cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Metastatic synovial sarcoma with cervical spinal cord compression treated with posterior ventral resection: case report.

AbstractContext: Synovial sarcomas, which represent 5% to 10% of all adult soft-tissue sarcomas, usually metastasize to the lungs. Metastasis to the spine is rare. Spinal cord compression due to spinal metastasis occurs in approximately 3% of patients with extraspinal soft-tissue sarcomas.Method: Case report.Findings: A 26-year-old woman presented with neck pain, arm weakness, and a history of metastatic synovial sarcoma originating at the right knee. Computed tomography revealed destruction of the odontoid and C2 body. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed tumor in the posterior elements of C2 and in the ventral epidural space from C2-C5. She was treated with C2-C3 laminectomy, posterior C2 corpectomy with occipital-C7 fixation, and fusion. Postoperatively, her neck pain resolved and left upper extremity strength returned to normal.Conclusion and Clinical Relevance: Metastatic spinal cord compression from synovial sarcoma is rare. Surgical resection can lead to neurologic improvement.
Advanced Woody Biomass Logistics for Co-Firing in Existing Coal Power Plant: Case Study of the Great Lakes States

One of the core decisions on securing the supply of biomass to co-firing power plants is the design of a proper logistics system. Though technologies have been developed to improve the characterist...
Capture rate of congenital heart defects in the Pediatric Health Information System database

Introduction Congenital heart defects (CHD) are common and are a frequent subject of research using large administrative databases such as the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) database. The capture rate of CHD within PHIS, however, has not been described. Methods The PHIS database includes inpatient encounters from over 52 tertiary care pediatric hospitals across the United States. We identified all patients less than 1 year of age with a cardiac defect in PHIS from 2010 to 2014 and compared these results with national prevalence estimates based on the National Birth Defects Prevention Network annual report, which served as the gold standard. Results The capture rate of CHD in PHIS ranged from 30 to 95% depending on the spectrum of severity and heterogeneity of the cardiac defect. The capture rate was higher for critical CHD (CCHD) at 66%, and all lesions with 70% or greater capture rate (interrupted aortic arch, truncus arteriosus, single ventricle, total anomalous pulmonary venous return, double outlet right ventricle, and hypoplastic left heart syndrome) fell within the CCHD category. Conclusions Just over half of the predicted CHD patients were identified using the PHIS database. Although there is a high capture rate for CHD that require early hospitalization, there is a low capture rate for defects with a wider spectrum of disease presentation. These attributes of the PHIS database should be used to frame previous and future research using PHIS to study CHD.
Experiences of People with Diabetes by Payer Type: An Analysis of the Roper Diabetes Data Set

Introduction The study details the experiences of Medicare, Medicaid and privately insured patients with diabetes in the United States by focusing on how these distinct populations perceive their disease and manage their treatment.
COVID-19 Surveillance Data: A Primer for Epidemiology and Data Science.

Our primary objective is to improve COVID-19 metrics to enhance the quality of COVID-19 surveillance-an urgent need raised by several authors in professional and general media.1-5 We offer specific suggestions on how pandemic surveillance metrics can be better reported to improve the quality of analytical epidemiology. Health care providers and public health practitioners may find these criteria useful when conducting analyses, and students may be able to self-correct mistakes in written work. Data scientists may treat this as a primer for selecting and reporting metrics for dashboards. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print January 21, 2021: e1-e6. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.306088).
The Association Between Lateral Radiographs and Axial Computed Tomography of Posterior Malleolar Fractures as a Tool for Predicting Medial Malleolar Extension: A Multi-Center Retrospective Analysis.

Posterior malleolar fractures are often part of complex ankle fracture patterns. Radiographs and computed tomography are often obtained in the preoperative setting. In this study, we compared measurements from lateral ankle radiographs with measurements on axial computed tomography. We hypothesize that there is an association between measurements taken on lateral XR and certain fracture morphology such as medial extension and that measurements taken on lateral XR can be used to predict likelihood of medial extension type fractures. A multi-center retrospective analysis was performed involving patients with trimalleolar ankle fractures treated at two large urban healthcare systems ranging from January 1, 2010 to November 1, 2019. A total of 279 patients met criteria including 186 females and 93 males aged 18 to 90 with an average age 55. Four reviewers measured continuous variables on lateral radiograph and axial computed tomography: posterior malleolus fracture height, articular surface length, medial-lateral width, and anterior-posterior depth and then agreement was assessed via intraclass correlation coefficient. Pearson correlations were calculated for all pairwise combinations of measurements. Two fracture classification systems were then evaluated for association with the continuous variables. Lateral height was divided into quartiles and analyzed for the degree of association. Positive correlation was found between lateral height and axial depth/axial width. Taller lateral height values were statistically associated with medial extension type fractures. Lateral height 24.5mm-29.5mm is 3.1x higher, and lateral height >29.5mm is 8.6x more likely to have medial extension when compared to shorter lateral heights( 24.5mm) as seen on lateral XR.
Complete Genome Sequences of Microbacterium liquefaciens Phages Mercedes, Leafus, Nebulous, and Ixel.

Microbacterium phages Mercedes, Leafus, Nebulous, and Ixel were isolated from soil in Rock Hill, SC. All are lytic phages with Siphoviridae morphotypes and similar genome sequence lengths that range from 40,200 bp to 42,000 bp. The four bacteriophages were isolated using the host Microbacterium liquefaciens.
The Stanford Integrated Psychosocial Assessment for Transplantation Score Predicts Frequency of Hospital Readmissions in Left Ventricular Assist Device Patients

Purpose The Stanford Integrated Psychosocial Assessment for Transplantation (SIPAT) score is a validated tool for determination of psychosocial and behavioral risk in patients who are undergoing evaluation for organ transplant. The total score is comprised of subsets A-D which scores patient's readiness level and illness management, social support system, psychological stability, as well as lifestyle and effect of substance abuse, respectively. Several centers use SIPAT scores to determine suitability of Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) candidates, however SIPAT remains an unvalidated risk assessment tool in this population. The objective of this study is to assess whether SIPAT scores are associated with 1-year hospital readmissions in LVAD patients. Methods SIPAT scores were documented for 121 LVAD patients (mean age: 50.5 years, 36 % female, 56% black, 45% BTT) implanted at Emory University Hospital from 2010 to 2018. Zero inflated poisson regression models were used to examine the association of SIPAT scores and subscales with the number of hospital readmissions within the 1st year after LVAD implantation, adjusted for age, sex, race, INTERMACS profile, BTT versus DT status, eGFR, and albumin. Results The mean total SIPAT score was 7.07 ±7.76, with mean scores on the subscales as follows: SIPAT A:0.94 ± 2.05, SIPAT B:0.98 ± 2.47, SIPAT C:1.42 ± 2.41, SIPAT D:3.63 ± 3.74. In the first year after LVAD implantation, 259 total hospitalizations occurred in 106 patients (87.6% of total patients had at least 1 admission and there were 16 deaths). The total SIPAT score was associated with a higher number of 1-year hospital readmissions with an adjusted HR: 1.02 for 1-point increase in score (95% CI: 1.00-1.04, p=0.012). Specifically, SIPAT A (adjusted HR: 1.12( 95% CI: 1.06-1.21, p Conclusion In LVAD patients, the total SIPAT score, driven by subscales A and D, was associated with an increased risk of 1-year hospital readmissions following LVAD implantation. These findings suggest that these scores may be useful in risk stratifying LVAD patients and highlight the population of patients who require additional support.
The Contrasting Approaches to Power of the Modern State and the Antitrust Laws: Lessons for Platform Regulation

If the state is a force monopolist, as Max Weber famously claimed, then the law is a kind of antitrust policy, with criminal law securing the state’s monopoly on force and constitutional law regulating the exercise of the force monopolist’s power primarily through the right to vote, which makes of the state the equivalent of a consumer cooperative dedicated to the production of security. One consequence of the cooperative approach is that the state’s approach to vertical integration — in this context state ownership of enterprise — has mirrored antitrust’s own approach to the vertical integration of private firms: to authorize integration only where it is likely to benefit consumers, which is rarely when the monopolist sells security, but often in the case of most products sold by private enterprise. Another consequence, low tax rates, differs greatly from antitrust’s own approach to private enterprise, which broadly exempts the charging of high prices from liability. This difference in approach offers a useful lesson for antitrust policy, particularly in the area of digital platforms: that the heart of monopoly power is price, and the best way to dull the power of the platform monopolist is to regulate the prices it can charge and leave the question whether to permit it to integrate vertically to be decided on efficiency grounds. This suggests that the rule proposed by Senator Elizabeth Warren, that no big firm should be allowed to compete on its own platform, which amounts to a prohibition on vertical integration, is likely to be unhelpful. A better approach would be to regulate the fees platforms charge competitors and consumers and allow the tech giants to integrate when doing so would benefit consumers.
Optimizing Resource Constrained Distributed Collaborative Sensing

Collaborative sensing of spatio-temporal events/processes is at the basis of many applications including e.g., spectrum and environmental monitoring, and self-driving cars. A system leveraging spatially distributed possibly airborn sensing nodes can in principle deliver better coverage as well as possibly redundant views of the observed processes. This paper focuses on modeling, characterising and quantifying the benefits of optimal sensor activation/scanning policies in resource constrained settings, e.g., constraints tied to energy expenditures or the scanning capabilities of nodes. Under a natural model for the process being observed we show that a periodic sensor activation policy is optimal, and characterize the relative phases of such policies via an optimization problem capturing knowledge of the sensor geometry, sensor coverage sets, and spatio-temporal intensity and event durations. Numerical and simulation results for simple different sensor geometries exhibit how performance depends on the underlying processes. We also study the gap between optimal and randomized policies and how it scales with the density of sensors and resource constraints.
Infrared dust echoes from neutron star mergers

A significant fraction of binary neutron star mergers occur in star-forming galaxies where the UV-optical and soft X-ray afterglow emission from the relativistic jet may be absorbed by dust and re-emitted at longer wavelengths. We show that, for mergers occurring in gas-rich environment (n_H > 0.5 cm^{-3} at a few to tens of pc) and when the viewing angle is less than about 30 degrees, the emission from heated dust should be detectable by James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), with a detection rate of the order once per year. The spatial separation between the dust emission and the merger site is a few to 10 milli-arcsecs (for a source distance of 150 Mpc), which may be astrometrically resolved by JWST for sufficiently high signal-noise-ratio detections. Measuring the superluminal apparent speed of the flux centroid directly gives the orbital inclination of the merger, which can be combined with gravitational wave data to measure the Hubble constant. For a line of sight within the jet opening angle, the dust echoes are much brighter and may contaminate the search for kilonova candidates from short gamma-ray bursts, such as the case of GRB 130603B.
Biopharmaceutical patents: multifaceted signals, reducing and enhancing knowledge asymmetries in drug discovery

Patents are often studied as signals that convey invaluable insights into a firm’s inventive capabilities, aiding in the reduction of knowledge asymmetries between the firm and external investors. ...
Chapter 6 Market-share models

Publisher Summary This chapter describes that three basic principles motivate the specification of the market-share models. Market-share models should be competitive, descriptive as well as predictive, and profit-oriented. Being fundamentally competitive implies that one cannot know the effect or effectiveness of a marketing action without accounting for the actions of competitors. Market-share models are models for understanding how the marketing efforts of every brand impact the results in a competitive marketplace. Only by describing the influence of each marketing instrument can one gain a basis for marketing planning. Prediction alone is not enough. Time-series models that forecast the future from the past sales provide no insight into how sales are generated. The emphasis on being descriptive also embraces the need to understand the areas in which consumer choice probabilities are synonymous with market shares as well. Part of the goal of description transcends what can be done by market-share models alone. Managers need to understand that their efforts have (potentially) competitive effects and (potentially) market-expansive effects. In sales-response models these effects are comingled, but by combining descriptive market-share models for the competitive effects with descriptive category-volume models for the market-expansive effects, managers obtain a much richer understanding of the market. The profit-oriented goal of market-share analysis urges us to ask how the firm's allocations of resources to aspects of the marketing mix produce bottom-line results.
Knocking and Performance Characteristics of Low Octane Primary Reference Fuels Blended with Methanol

Single cylinder SI engine tests were conducted with low octane primary reference fuel (PRF) blends and methanol. The investigated parameters were equivalence ratio, and PRF octane number ranging from 100 to 53 blended with weight percentages of methanol to 75 percent. In order to evaluate the performance of these different fuels, knock intensity, efficiency and emissions were considered. Methanol can act as an effective knock suppressant in primary reference fuel blends with octane numbers as low as 53. Generally methanol-PRF blends burning under optimized conditions yield a higher efficiency than either pure isooctane or pure methanol. Methanol-low octane PRF blends appear to burn with approximately the same emissions as isooctane.
Dogs and humans and what earth can be: Filaments of Muslim ecological thought

Climate change is knowledge produced by running empirical data on weather through global simulation models. In contradistinction to the approach that studies how people come to be schooled to perceive climate change or produce their own accounts of change in an indigenous idiom, I show how knowledge of it is met by disbelief by Muslim farmers ( chaura s) living on eroding and accreting silt and sand islands ( char s) within the Jamuna River in Bangladesh. Such disbelief is not unlike the denial that ordinarily greets news of climate change elsewhere. If one were to turn away from asking how people are taking up (or not) the issue of climate change, it is in smaller gestures of incorporating repugnant others, in this case dogs, that one sees reflections on divine creation qua creatureliness. And following such reflections on Creation through fables, narratives, and the everyday of the chaura s, we see how Muslim cosmology and eschatology hold promise of ecological thought, providing an unexpectedly materialist perspective on our creaturely interconnectedness. They also provide an anticipatory register of climate change within chaura life through the intensification of suffering in the present, while allowing for disbelief in climate change as poisoned knowledge from the West.
Teaching Preservice Science Teachers How to Do Science: Responses to the Research Experience

(2000). Teaching Preservice Science Teachers How to Do Science: Responses to the Research Experience. Journal of Science Teacher Education: Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 77-90.
Practical Yield, Price, Duration and Convexity Approximations

Practical techniques for approximating yield given the price and price given the yield are described. Duration and convexity estimations given prices and yields at three observation points are presented. Such approximations are useful when computing prices and yields from their values at nearby points and generating additional data for scenario analysis.
PROPUB: towards a declarative approach for publishing customized, policy-aware provenance

Data provenance, i.e., the lineage and processing history of data, is becoming increasingly important in scientific applications. Provenance information can be used, e.g., to explain, debug, and reproduce the results of computational experiments, or to determine the validity and quality of data products. In collaborative science settings, it may be infeasible or undesirable to publish the complete provenance of a data product. We develop a framework that allows data publishers to "customize" provenance data prior to exporting it. For example, users can specify which parts of the provenance graph are to be included in the result and which parts should be hidden, anonymized, or abstracted. However, such user-defined provenance customization needs to be carefully counterbalanced with the need to faithfully report all relevant data and process dependencies. To this end, we propose PROPUB (Provenance Publisher), a framework and system which allows the user (i) to state provenance publication and customization requests, (ii) to specify provenance policies that should be obeyed, (iii) to check whether the policies are satisfied, and (iv) to repair policy violations and reconcile conflicts between user requests and provenance policies should they occur. In the PROPUB approach, policies as well as customization requests are expressed as logic rules. By using a declarative, logic-based framework, PROPUB can first check and then enforce integrity constraints (ICs), e.g., by rejecting inconsistent user requests, or by repairing violated ICs according to a given conflict resolution strategy.
Structural Models for Beta-Lyrae Type Disks

Equilibrium structural models are computed for a thick, self-gravitating disk in a binary system. Accretion onto the star is limited by the star’s rapid rotation (the system is a double-contact binary). The potential formulation is taken from a previous paper, and represents the gravitational potential as that of a massive wire. Corrections to the stellar structure differential equations for the distorted geometry are applied, and the equations are integrated and solved by the fitting point method. The energy is supplied by viscosity. Energy transfer is by convection, and is appreciably superadiabatic throughout the disk. A mass of 0.5 M⊙ is assumed. Representative results are: “central” temperature, 67000 K; “central” pressure, 5 × 1011 dynes/cm2; “equal volume” radius, 17 R⊙; luminosity, 5 × 103 L⊙. The model “radius” is in excellent agreement with the observational value for β Lyrae. The model luminosity is slightly higher than the available rate of expenditure of gravitational energy, indicating that a lower disk mass (perhaps 0.25 M⊙) should be tried.
Selective stimulation of epithelial cells in colonic crypts: relation to active chloride secretion.

Stimulation of Cl secretion by prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) was measured as the short-circuit current (Isc) across isolated epithelium of the rabbit distal colon. Cellular morphology of columnar and goblet cells during secretion was monitored using light and electron microscopy. Stimulation by PGE2 altered epithelial cell morphology only by a reduction of vacuolar space in the apical pole of crypt columnar cells, consistent with release of vacuole contents. Imaging of isolated crypts using differential interference microscopy confirmed the release of material from columnar cells during the onset of secretion. Inhibition of Cl secretion with the loop diuretic bumetanide did not block vacuole release. The actin filament-disrupting agent, cytochalasin, reduced the PGE2-stimulated Isc by 40% and blocked emptying of the vacuolar space. These electrical and morphological results indicate that the process of active ion secretion is associated with release of the macromolecular contents from apical vacuoles through a mechanism involving the cytoskeleton. In addition, this relationship supports the concept that vacuolated columnar cells of the crypts of Lieberkuhn are the cell type that secretes Cl in response to PGE2.
Adaptive Middleware for Ubiquitous Computing Environments

Rapid growth in inexpensive, short range, and low-power wireless communication hardware and network standards are now enabling the construction of ubiquitous computing and communication environments. Devices in ubicomp environments form short range and low power mobile ad hoc networks whose topologies are usually dynamic due to arbitrary node mobility. Typical applications in ubicomp environments are context-sensitive, adaptive, and often engage in impromptu, and volatile communication. These properties require both programming and runtime support in the application and system levels. A middleware approach can be very effective to provide these support to reduce the effort required to develop ubicomp software, in addition to providing the commonly known middleware services, such as interoperability, location transparency, naming service, etc. In contrast to middleware architectures for fixed networks, a middleware for ubicomp environments should be adaptive to various contexts, be reconfigurable, and should be of high-performance to facilitate ad hoc communication among objects. In this paper, an adaptive middleware, which is reconfigurable and context sensitive, is presented for applications in ubiquitous computing environments.
The Sensitivity of Simulated Shallow Cumulus Convection and Cold Pools to Microphysics

The sensitivity of nested WRF simulations of precipitating shallow marine cumuli and cold pools to microphysical parameterization is examined. The simulations differ only in their use of two widely used doublemomentrain microphysical schemes:theThompsonandMorrisonschemes.Bothsimulationsproducesimilar mesoscale variability, with the Thompson scheme producing more weak cold pools and the Morrison scheme producing more strong cold pools, which are associated with more intense shallow convection. The most robust difference is that the cloud cover and LWP are significantly larger in the Morrison simulation than in the Thompson simulation. One-dimensional kinematic simulations confirm that dynamical feedbacks do not mask the impact of microphysics. These also help elucidate that a slower autoconversion process along with a strongeraccretionprocessexplainstheMorrisonscheme’shighercloudfractionforasimilarrainmixingratio. Differences in the raindrop terminal fall speed parameters explain the higher evaporation rate of the Thompson scheme at moderate surface rain rates. Given the implications of the cloud-cover differences for the radiative forcing of the expansive trade wind regime, the microphysical scheme should be considered carefully when simulating precipitating shallow marine cumulus.
On the cyclopean eye : Saccadic asymmetry and the reliability of perceived straight-ahead

Abstract If two targets are both on the visual axis of one eye or the other, and binocular fixation is shifted from the farther one to the nearer, the aligned eye consistently makes an initial, seemingly pointless saccade in a temporal direction. The size of those saccades typically differs markedly, depending on whether the targets are aligned with the observer's dominant or non-dominant eye. Pickwell [(1972) Vision Research, 12 , 1499–1507] proposed that this binocular asymmetry in oculomotor performance reflects a subject-specific lateral displacement of the egocenter (the “binoculus” of Hering, which has traditionally been assumed to be on the midline). An empirical test of Pickwell's widely endorsed hypothesis has now been conducted and the proposal has been found wanting. In an otherwise darkened room, subjects were required repeatedly to set a small light to a perceived straight-ahead location in the horizontal plane, first for a target at 300 cm distance and then for one at 30 cm. Extrapolation of a line that connects the two averages of those settings to the inter-ocular axis provides an estimate of the subjective egocenter to which visual directions are referred. Contrary to Pickwell's proposal, those locations of the inferred egocenter were usually quite near the midline, and were completely uncorrelated with same-subject data on the extent of saccadic asymmetry at the onset of asymmetrical convergence. The data on perceived straight-ahead underlying this result indicate the availability of extraretinal information about eye orientation that is quite precise at a given moment (median standard deviation of 47 min arc) but conspicuously non-stationary over several-minute intervals (monotonic drifts in sequential settings being very common).
Public interest accounting: A look at the issues

Abstract Within the last ten years, a very unique and controversial accounting organization, Accountants for the Public Interest, has been developed to assist previously unrepresented citizens and organizations in financial matters involving issues of broad public concern. This paper examines the fundamental issues that must be resolved in the minds of practicing accountants as regards implementation of the services, if the public interest accounting concept is to survive.
Childhood school segregation and later life sense of control and physical performance in the African American Health cohort.

Background The association between childhood school desegregation and later life sense of control and physical performance among African Americans is not clear. We hypothesized that childhood school desegregation adversely affected the sense of control of in later life, and that this reduced sense of control accounts in part for reduced physical performance.
A simple sensorless algorithm for an interior permanent magnet synchronous motor using a flux observer

This paper proposes a simple sensorless algorithm for an interior permanent magnet synchronous motor (IPMSM) using a flux observer in the stator reference frame. The rotor position is estimated easily from flux linkages in the stator reference frame. Since the flux linkages are calculated from the motor voltages and currents in the stationary reference frame, an open-loop start-up method in which a constant current vector rotates is used. The proposed algorithm is demonstrated with experimental results.
Phosphatidylserine synthase I and II of mammalian cells

Phosphatidylserine (PtdSer) in mammalian cells is synthesized through an exchange of free L-serine for the base moiety of pre-existing phospholipids. Studies on PtdSer biosynthesis in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells have suggested that the serine base-exchange is catalyzed by at least two different enzymes; one, named PtdSer synthase I (PSS I), uses phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) and possibly phosphatidylethanolamine (PtdEtn) as phosphatidyl donors for the serine base-exchange, and the other, named PtdSer synthase II (PSS II), uses PtdEtn but not PtdCho as a phosphatidyl donor. Recently, cDNAs of the PSS I and II have been isolated from CHO-K1 cells. This review will briefly describe the current understanding of PtdSer synthases of mammalian cells, mainly CHO cells.
Production of excited cesium ions in helium-cesium afterglows

Studies of the time dependencies of the Csii spectral emission and ${\mathrm{He}}^{m}(2^{3}S)$ number density were made during the decay period of plasmas produced in helium-cesium gas mixtures. Transitions originating from 15 Csii energy levels (in the spectral range from 380 to 750 nm) were observed in the afterglow. One Csii energy level is produced by the Penning ionization of Cs by ${\mathrm{He}}^{m}(2^{3}S)$. Six Csii excited states are populated by charge exchange between ${\mathrm{He}}_{2}^{+}$ and Cs, and the remaining Csii energy levels are formed by an excitationtransfer process between ${\mathrm{He}}^{m}(2^{3}S)$ and ${\mathrm{Cs}}^{+}$. No evidence was found for the production of excited cesium ions by charge transfer between ${\mathrm{He}}^{+}$ and Cs. A value of 7\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}10}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{3}$${\mathrm{sec}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ was measured for the reaction-rate constant for energy exchange between ${\mathrm{He}}^{m}(2^{3}S)$ and Cs.
Filling the green gap : A first-principles study of the LiMg1-xZnxN alloy

The lack of an efficient emitter in the 500-600nm range is limiting the adoption of LEDs for indoor lighting applications. The degradation in performance of current InGaN alloys in this range is due to the large lattice mismatch between InN and GaN and associated alloy phase instabilities. We propose and investigate, using first-principles methods, the electronic structure of an alternative LiMg1-xZnxN alloy which has the potential to fill this gap. The small lattice mismatch between LiMgN and LiZnN, along with electronic band gaps spanning the visible range, make them, in principle, ideal candidates for white LED applications. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
The Investment Opportunity Set and the Long-Term Debt Decision of U.S. Lodging Firms:

This article investigates, in further detail, a previously researched positive relationship between long-term debt and growth opportunities in the U.S. lodging industry. In addition to utilizing va...
Cationic ferritin and segmental flow through the trabecular meshwork.

PURPOSE. To determine whether segmental labeling by the tracer molecule cationic ferritin (CF) is indicative of preferential patterns of fluid flow in the trabecular meshwork or of differences in cell and extracellular matrix properties. Nonlabeled regions could indicate no fluid entering that area, insufficient perfusion time, or that the cells and extracellular matrix differ in that region and cannot bind CF. METHODS. Six whole eyes (three normal and three with pseudo-exfoliation [PEX]) syndrome were perfused with CF for 30 minutes to 4 hours. Wedges of trabecular meshwork were dissected and some wedges immediately fixed. Adjacent wedges were placed in a CF bath before fixation. Transmission electron microscopy was used to analyze CF labeling. RESULTS. CF increased in the trabecular meshwork with increasing perfusion time. At 30 minutes, CF labeled mainly the uveal and comeoscleral regions. By 4 hours, CF was found diffusely through the meshwork, although a few isolated nonlabeled areas were still present. Wedges immersed in the CF bath showed fewer nonlabeled regions at all time points. Clumps of PEX material labeled more heavily in the periphery than the center, suggesting the clumps were less permeable than surrounding regions. PEX eyes otherwise had similar labeling patterns. CONCLUSIONS. Segmental labeling with CF implies regions of preferential flow exist in the meshwork. With increasing perfusion time, there were fewer nonlabeled regions. CF labeling of most regions of bath-immersed tissue suggests that nonlabeled regions do not differ in the characteristics of the cells, but rather that CF does not reach these regions.
Higher education reform in Estonia: a legal perspective

This article looks at the higher education reform in Estonia since 1988. Author shows how over a few years ‘university education’ as the meaning of higher education was replaced by much broader ‘post-secondary education’. Another important issue to be covered is the dynamics of the legislative reform—starting with the creation of normative regulations for new institutional groups, and as a second step bringing them into conformity with the Civil Code adopted in 1994. The final part of the article discusses various implications of the new legislation—related to funding, content of studies, and governance—on higher education. Particularly as related to private education it is concluded that most recent reforms do not encourage private initiative to offer higher education, and support orthodox positions with regard to content of higher education studies. This is considered of being not helpful for the development of the learning society.
The Formin Daam1 and Fascin Directly Collaborate to Promote Filopodia Formation

Filopodia are slender cellular protrusions that dynamically extend and retract to facilitate directional cell migration, pathogen sensing, and cell-cell adhesion. Each filopodium contains a rigid and organized bundle of parallel actin filaments, which are elongated at filopodial tips by formins and Ena/VASP proteins. However, relatively little is known about how the actin filaments in the filopodial shaft are spatially organized to form a bundle with appropriate dimensions and mechanical properties. Here, we report that the mammalian formin Daam1 (Disheveled-associated activator of morphogenesis 1) is a potent actin-bundling protein and localizes all along the filopodial shaft, which differs from other formins that localize specifically to the tips. Silencing of Daam1 led to severe defects in filopodial number, integrity, and architecture, similar to silencing of the bundling protein fascin. This led us to investigate the potential relationship between Daam1 and fascin. Fascin and Daam1 coimmunoprecipitated from cell extracts, and silencing of fascin led to a striking loss of Daam1 localization to filopodial shafts, but not tips. Furthermore, purified fascin bound directly to Daam1, and multicolor single-molecule TIRF imaging revealed that fascin recruited Daam1 to and stabilized Daam1 on actin bundles in vitro. Our results reveal an unanticipated and direct collaboration between Daam1 and fascin in bundling actin, which is required for proper filopodial formation.
The Community Dynamics of Source Water Protection: The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe

I report here on an environmental anthropology fellowship project that examined how Native American land use issues effect the ability of local tribal communities to adopt Source Water Assessment and Protection programs. My fellowship work was sponsored by the Community Development office of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe in Port Angeles, Washington. Project goals and activities were designed through a collaborative process involving the Elwha Klallam Tribe, EPA sponsors, and SfAA mentors, and included an ethnographic assessment of current Source Water Protection practices in the Elwha community, as well as a comprehensive analysis of how this local phenomena is shaped by policies and political trends at the national level. Key concerns included the status of land use planning, and how land use affects tribal and federal oversight of tribal source water protection programs.
Quantitation of virus-specific classes of antibodies following immunization of mice with attenuated equine herpesvirus 1 and viral glycoprotein D.

The antibody responses of CBA/J mice infected intranasally (i.n.) with either the attenuated KyA strain or the pathogenic RacL11 strain of equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) or immunized with recombinant glycoprotein D (rgD) were investigated using the ELISPOT assay to measure EHV-1-specific antibody-secreting cells (ASC) in the regional lymphoid tissue of the respiratory tract. IgG, IgA, and IgM ASC specific for EHV-1 were detected in the mediastinal lymph nodes (MLN) and lungs 2 weeks after i.n. infection with EHV-1 strain KyA or RacL11, or immunization with heat-killed KyA or rgD. EHV-1-specific ASC were present in the MLN and lungs at 4 and 8 weeks, but declined in frequency by fivefold in the lung at 8 weeks. However, i.n. immunized (2 x 10(6) pfu KyA or 50 microgram rgD/mouse) mice infected at 8 weeks with pathogenic EHV-1 RacL11 resisted challenge and showed eight- and tenfold increases in MLN ASC and lung ASC, respectively, by 3 days after challenge. In contrast to the intranasal route of immunization, intraperitoneal immunization yielded ASC frequencies in the MLN and lungs that were only slightly above those of nonimmunized control mice. These data indicate that immunization with infectious or heat-killed EHV-1 KyA, or rgD, induces significant levels of virus-specific ASC both in the MLN and lungs, a specific memory B-cell response, and long-term protective immunity. The finding that the numbers of ASC induced by the pathogenic strain versus the attenuated strain of EHV-1, which were virtually identical, indicated that the ability to generate a B-cell response is independent of and does not contribute to EHV-1 virulence.
Paraquat disposition in rats, guinea pigs and monkeys.

Abstract LD50 doses of 14C-labeled paraquat were administered to rats, guinea pigs and monkeys by gavage, and radioactivity was determined in excreta and tissues. Rat urine was analyzed for paraquat metabolites by thin-layer chromatography. [14C]Paraquat was absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and reached highest serum values 0.5–1 hr after administration. Disappearance of [14C]paraquat from serum was characterized by a rapid initial decline followed by a prolonged slow decline. Tissue paraquat values were higher than serum values in rats and guinea pigs. Relative to other tissues, paraquat accumulated transiently in the lung and reached peak concentration 32 hr after administration. In rats a major portion of administered paraquat was not absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. At 32 hr after paraquat, 52% of the administered dose remained in the gastrointestinal tract and 17 and 14% of the administered dose was excreted in the feces and urine, respectively. No radioactivity was recovered in expired air or flatus. Excretion of paraquat in urine and feces was prolonged in all species. In monkeys paraquat was measured in urine and feces 21 days after administration. Chromatography of urine from [14C]paraquat-treated rats revealed no metabolites. The primary pathologic changes induced by paraquat in the lung may be related to the transient uptake of the chemical by that organ.
Effects of laeA deletion on Aspergillus flavus conidial development and hydrophobicity may contribute to loss of aflatoxin production

LaeA of Aspergillus nidulans is a putative methyltransferase and a component of the velvet complex; it is thought to mainly affect expression of genes required for the production of secondary metabolites. We found that although Aspergillus flavus CA14 laeA deletion mutants showed no aflatoxin production, expression of some of the early genes involved in aflatoxin formation, but not the later genes, could still be detected. The mutants grown in minimal medium supplemented with simple sugars and on some complex media exhibited altered conidial development. On potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium the deletion mutants showed reduced conidial chain elongation, increased production of conidiophores, and decreased colony hydrophobicity when compared to the parental strain. The loss of hydrophobicity and the other developmental changes in the laeA deletion mutants could affect the ability of the fungus to produce aflatoxins.
Gold Nanorod Bioconjugates for Active Tumor Targeting and Photothermal Therapy

The mastery of active tumor targeting is a great challenge in near infrared photothermal therapy (NIRPTT). To improve efficiency for targeted treatment of malignant tumors, we modify the technique of conjugating gold nanoparticles to tumor-specific antibodies. Polyethylene glycol-coated (PEGylated) gold nanorods (GNRs) were fabricated and conjugated to an anti-EGFR antibody. We characterized the conjugation efficiency of the GNRs by comparing the efficiency of antibody binding and the photothermal effect of the GNRs before and after conjugation. We demonstrate that the binding efficiency of the antibodies conjugated to the PEGylated GNRs is comparable to the binding efficiency of the unmodified antibodies and 33.9% greater than PEGylated antibody-GNR conjugates as reported by Liao and Hafner (2005). In addition, cell death by NIRPTT was sufficient to kill nearly 90% of tumor cells, which is comparable to NIRPTT with GNRs alone confirming that NIRPTT using GNRs is not compromised by conjugation of GNRs to antibodies.
Abstract B39: Mechanisms of multidrug resistance in AMLs and selective targeting via small molecules

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a major hurdle in the treatment of cancer and there is a pressing need for new therapies. We have recently developed a small molecule, CXL017, with selective cytotoxicity towards MDR cancer cells. In this study, we offer new mechanistic insights about multidrug resistance in acute myeloid leukemias and present evidence for the selective therapeutic potential of CXL017 in the treatment of MDR AMLs. CXL017 significantly and selectively suppresses the growth of tumors derived from the MDR AML cells. In addition, drug resistant AML cells failed to develop stable resistance to CXL017 upon prolonged exposure. Remarkably, instead of acquiring cross-resistance, drug resistant AML cells exposed to CXL017 were re-sensitized to standard therapies (10 to 100-fold). Through gene profiling, protein characterization, and genetic up/down-regulation, we have identified several key signaling processes both at the transcription, such as Topo IIβ, and post-transcription levels, such as Mcl-1, that contribute to the multidrug resistance. Some of these changes also contribute to the selective sensitivity of multidrug resistant AMLs to CXL017. These results overall demonstrate the possibility of developing small-molecule therapies selective against multidrug resistance in cancer therapy upon gaining the mechanistic insights of drug resistance.
Sudden rise of crystal growth rate of nifedipine near Tg without and with polyvinylpyrrolidone

The crystal growth of nifedipine in the beta polymorph has been measured from T(g) + 50 to T(g) - 20 K, where T(g) = 315 K is the glass transition temperature. A sudden 10-fold rise of growth rate was observed as the temperature decreased from above to below T(g) accompanied by a change of growth morphology. This is the same phenomenon reported by Oguni and coworkers [Hikima T, Adachi Y, Hanaya M, Oguni M. 1995. Phys Rev B 52:3900-3908] for other compounds of lower T(g). The phenomenon persisted in the presence of 1% polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). The presence of 1% or 2% PVP had little effect on the growth rate near T(g) + 50 K, but reduced the growth rate by 100-fold at T(g) + 9 K. These kinetic features are relevant to predicting the stability of amorphous drugs.
Endurance Tests Are the Most Reliable Core Stability Related Measurements

Purpose: To determine the intra-tester reliability of clinical measurements that assess five components related to core stability: strength, endurance, flexibility, motor control, and function. Methods: Participants were 15 college-aged males who had not suffered any orthopedic injury in the past year. Core strength measurements included eight isometric tests and a sit-up test. The four core endurance tests were the trunk flexor test, trunk extensor test, and bilateral side bridge tests. Flexibility tests included the sit-and-reach test and active range of the trunk and hip joint motions. Proprioception via passive reposition tests of the hips and a single limb balance test on an unsteady platform were used to evaluate core motor control. Functional measurements consisted of a squat test and a single leg hop test for time and distance. Measurements were performed during two data collection sessions with a week’s rest between the sessions. Intra-class correlation coefficients were calculated to establish reliability. Results: The overall intra-rater reliability for all core stability related measurements ranged from low (ICC ¼ 0.35, left hip reposition) to very high (ICC ¼ 0.98, sit-and-reach). As a group, the core endurance tests were observed to be the most reliable. Conclusion: There are highly reliable tests in each of the five groups. Overall, core endurance tests are the most reliable measurements, followed by the flexibility, strength, neuromuscular control, and functional tests, respectively. Copyright 2012, Shanghai University of Sport. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Accounting for quality: Issues with modeling the impact of R&D on economic growth and carbon emissions in developing economies

The literature on climate policy modeling has paid scant attention to the important role that R&D is already playing in industrializing countries such as China, where R&D investments are targeting not only productivity improvements but also enhancements in the quality and variety of products. We focus here on the effects of quality-enhancing innovation on energy use and GHG emissions in developing countries. We construct an analytical model to show that efficiency-improving and quality-enhancing R&D have opposing influences on energy and emission intensities, with the efficiency-improving R&D having an attenuating effect and quality-enhancing R&D having an amplifying effect. We find that the balance of these opposing forces depends on the elasticity of upstream output with respect to efficiency-improving R&D, the elasticity of downstream output with respect to upstream quality-enhancing R&D occurring upstream, and the relative shares of emissions-intensive inputs in the costs of production of upstream versus downstream industries. We employ a computable general equilibrium (CGE) simulation of the Chinese economy to illustrate the difficulties that arise in incorporating these results into models for climate policy analysis, and we offer a simple remedy.
Maximal operators and singular integral operators along submanifolds

Abstract In this paper we prove, for certain values of p, the Lp boundedness of the maximal operator I Γ f( x )= sup h p.v. ∫ R m h(|y|)Ω(y′) |y| m f x −Γ(y) dy ( x ∈ R n ; n>m⩾2), where the supremum is taken over all measurable radial functions h with ‖h‖ L s ( R + , dr r ) ⩽1 and 1⩽s⩽2. Here Ω∈H 1 (S m−1 ), Γ(y)=(φ(|y|)y′,Ψ(|y|)). We also obtain the range of p for which the maximal operator above is unbounded. Moreover, we show that the singular integral T Γ f( x )= p.v. ∫ R m h(|y|)Ω(y′) |y| m f x −Γ(y) dy and its associated maximal function T Γ ∗ f(x) are bounded in L p ( R n ) for 1