cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Safety and efficacy of second‐generation drug‐eluting stents compared with bare‐metal stents: An updated meta‐analysis and regression of 9 randomized clinical trials

The efficacy of second-generation drug-eluting stents (DES; eg, everolimus and zotarolimus) compared with bare-metal stents (BMS) in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention was challenged recently by new evidence from large clinical trials. Thus, we aimed to conduct an updated systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) evaluating the efficacy and safety of second-generation DES compared with BMS. Electronic databases were systematically searched for all RCTs comparing second-generation DES with BMS and reporting clinical outcomes. The primary efficacy outcome was major adverse cardiac events (MACE); the primary safety outcome was definite stent thrombosis. The DerSimonian and Laird method was used for estimation of summary risk ratios (RR). A total of 9 trials involving 17 682 patients were included in the final analysis. Compared with BMS, second-generation DES were associated with decreased incidence of MACE (RR: 0.78, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.69-0.88), driven by the decreased incidence of myocardial infarction (MI) (RR: 0.67, 95% CI: 0.48-0.95), target-lesion revascularization (RR: 0.47, 95% CI: 0.42-0.53), definite stent thrombosis (RR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.41-0.78), and definite/probable stent thrombosis (RR: 0.54, 95% CI: 0.38-0.80). The incidence of all-cause mortality was similar between groups (RR: 0.94, 95% CI: 0.79-1.10). Meta-regression showed lower incidences of MI with DES implantation in elderly and diabetic patients (P = 0.026 and P < 0.0001, respectively). Compared with BMS, second-generation DES appear to be associated with a lower incidence of MACE, mainly driven by lower rates of target-lesion revascularization, MI, and stent thrombosis. However, all-cause mortality appears similar between groups.
Does Post-Void Residual Volume Predict Worsening Urological Symptoms in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis?

Purpose: Our goal was to examine how post-void residual urine volume relates to urinary symptoms in patients with multiple sclerosis.Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of patients with multiple sclerosis who had lower urinary tract symptoms and presented to a tertiary neurourology clinic. Patients for whom post-void residual volume was recorded at the initial urological assessment were included in our analysis. Results of the AUA (American Urological Association) SI (Symptom Index) and the M-ISI (Michigan Incontinence Symptom Index) completed at this visit were analyzed to assess the severity of lower urinary tract symptoms and incontinence. A chart review was performed to obtain information on demographics and documented urinary tract infections.Results: Between 2014 and 2017, 110 patients diagnosed with multiple sclerosis underwent post-void residual volume measurement at our clinic. Average post-void residual volume was 123.4 cc (range 0 to 650 cc). The mean AUA symptom scor...
Whole-genome sequencing reveals highly specific gene targeting by in vitro assembled Cas9-ribonucleoprotein complexes in Aspergillus fumigatus

CRISPR/Cas9-based genome editing is quickly becoming a powerful tool within the field of fungal genetics. Adaptation of CRISPR/Cas9 systems are allowing for rapid and highly efficient gene targeting within fungi. We recently reported the adaptation of a simple CRISPR/Cas9 system for gene deletion that is effective across multiple genetic backgrounds of Aspergillus fumigatus. This system employs in vitro assembly of Cas9 ribonucleoproteins (RNPs) coupled with micro-homology repair templates for gene deletion. Although highly efficient at gene targeting in wild type genetic backgrounds of A. fumigatus, the potential for our system to produce unwanted off-target mutations has not been addressed. Next-generation Illumina sequencing was used to identify genome mutations among transformants isolated from standard (no Cas9) and Cas9-mediated integration of a hygromycin deletion cassette. Two different concentrations of Cas9 were utilized to examine the association of Cas9 concentration with total numbers and types of genomic mutations. For each of the three test groups (zero, low, and high Cas9), three transformants were sequenced and compared to the parent strain. Bioinformatics analyses revealed the average number of total mutations to be similar among all three test groups. A. fumigatus transformation using standard, non-Cas9-mediated methods resulted in an average of 373 ± 28 mutations. In comparison, transformation with in vitro assembled Cas9-RNPs using either high (1 µg/µl) or low (0.5 µg/µl) levels of Cas9 resulted in an average of 326 ± 19 and 395 ± 69 mutations, respectively. In all cases, the vast majority of mutations identified were intergenic. No correlation between the amount of Cas9 utilized for transformation and the overall number of mutations was found. Finally, the specific type of mutation introduced during the transformation process was not Cas9-dependent, as both single-nucleotide polymorphisms and insertion/deletion events were not significantly different between the experimental groups. CRISPR/Cas9-based genome editing in A. fumigatus using in vitro assembled RNPs coupled with microhomology templates is a reliable method of gene targeting. This system is highly efficient and is not associated with increased off-target mutations caused by introduction of the Cas9 nuclease.
Accelerating Protein Classification Using Suffix Trees

Position-specific scoring matrices have been used extensively to recognize highly conserved protein regions. We present a method for accelerating these searches using a suffix tree data structure computed from the sequences to be searched. Building on earlier work that allows evaluation of a scoring matrix to be stopped early, the suffix tree-based method excludes many protein segments from consideration at once by pruning entire subtrees. Although suffix trees are usually expensive in space, the fact that scoring matrix evaluation requires an in-order traversal allows nodes to be stored more compactly without loss of speed, and our implementation requires only 17 bytes of primary memory per input symbol. Searches are accelerated by up to a factor of ten.
Approaches for testing hypotheses for the hypometric scaling of aerobic metabolic rate in animals

Hypometric scaling of aerobic metabolism [larger organisms have lower mass-specific metabolic rates (MR/g)] is nearly universal for interspecific comparisons among animals, yet we lack an agreed up...
QSYM: a practical concolic execution engine tailored for hybrid fuzzing

Recently, hybrid fuzzing has been proposed to address the limitations of fuzzing and concolic execution by combining both approaches. The hybrid approach has shown its effectiveness in various synthetic benchmarks such as DARPA Cyber Grand Challenge (CGC) binaries, but it still suffers from scaling to find bugs in complex, realworld software. We observed that the performance bottleneck of the existing concolic executor is the main limiting factor for its adoption beyond a small-scale study. To overcome this problem, we design a fast concolic execution engine, called QSYM, to support hybrid fuzzing. The key idea is to tightly integrate the symbolic emulation with the native execution using dynamic binary translation, making it possible to implement more fine-grained, so faster, instruction-level symbolic emulation. Additionally, QSYM loosens the strict soundness requirements of conventional concolic executors for better performance, yet takes advantage of a faster fuzzer for validation, providing unprecedented opportunities for performance optimizations, e.g., optimistically solving constraints and pruning uninteresting basic blocks. Our evaluation shows that QSYM does not just outperform state-of-the-art fuzzers (i.e., found 14× more bugs than VUzzer in the LAVA-M dataset, and outperformed Driller in 104 binaries out of 126), but also found 13 previously unknown security bugs in eight real-world programs like Dropbox Lepton, ffmpeg, and OpenJPEG, which have already been intensively tested by the state-of-the-art fuzzers, AFL and OSS-Fuzz.
Quality specifications and their daily application to evaluate the accuracy of reference measurements for serum concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 and 25-hydroxyvitamin D2.

Abstract Background Reference measurement procedures (RMP) have rigorous accuracy specifications. For total 25-hydroxyvitamin D, 25(OH)D, bias ≤1.7% and CV ≤5% are recommended. These quality specifications are impractical for minor analytes, such as 25(OH)D2. Furthermore, documentation on RMP quality performance specifications for the individual 25(OH)D metabolites and their daily application are missing. Methods To assess accuracy, we used zeta-scores. Daily, 5–10 specimens (duplicate) and 3 reference materials (singleton or duplicate) were measured for 25(OH)D3 and 25(OH)D2 using JCTLM-accepted LC-MS/MS RMPs. Protocols were repeated on 3–4 occasions to generate campaign results. We used separate zeta-score acceptability criteria for daily (≤|2|) and campaign (≤|1|) evaluations. Allowable imprecision was determined experimentally. Results Across 7 campaigns, unacceptable daily zeta-scores required repeating 2 runs for 25(OH)D3 and 5 runs for 25(OH)D2. Hence, the zeta-scores of acceptable reference material results indicated high accuracy. The allowable imprecision for the RMPs was ≤5% (daily) and ≤ 3% (campaign) for 25(OH)D3 and ≤ 7% (daily) and ≤ 4% (campaign) for 25(OH)D2, respectively. Conclusions Using zeta-scores and experimentally derived imprecision, we developed a straightforward approach to assess the acceptability of individual 25(OH)D reference measurements, providing also much-needed practical accuracy specifications for 25(OH)D2.
Discovery of New Classes of Glycine transporter 2 (GlyT2) Inhibitors and Study of GlyT2 Selectivity by Combination of Novel Structural Based Virtual Screening Approach and Free Energy Perturbation (FEP+) Calculations

In recent years, the mammalian GlyT2 transporter have emerged as a promising target for the development of anti-chronic pain agents. In our current work, we discovered a new set of promising hits that inhibit the glycine transport at nano and micromolar activity and have excellent selectivity over GlyT1 (as shown by in vitro studies), using a newly designed virtual screening (VS) protocol that combines a structure-based pharmacophore and docking screens. Furthermore, the free energy perturbation (FEP+ protocol) calculations and molecular dynamics (MD) studies revealed the GlyT2 amino acid residues critical for the binding and selectivity of both Glycine and our Lead1 compound. The FEP+ results well-matched available literature mutational data proving the quality of generated GlyT2 structure. Based on these calculations we propose that Lead1 may also be a strong inhibitor of the neutral and basic amino acid transporter B (0+) (SLC6A14). Thus, the subsequent lead optimization and characterization of refined compounds may lead to both chronic pain and pancreatic cancer agents addressing an unmet and challenging clinical needs.
High Sleep Disturbance and Longer Concussion Duration in Repeat Concussions.

Objectives: The relationship between repeated concussions and sleep disturbance is yet to be fully understood. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between sleep disturbance,...
Interrogating disability epistemologies: towards collective dis/ability intersectional emotional, affective and spiritual autoethnographies for healing

Special education labeling ignores historical, emotional, spiritual, sociocultural effects of labeling Black and Brown students with disabilities. Utilizing critical disability studies, critical ra...
Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding and video capsule retention due to enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma.

Small bowel tumors are a rare cause of occult gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, at times requiring hospitalization and blood transfusion. Capsule endoscopy is a commonly used tool for investigation of occult GI bleeding. The risk of capsule retention is rare and not commonly seen when capsule endoscopy is performed for the diagnostic evaluation of occult GI bleeding. We report a case of enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma (EATL) discovered via examination for occult GI bleeding requiring hospitalization and subsequent capsule retention that necessitated urgent surgical management secondary to bowel obstruction.
Food insecurity, acculturation and diagnosis of CHD and related health outcomes among immigrant adults in the USA

Objective To deepen understanding of the relationship between food insecurity, acculturation, and diagnosis of CHD and related health outcomes among immigrant adults. Design Using cross-sectional, nationally representative data from the National Health Interview Survey 2011 to 2015, we address two research questions. First, what is the relationship of household food insecurity and acculturation with: CHD, angina pectoris, heart attack, self-rated poor health and obesity? Second, what is the association of food insecurity with these health outcomes over years of living in the USA? We estimate multivariate logistic regressions without (question 1) and with (question 2) an interaction term between food insecurity and acculturation for CHD and related health outcomes. Setting USA. Participants Low-income immigrant adults. Results Food insecurity and acculturation are both associated with diagnosis of CHD and related health outcomes among immigrant adults. Food insecurity and acculturation are associated with the health of female immigrants more than males. Also, the differences by food security status in the probability of having several poor health outcomes (self-rated heath, obesity, women's angina pectoris) are largest for those in the USA for less than 5 years, decrease for those who have lived in the USA for 5-14 years, and are larger again for those in the USA for 15 or more years. Conclusions Recent and long-term food-insecure immigrants are more vulnerable to CHD and related health outcomes than those in the USA for 5-14 years. Further research is needed to understand why.
Alkaline Phosphatase Treatment of Acute Kidney Injury in an Infant Piglet Model of Cardiopulmonary Bypass with Deep Hypothermic Circulatory Arrest

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is associated with prolonged hospitalization and mortality following infant cardiac surgery, but therapeutic options are limited. Alkaline phosphatase (AP) infusion reduced AKI in phase 2 sepsis trials but has not been evaluated for cardiac surgery-induced AKI. We developed a porcine model of infant cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) with deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA) to investigate post-CPB/DHCA AKI, measure serum/renal tissue AP activity with escalating doses of AP infusion, and provide preliminary assessment of AP infusion for prevention of AKI. Infant pigs underwent CPB with DHCA followed by survival for 4 h. Groups were treated with escalating doses of bovine intestinal AP (1, 5, or 25U/kg/hr). Anesthesia controls were mechanically ventilated for 7 h without CPB. CPB/DHCA animals demonstrated histologic and biomarker evidence of AKI as well as decreased serum and renal tissue AP compared to anesthesia controls. Only high dose AP infusion significantly increased serum or renal tissue AP activity. Preliminary efficacy evaluation demonstrated a trend towards decreased AKI in the high dose AP group. The results of this dose-finding study indicate that AP infusion at the dose of 25U/kg/hr corrects serum and tissue AP deficiency and may prevent AKI in this piglet model of infant CPB/DHCA.
Influence of the Sources of Science Teaching Self-Efficacy in Preservice Elementary Teachers’ Identity Development

The purpose of this mixed-methods research was to investigate changes in preservice elementary teachers’ science teacher identities and self-efficacy beliefs as they participate in a field-based sc...
Advanced Vehicle Control With an Optimized Speed Profile Using Road Characteristics for Road Departure Prevention

Many passenger vehicles are equipped with automatic safety features. One system, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), saved 7,024 lives from 2011 to 2015. While effective, ESC and other similar control systems are reactionary in nature and require knowledge of a vehicle's current state to determine the response at the next state. Also, many control systems do not take the road characteristics into account, despite being an important contributor to a vehicle's dynamics. This work presents a predictive vehicle controller to help prevent roadside departures during cornering that incorporates the road's geometry and roughness to estimate the vehicle's safe operating speed. An Optimized Speed Profile generates a speed trajectory to allow the vehicle to successfully navigate the corner while preserving ride quality. Simulation results demonstrate cases in which vehicles equipped with ESC would depart from the road while the proposed system does not. Simulations demonstrate that road roughness effects account for up to 10% of the velocity changes in the maximum allowable cornering speed; simulations based on a real-world highway off-ramp measurement demonstrate that the proposed control system is capable of lane-keeping while maintaining stability.
Race and Ethnic Differences in Financial Dependency of Coresident Young Adults During Economic Recessions and Over Time

As the number of households with adult children living with their parents increases, it is important to understand the financial dynamics in these households. This study uses pooled data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation to examine changes in three measures of financial dependency of coresident adult children between 1989 and 2009, with a focus on changes during economic recessions and across race and ethnic groups. Financial dependency is measured using information on individual income and rental contributions to capture three dimensions of dependency: absolute income, relative income, and rental dependency. Financial dependency of coresidential adult children has been relatively stable over time, though there is a modest decrease during an economic recession. Black and Hispanic young adults are less likely than Whites to be financially dependent on their parents, potentially contributing to the intergenerational transmission of racial disparities in wealth accumulation with some young adults having an extended safety net and others needing to pool resources with parents.
5-HT modulation of a medial septal circuit tunes social memory stability.

Social memory—the ability to recognize and remember familiar conspecifics—is critical for the survival of an animal in its social group1,2. The dorsal CA2 (dCA2)3–5 and ventral CA1 (vCA1)6 subregions of the hippocampus, and their projection targets6,7, have important roles in social memory. However, the relevant extrahippocampal input regions remain poorly defined. Here we identify the medial septum (MS) as a dCA2 input region that is critical for social memory and reveal that modulation of the MS by serotonin (5-HT) bidirectionally controls social memory formation, thereby affecting memory stability. Novel social interactions increase activity in dCA2-projecting MS neurons and induce plasticity at glutamatergic synapses from MS neurons onto dCA2 pyramidal neurons. The activity of dCA2-projecting MS cells is enhanced by the neuromodulator 5-HT acting on 5-HT1B receptors. Moreover, optogenetic manipulation of median raphe 5-HT terminals in the MS bidirectionally regulates social memory stability. This work expands our understanding of the neural mechanisms by which social interactions lead to social memory and provides evidence that 5-HT has a critical role in promoting not only prosocial behaviours8,9, but also social memory, by influencing distinct target structures. Experiments in mice identify the medial septum as an extrahippocampal input region that is critical for social memory formation, and show that modulation of the medial septum by serotonin regulates the stability of social memories.
Mapping the effect of geometry on the radiative rate in core/shell QDs: core size dictates the conduction band offset

Computational models have been developed that can accurately predict the electronic structure and thus optical properties of a variety of quantum dot (QD) materials. However, the application of these models to core/shell and other heterostructured QDs has received less experimental corroboration owing to the difficulty in systematically synthesizing and characterizing large ranges of geometries. In the current work, we synthesized a library of core/shell CdSe/CdS QDs with varying core sizes and shell thicknesses, and have characterized their radiative recombination rates. We find that the core size has only a modest effect on the radiative recombination rates, far less than is predicted by conventional effective mass models. In order to theoretically describe the experimental data, we performed an empirical modification of an effective mass model. We find that the conduction band offset between CdSe and CdS must be empirically altered based on QD core size in order to match our experimental data. This is hypothesized to be a result of reduced interfacial strain in core/shell QDs with smaller cores. The resultant relationship between conduction band offset and core size is used to create a predictive map of radiative lifetime as a function of core size and shell thickness. This map will be useful to researchers implementing CdSe/CdS core/shell QDs for a variety of applications since it can provide geometry specific excited state lifetimes.
Design Power Control Strategies of Grid-Forming Inverters for Microgrid Application

This paper develops and compares two control schemes in the application control layer of a non-phase-locked loop (non-PLL) grid-forming (GFM) inverter to gain insight and understanding into how the two schemes affect the dynamic responses of GFM inverters and the transition operation of microgrids. The first scheme adopts power tracking based on an outer current loop in grid-connected mode and droop control in islanded mode, and the second uses droop control in both grid-connected and islanded modes. Analytical study is developed to compare the performance of these two strategies from various aspects, including fundamental differences, transition operation, power tracking, and P-Q capability with low point-of-common-coupling (PCC) voltages. Extensive simulation testing is carried out to validate the control performance of these two control strategies, and the simulation testing confirms the findings of the analytic study. Finally, the second strategy is recommended because of its superior control performance and ease of implementation. The analysis and results are useful in developing reliable control schemes for non-PLL GFM inverters because increasing numbers of inverters will work as non-PLL grid-forming sources in future grids because of their improved stability and reliability.
Experimental secondary hyperparathyroidism and the therapeutic application of vitamin D analogs

The two major pathophysiologic mechanisms responsible for the development of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in advanced renal insufficiency are phosphorus retention and low levels of 1, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH) 2D3] . The actions of the hormonal form of vitamin D extend beyond its role in mineral homeostasis. Recently, analogs of vitamin D that are less calcemic, but retain the therapeutically useful properties of l,25-(OH)2D have been developed. This study was designed to determine if a high phosphorus diet could be the main contributor for increasing plasma phosphate and parathyroid hormone (PTH) and reducing the production of renal l,25-(OH)2D3 in renal failure (reduced renal cell mass). Another objective was to determine if vitamin D analogs could be used as an effective drug in lowering plasma PTH and increase calcium during SHPT. One hundred twelve 60-day-old male rats of Harlan-SpragueDawley (weighing 400-450 gm) were divided into 7 groups: SLP, SHP, NLP, NHP, NHP-A, NHP-B, and NHP-C. SLP and SHP were sham (S) operated groups, whereas the rest were unilaterally nephrectomized (N). The rats were fed two synthetic diets with low (LP) or high (HP) phosphorus levels. Three groups of rats: NHP-A, NHP-B, and NHP-C were simultaneously given an oral
Flow Cytometric Analysis of Androgen Receptor Expression in Human Prostate Tumors and Benign Tissues

Androgen receptor (AR) plays an important role in growth and hormonal therapy of human prostate tumors. Immunohistochemical analysis of AR expression, a nonquantitative technique, is currently used for screening of receptor expression in prostate tissues. The present report describes a laser flow cytometric method for monitoring AR expression in human cell lines and in archival formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded prostate tissues and tumors. Multiparametric flow analysis can be used for simultaneous detection of other cellular markers (e.g., DNA aneuploidy), and by gated analysis, AR expression in subpopulations of a tumor can be quantitatively determined.
Abstract P5-15-02: Safety of letrozole-gonadotropin controlled ovarian stimulation protocol in women with breast cancer undergoing fertility preservation before or after tumor resection via embryo or oocyte cryopreservation: A prospective cohort study

Purpose: We have previously described the concurrent use of aromatase inhibitors to reduce estrogen exposure in women with breast cancer undergoing controlled ovarian stimulation (COS) with gonadotropins for fertility preservation (FP) via oocyte or embryo cryopreservation. To purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of this letrozole-gonadotropin COS protocol on survival in women who underwent fertility preservation before or after breast surgery. Patients and Methods: A total of 364 women with stage ≤3 breast cancer, who pursued FP consultation or FP treatments at our institution were prospectively evaluated. Of those, 146 elected to undergo COS with letrozole and gonadotropins for FP (120 prior to chemotherapy and 26 after chemotherapy). The remaining 218 patients elected to not to undergo a fertility-preserving procedure and served as controls. Result(s): Demographic information and tumor characteristics at enrollment were similar between patients who pursued COS with letrozole and gonadotropins (COS group) and control groups. The median follow-up after diagnosis was 4.9 years in COS and 6.2 years in the control group. In the COS group, the hazard ratio (HR) for recurrence after IVF was 0.77 (95% CI: 0.28, 2.13) and the survival was not compromised compared with controls (P=0.61). In the COS group, survival was not different between patients with ER-positive and ER-negative breast cancer (P=0.75) and between patients who underwent COS before and after tumor resection (P=0.56). The survival was also not different between patients who pursued COS before and after chemotherapy (P=0.57). Conclusion(s): Here we presented the largest prospective data with longest follow up on the safety of ovarian stimulation in women with breast cancer. COS with letrozole and gonadotropins for FP is unlikely to cause substantially increased recurrence risk in breast cancer, even in patients who have not yet undergone breast surgery. Larger studies are needed to confirm the findings from the subgroup analysis. Support: Supported by NIH RO1 HD053112. Citation Format: Kutluk Oktay, Jayeon Kim, Giuliano Bedoschi, Volkan Turan. Safety of letrozole-gonadotropin controlled ovarian stimulation protocol in women with breast cancer undergoing fertility preservation before or after tumor resection via embryo or oocyte cryopreservation: A prospective cohort study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Seventh Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2014 Dec 9-13; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(9 Suppl):Abstract nr P5-15-02.
Professionalism and ethics in the public health curriculum

As the public's health-care needs increase in complexity, renewed attention is being given to the ethical dimensions of public health decision-making and the development of public health ethics as a bounded area of teaching and research. This article provides an overview of approaches to public health ethics and decision-making, and suggests ways to incorporate the professionalism competencies into the teaching of public health practice. The teaching of ethics language, concepts, and tools for decision analysis helps to prepare students for the inevitable ethical choices they will have to make in their professional practice. The teaching of ethics and professionalism and the experiences of professionals enrich each other and foster the critical link between education and practice.
Control board digital interface input devices - touchscreen, trackpad, or mouse?

The authors collaborated with a power utility to evaluate input devices for use in the human system interface (HSI) for a new digital Turbine Control System (TCS) at a nuclear power plant (NPP) undergoing a TCS upgrade. A standalone dynamic software simulation of the new digital TCS and a mobile kiosk were developed to conduct an input device study to evaluate operator preference and input device effectiveness. The TCS software presented the anticipated HSI for the TCS and mimicked (i.e., simulated) the turbine systems’ responses to operator commands. Twenty-four licensed operators from the two nuclear power units participated in the study. Three input devices were tested: a trackpad, mouse, and touchscreen. The subjective feedback from the survey indicates the operators preferred the touchscreen interface. The operators subjectively rated the touchscreen as the fastest and most comfortable input device given the range of tasks they performed during the study, but also noted a lack of accuracy for selecting small targets. The empirical data suggest the mouse input device provides the most consistent performance for screen navigation and manipulating on-screen controls. The trackpad input device was both empirically and subjectively found to be the least effective and least desired input device.
Church-Rosser Made Easy

The Church-Rosser theorem states that the λ-calculus is confluent under β-reductions. The standard proof of this result is due to Tait and Martin-Lof. In this note, we present an alternative proof based on the notion of acceptable orderings. The technique is easily modified to give confluence of the βη-calculus.
Homicide In and Around Public Housing: Is Public Housing a Hotbed, a Magnet, or a Generator of Violence for the Surrounding Community?

One of the unintended consequences of decades-long public housing policy has been to concentrate the poor within communities that are at the extreme end of economic disadvantage. More than in other types of disadvantaged communities, living in public housing can sharply circumscribe the social world of its residents and isolate them from people and social institutions in surrounding areas. This study draws on the concepts of social isolation from urban sociology and offending "awareness space" from environmental criminology to explain why violence rates are dramatically higher in public housing compared to otherwise disadvantaged nonpublic housing neighborhoods and, moreover, whether residents or outsiders are responsible for the violence. Using homicide data for the Southeast Policing Area of Los Angeles (1980 through 1999), and relating the location of homicides within and outside of public housing to the places of residence of both victims and offenders, our research reveals that public housing developments are hotbeds of violence involving predominantly local residents. There is no evidence that public housing serves as either a magnet for violence by drawing in nonlocal offenders, or a generator of violence in surrounding neighborhoods. We conclude that this social isolation from the larger community can both escalate violence between residents inside public housing, but also limit their offending awareness space, such that the violence is contained from spreading beyond the development.
Copy number variation in African Americans

Copy number variants (CNVs) have been identified in several studies to be associated with complex diseases. It is important, therefore, to understand the distribution of CNVs within and among populations. This study is the first report of a CNV map in African Americans. Employing a SNP platform with greater than 500,000 SNPs, a first-generation CNV map of the African American genome was generated using DNA from 385 healthy African American individuals, and compared to a sample of 435 healthy White individuals. A total of 1362 CNVs were identified within African Americans, which included two CNV regions that were significantly different in frequency between African Americans and Whites (17q21 and 15q11). In addition, a duplication was identified in 74% of DNAs derived from cell lines that was not present in any of the whole blood derived DNAs. The Affymetrix 500 K array provides reliable CNV mapping information. However, using cell lines as a source of DNA may introduce artifacts. The duplication identified in high frequency in Whites and low frequency in African Americans on chromosome 17q21 reflects haplotype specific frequency differences between ancestral groups. The generation of the CNV map will be a valuable tool for identifying disease associated CNVs in African Americans.
Vibration damping in cylindrical shells filled with low-density, low-wave-speed media

Significant damping can be introduced to a closed structure by filling the structure with a moderately lossy, low-wave-speed medium, such as a foam or a low-density powder. In this paper, we study the damping in long, thin-walled, cylindrical tubes filled with a low-density powder. Experimental results show that significant damping can be attained in tube bending (n=1) modes as well as shell bending (n=2 and higher) modes. To predict the damping in such systems, we develop a model based on three-dimensional shell equations including shear deformation and in-plane inertia, and treat the powder as a compressible fluid with a complex speed of sound. By studying the spatial decay of steady harmonic motion in an infinitely long tube, we obtain estimates for the loss factor of vibration for various numbers of circumferential nodes as a function of driving frequency.
Band-Theoretic Model for the Photoelectric Effect in Silicon

The pseudopotential method which was previously used to discuss the optical reflectivity of silicon has now been applied to study its photoelectric properties. A quadratic interpolation procedure has been used in conjunction with the pseudopotential method to get a very dense sampling of the Brillouin zone. This allows a detailed comparison of the band-theoretic results for the energy distribution of photoemitted electrons with experiment. Most of the structure in the kinetic-energy distributions in the optical and nearultraviolet region of the electromagnetic spectrum can be understood in terms of direct interband transitions, although line shapes appear to be distorted by processes which are not treated in the present calculation. The photoelectric yield has been recomputed assuming total randomization of the crystal momentum for escaping electrons. The discussion of the optical properties has also been extended.
Accounting for The Road: Tragedy, Courage, and Cavell's Acknowledgment

The nameless father of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road is repeatedly faced with the difficulty of having to account for a world left desolate after a global catastrophe. The father remains committed to such a world even though it is rife with cannibalism and violence. Yet how can he account for this existence to his son? Why pass on such a way of life? I enlist the ordinary language philosophy of Wittgenstein and Cavell in an effort to account for the father’s commitment. I employ the categories of tragedy, courage, and Cavell’s notion of acknowledgment to understand the novel’s unsettling vision.
WEIGHTS OF HUMAN THYROIDS IN NEW YORK CITY.

Abstract—The weights of 762 normal thyroid glands dissected at autopsies in New York City indicate that the mean adult thyroid weighs 16.7 ± 6.9 g. The thyroid weights are distributed log-normally. These mean values are lower than the values desafibed by other workers or used in standard dose measurements. The data suggest that 1 per cent of New York residents have thyroids that weigh about one-third of the mean. Data are also presented on a series of fetal thyroids in which the weights varied from 20 mg at the third month of gestation to 1.5 ± 0.6 g at full term.
Anatomy of melancholy

An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness. ByJamison Kay Redfield: Knopf: 1995. Pp. 240. $22.
A cost-benefit analysis and method of creating high-quality posters for a low cost.

Objective: To introduce the results of a cost-benefit analysis comparing an office-based low-cost technique for producing research posters versus conventional methods. Study Design: Cost-benefit analysis. Methods: The average cost for manufacturing a 4' x 6' poster using university-based and commercial reprographic centers (from 10 different institutions and cities) was determined through a phone survey. The total number of posters (1248) presented at the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Annual Meeting from 1995 through 1999 was used to calculate and subsequently compare the total cost of generating posters using conventional versus our low-cost method. A detailed description of this technique (low-cost) is also offered. Results: The total printing costs for this meeting using the commercial or university-based services was $294,000 and $268,000 versus approximately $11,000 with our method. Esthetically, our technique is satisfactory and difficult to distinguish from standard methods from the typical poster-viewing distance. Conclusions: Given the current medical economic environment, the cost disparity between conventional and low-cost poster production, the esthetic acceptability of both, and the relative (compared with oral presentations) lack of scientific impact, we propose that the present technique is an extremely pragmatic option for poster production.
Fetal blood lead values in a rural area.

Summary Lead levels were determined from neonatal samples of blood collected at a general-care hospital. The cord blood lead values of babies from urban maternal residences were significantly higher than those from rural environments. The over-all cord blood lead value was (mean±S.D.) 9.4±3.7 μ g of lead per 100 ml. of whole blood. This level represented a considerably lower value than others previously reported and suggests a lower “normal” value for our population.
Analysis of pain resolution after surgical resection of intramedullary spinal cord cavernous malformations.

Objective To determine the short- and long-term effects of surgical resection of intramedullary spinal cavernous malformations on preoperative pain. Methods Between 1988 and 2003, 53 intramedullary spinal cavernous malformations were surgically managed. A retrospective analysis of this cohort revealed 23 (43%) patients who presented with pain as a clinically relevant feature. Long-term evaluation of pain outcomes was available in 21 patients. Pain outcomes were characterized as improved, unchanged, or worse compared with preoperative and immediate postoperative status. Results Seven patients presented with radiculopathy, 12 with central pain, and four with both. Immediately after surgery, pain symptoms improved in 18 (78%) patients, were unchanged in 5 (22%), and were worse in none compared with the patients' preoperative status (n = 23). During the follow-up period, 11 (52%) patients improved, nine (43%) remained at their preoperative baseline, and one (5%) was worse compared with their preoperative levels of pain. The difference in postoperative and long-term pain status was statistically significant (P = 0.031). Conclusion The surgical efficacy for improving pain related to intramedullary spinal cavernous malformations may be worse than implied in the literature. Although pain relief immediately after surgery is good, we found that recurrence is common and that only approximately 50% of patients report long-term benefit. Despite the significant limitations of this retrospective study, these data may serve as a guide when counseling patients preoperatively to help them to maintain realistic expectations about outcomes.
The adaptation of hydrogen ion excretion associated with nephron reduction in post-transplant patients.

Extract: The compensatory growth of the single and transplanted kidney is demonstrated by the improvement of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of the single kidney to achieve 50–90% of the normal value. The compensatory renal tubular acid excretion is also studied. It is clearly demonstrated that in response to a standard ammonium chloride load (75 mEq/m2) systemic acidosis (tCO2 0.95), i.e., each remaining nephron is excreting acid normally (or supernormally) and is supportive of the “intact nephron” hypothesis. The data show a marked difference in urinary pH during acidosis between the two transplant groups: 50% of the cadaveric allografts have an inability to lower urine pH below 5.4 compared with 10% only of the live-related allografts which show such a defect. This would imply that cadaver allografts are more susceptible to an acute acid load. Speculation: The ischemia sustained at the time of transplantation results in acute tubular damage and proportionate lowering of the glomerular filtration rate which account for the impaired acidification capacity in the kidney allografts. It is also possible that circulatory damage to the glomeruli may occur in the transplantation process. It is even possible that intrarenal circulation may be altered by either transplantation or nephrectomy; although, admittedly, this last possibility seems quite unlikely. It is open to speculation what effect the age difference between the donors and the recipients may have on their different responses to acute metabolic acidosis.
Double seismic zone in Tonga

The clear evidence of a double seismic zone beneath Japan1,2 has led seismologists to search for other such zones elsewhere. Because they have been found in few other areas3–6, double seismic zones are thought to be rare and to depend strongly on a peculiar combination of external conditions (such as age of the descending slab, and the convergence rate)7 We report here a new double seismic zone which has been found beneath the Tonga arc8, where the stress state in the subducting slab has been described as strongly down-dip compressional7,9,10. This discovery suggests that the double seismic zone is a general feature of subducting slabs and may be found in many other subduction zones.
Anatomical evidence for multiple sources of action potentials in the afferent fibers of muscle spindles.

Abstract Probable sites of origin for action potentials were identified in the distal portions of afferent fibers in neuromuscular spindles of cats and frogs (both primary and secondary afferents were examined in cats). In every case, each of the several terminal heminodes reacted with a ferric ferrocyanide cytochemical stain, indicating that these might all be initiators of action potentials. The staining results imply that in spindles the frequency response of afferent action potentials may result from competition among multiple encoders, rather than from integration of all the terminals by a single encoder.
The Value of Ellul's Analysis in Understanding Propaganda in the Helping Professions.

This article draws on Ellul’s analysis of propaganda in understanding propaganda in the helping professions. Key in such an analysis is the interweaving of the psychological and sociological. Contr...
Influence of lime and phosphorus on soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) yield, leaf and seed composition on a paleudult soil

This research was undertaken on a paleudult soil in southern Brazil, 30° south latitude, to quantify lime and P effect upon soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill). A lime x P factorial experience with ...
Effects of chronic opioid dependence and HIV-1 infection on pattern shift visual evoked potentials.

Abstract The goal of the present study was to examine the effects of opioid dependence, alone and in combination with asymptomatic HIV-1 infection, on the pattern shift visual evoked potential (PSVEP). For this purpose, three groups of patients were evaluated, including patients characterized by: (1) a past history (2–4 months abstinent) of DSM-IIIR opioid dependence (i.e. in partial remission); (2) a recent history (7 days abstinent) of opioid dependence with ongoing methadone maintenance; and (3) a recent history of opioid dependence, ongoing methadone maintenance, and asymptomatic HIV-1 infection. A group of healthy, non-drug dependent volunteers was also evaluated. Analyses revealed no PSVEP differences between patients with a past history of opioid dependence and healthy volunteers. There were also no PSVEP differences between methadone-maintained patients with or without HIV-1 infection. Collectively, however, the two methadone maintenance groups exhibited significant delays in the N75 and P100 components of the PSVEP relative to the other two groups. The delay in N75 latency was strongly correlated with self-reported years of heroin abuse, but not with years of cocaine, alcohol, or other drug abuse. These results are interpreted as reflecting an adverse effect of chronic opioid dependence on neural transmission within primary visual areas of the brain.
Ultrastructure of lamellae, mineral and matrix components of fish otolith twinned aragonite crystals: implications for estimating age in fish

Abstract Atomic force microscopy (AFM) of the crystalline ultrastructure of otoliths from Pagrus major (Sparidae), Macruronus novaezelandiae (Merlucciidae), Oncorhynchus tshawytscha (Salmonidae), Sebastes alutus (Scorpaenidae), and Hoplostethus atlanticus (Trachichthyidae) showed regular deposition of lamellae in the size range 13–490 nm. The orientation of lamellae in the {010} plane was the same as lamellae in crystals of mineral aragonite. Lamellae in mineral aragonite were in the size range 15–45 nm. Lamellae observed in the otolith of M. novaezelandiae by transmission electron microscopy showed a range of widths (25–225 nm) similar to lamellae observed by AFM. The observed lamella widths were in the size range that has been described for sub-daily and daily microincrements in otoliths. Observed lamellae widths were also in the size range of α-recoil trajectories of 222 Rn and provide a potential diffusion sink correction for the 222 Rn losses in radionuclide method of ageing otoliths. Comparison of the orientations of lamellae to templates based on the Bragg unit cell structure of twinned aragonite indicated that the lamellae resulted from polysynthetic twinning on the {010} aragonite crystal face. Additional cyclic twinning occurred on the {110} face of the aragonite crystal and sometimes led to pseudohexagonal crystals, whose sizes were orders of magnitude larger than lamellae. The organic matrix of the otolith was visible by atomic force and transmission electron microscopy at the nanometer level of resolution, but the organic matrix was confined to the {110} twinning plane of symmetry of the otolith crystal.