous queries over the CiteSeer database of technical documents. Users are then alerted whenever papers that match their queries are put online. SmartSeer has two main design requirements. First, to allow effective information retrieval, it should support rich continuous queries (as opposed to simple keyword searches). Second, to make effective use of donated infrastructure, it should be capable of running on a loosely maintained group of unreliable machines spread across multiple organizations (as opposed to assuming a reliable and tightly coupled distributed system). Existing work on distributed continuous query systems fails at least one of these requirements. Our design for SmartSeer is based on Distributed Hash Tables (DHTs), and thereby leverages previous work on DHT-based query systems. A prototype of SmartSeer has been implemented and evaluated on Planetlab. Though we evaluate our design only for the SmartSeer application, we believe it also provides useful insights into other distributed and rich continuous query systems (web alerts, news alerts etc).
On the existence of multiple positive solutions to some superlinear systems

We use the method of upper and lower solutions combined with degree-theoretic techniques to prove the existence of multiple positive solutions to some superlinear elliptic systems of the form on a smooth, bounded domain Ω⊂ℝ n with Dirichlet boundary conditions, under suitable conditions on g 1 and g 2 . Our techniques apply generally to subcritical, superlinear problems with a certain concave–convex shape to their nonlinearity.
Originalism, Stare Decisis, and Constitutional Authority

This chapter examines the relationship among three normative questions about American constitutional law: How should the Constitution be interpreted? When may (or should) the Supreme Court overrule its own constitutional precedents? And why is the Constitution binding at all? The author begins by deconstructing the “special difficulty” with stare decisis that proponents of originalist interpretation often perceive. That difficulty, the author contends, can be explained only by reference to some underlying normative theory of constitutional authority—of why the Constitution binds us in the first place. The author then assesses four extant accounts of constitutional authority to determine whether any of them implies both originalism and a distrust of stare decisis. While three such accounts (Values Imposition, Consent, and Moral Guidance) may support originalism and reject stare decisis, none of these accounts is plausible. A fourth account (Dispute Resolution) is more plausible but implies neither strong originalism nor a rejection of stare decisis. Neither originalism nor distrust of precedent, therefore, appears to be supported by a plausible account of constitutional authority.
REMOTE SENSING OBSERVATIONS OF LANDSLIDES AND GROUND DEFORMATION FROM THE 2004 NIIGATA KEN CHUETSU EARTHQUAKE

In recent years, major developments in remote sensing have made it possible to use these technologies to document the effects of earthquakes. Specifically, high-resolution satellite imagery and three-dimensional laser scanning (LIDAR) can provide important observations of earthquake damage that supplement traditional observations from field reconnaissance. The 2004 Niigata Ken Chuetsu earthquake provided an opportunity to use remote sensing to document the distribution of landslides in the epicentral region through the use of high-resolution satellite imagery and to document the detailed three-dimensional geometries of several failures using LIDAR. The satellite imagery was acquired the day after the earthquake, but at very large acquisition angles that resulted in image distortion. Nonetheless, the satellite imagery accurately identified the landslide distribution in the epicentral region, although the total area of landslides was underestimated by about 25% as compared with traditional aerial reconnaissance because of the large acquisition angle for the satellite imagery. Terrestrial LIDAR was used to collect three-dimensional data at several failure sites, including two large rock slides and a railroad tunnel portal affected by ground deformation. The LIDAR data allowed for precise measurement of failure deformations and geometries, and provided digital terrain models that could be archived and used in future analyses. In the future, satellite imagery and LIDAR, as well as other remote sensing technologies, will play an increasing role in documenting and understanding the effects of earthquakes.
Rheological Properties Research on Modified Asphalt of the Stress Absorbing Layer

The modified asphalt binder of stress absorbing layer need higher requirement in terms of anti-cracking and impermeability functions.But for a long time,the studies on the asphalt binder of stress absorbing layer are few at home and aboard,especially on the rheological properties.While the rheological performance of modified asphalt at different level temperature is closed to its real road performance.Based on the SHRP specification test protocols,choosing five kinds asphalt which included two stress absorbing layer modified asphalt,two regular types of the modified asphalt and one base asphalt to study their rheological performances in the high,medium and low temperature.The results proved that the asphalt of stress absorbing layer had the better anti-aged performance,the better anti-cracking performance at low temperature and the better anti-fatigue performance at intermediate temperature.
Effects of additional anterior body mass on gait

Gradual increases in mass such as during pregnancy are associated with changes in gait at natural velocities. The purpose of this study was to examine how added mass at natural and imposed slow walking velocities would affect gait parameters.
Preliminary study of a novel cognitive assessment device for the evaluation of HIV-associated neurocognitive impairment.

Given the high prevalence of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND), we examined the performance of a novel computerized cognitive assessment device (NCAD) for the evaluation of neurocognitive impairment in the setting of HIV. In addition to a standard 8-test neuropsychological battery, each participant underwent testing with the NCAD, which requires approximately 20 min and has been shown to accurately measure neurocognition in elderly individuals. The NCAD yields seven subtest scores in addition to an overall predictive score that is calculated based on subtest results. Thirty-nine HIV-infected participants were included in this study; the majority of which (71.8 %) had undetectable plasma HIV RNA levels and a history of significant immunocompromise (median nadir CD4+ count 34 cells/μl). The mean composite neuropsychological score (NPT-8) was 46.07, and mean global deficit score (GDS) was 0.59. NCAD total subtest accuracy correlated significantly with NPT-8 (Pearson correlation r = 0.59, p < 0.0001) as well as GDS (Spearman’s rho = −0.36, p = 0.02). NCAD predictive score also correlated significantly with NPT-8 (Spearman’s rho = −0.5601, p = 0.0016) and GDS (Spearman’s rho = 0.45, p = 0.0144). When using the most recent nosology of HAND criteria for neurocognitive impairment, the area under the curve (AUC) for NCAD total subtest accuracy was 0.7562 (p = 0.012), while the AUC for the HIV dementia scale was 0.508 (p = 0.930). While not as comprehensive as a full neuropsychological battery, the NCAD shows promise as a rapid screening tool for HIV-infected individuals, and additional research of this device is indicated.
Abstract 4673: A novel way to sensitize pancreatic cancer cells for gemcitabine treatment

Proceedings: AACR 107th Annual Meeting 2016; April 16-20, 2016; New Orleans, LA Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most lethal human malignancies, with a dismal median survival of 6 months. While combining albumin-bound paclitaxel with gemcitabine has shown clear therapeutic advantage, numerous attempts using novel targeted therapies did not yield clinical benefits. Gemcitabine is still the first-line treatment for patients with PDAC. We hypothesize that strategies to increase gemcitabine sensitivity may be effective in PDAC treatment. In this study, we report that cancer stem cell regulator Sox2 is highly induced in acquired gemcitabine resistant pancreatic cell lines, and down-regulation of Sox2 sensitizes cancer cells to gemcitabine treatment both in the cultured cells and in mouse models. Down-regulation of Gli1/2 was associated with reduced Sox2 expression, decreased expression of cancer stem cell markers. We found Gli1/2 proteins in association with a Sox2 promoter sequence with a putative Gli binding site, suggesting a direct regulation of Sox2 by Gli1/2. We further showed that down-regulation of Gli1 or Gli2 was as effective as Sox2 knockdown in sensitizing cancer cells to gemcitabine treatment. The relevance of Gli1/2-Sox2 signaling axis to PDAC was suggested by association of high Sox2 expression with poor survival in stage II PDAC patients. Taken together, our data indicate an important role of non-canonical hedgehog signaling in regulation of gemcitabine sensitivity, and down-regulation of Gli1/2 transcription factors, together with gemcitabine, may be effective in pancreatic cancer treatment. Citation Format: Jingwu Xie, Dongsheng Gu, Xiaoli Zhang, Yanfei Jia, Gabi Chiorean. A novel way to sensitize pancreatic cancer cells for gemcitabine treatment. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 4673.