cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Social Ecology of Violent Victimization: Individual and Contextual Effects in the NCVS

Multi-level research has shown that individual and community factors are important predictors of the risk for violent victimization. However, previous analyses have drawn different conclusions about the role of any given factor. These differences likely are related to variations in how violence is measured and to the fact that the data are drawn from different locales. The research presented here uses the 1995 National Crime Victimization Survey and tract-level census data to examine (1) how the risk of violence is distributed across persons and places in the United States and (2) whether empirical findings are sensitive to the operationalization of violence. Results show that some individual-level predictors (e.g., gender and race) are sensitive to the operationalization of violence, whereas others (e.g., age and marital status) are not. In addition, the impact of community characteristics on violence depends on central-city residence. In central cities, persons most at risk are in disadvantaged tracts, with lower proportions of immigrants. Outside central cities, the proportion of immigrants in an area increases risk, while community disadvantage has no independent influence. The importance of an empirical foundation for the development of theories of risk is discussed.
The Impact of Financial Institution Regulatory Change on the Financing of Small Business

This paper evaluates the impact on small firm financing of : (1) the Garn-St. Germain Act of 1982; (2) steps to reform the restrictions on commercial banks’securities activities imposed by the Glass-Steagall Act; and (3) the risk-based capital guidelines. The paper analyzes the impact of each of these initiatives in terms of the following effects: (a) the effect on the volume of funds flowing to banks and savings and loan associations; (b) the effect on the allocation of funds by these lending institutions; (c) the effect on financial institution concentration and competitive structure; and (d) the effect on regulatory attitudes, interpretations, and procedures. The analysis suggests that the Garn-St. Germain Act has benefitted small firms, the Glass-Steagall reform will have a largely neutral impact, and that risk-based capital requirements will be negative.
Improved Quality of Life After Continent Urinary Diversion in Pediatric Patients with Tetraplegia After Spinal Cord Injury

Nine patients with spinal cord injury from C4-C7 were interviewed about changes in quality of life after continent urinary diversion. Significant improvement was seen in the total score (p < .008) and personal development subscale (p < .012) of the Life Satisfaction Index for Adolescents (LSIA), the physical independence subscale of the Craig Handicap Assessment and Reporting Technique (CHART) (p < .043), the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) for toileting (p < .026) and bladder management (p < .016), and overall satisfaction (p < .007). We conclude that continent urinary diversion improved the quality of life in pediatric spinal-cord-injured patients with tetraplegia.
How to Perform an Economic Healthcare Study

Every society must face the challenge of allocation of limited resources to address healthcare needs. Orthopedic surgery is a specialty with some of the highest expenditures, yet treatments rarely address life-threatening ailments, instead targeting quality of life. It is therefore vital to demonstrate the value of these interventions through economic healthcare studies. Clinicians must understand the goals and methods of economic healthcare studies, which differ fundamentally from other clinical research projects. Economic healthcare studies frequently concern themselves with efficient care decisions, as well as equitable distribution of valuable care. Understanding and interpreting these results will help with allocation of finite resources and drive rational decision-making on both clinical and policy levels. While economic healthcare studies provide valuable information, the costs and benefits of medical interventions are frequently difficult to define. Despite these challenges, clinical researchers should study the economics of orthopedic care in order to provide optimal patient outcomes.
Human Factors Guidance for Building a Computer-Based Procedures System: How to Give the Users Something They Actually Want

Historically, “skill-of-the-craft” was the single measure of job qualification. In those days, no one gave workers a procedure to follow. Today, large complex industries rely on procedures as a way of ensuring the job will be performed reliably and safely. Typically, these procedures provide a layer of protection to mitigate the severity of an accident or prevent it from happening. While paper-based procedures have long been the standard way of doing business, there is increasing interest in replacing this format with Computer-Based Procedures. Though, the transition from paper to paperless can be more problematic than it seems. Some issues that have led to these problems are discussed here. It is hoped that, by knowing what these issues are, the same mistakes will not be repeated in the future. Mistake avoidance begins with a well-defined set of user requirements for the proposed system. Plus, it is important to realize that Computer-Based Procedures are likely going to be placed in a facility that has never used this type of technology before. As for any new technology, a new way of thinking must come with it. Otherwise, if attempts are made to intermingle old ideas with new ways of doing business, problems are destined to occur.
Development of the Robotic Approach to Pancreaticoduodenectomy

Though minimally invasive approaches have been readily incorporated into many areas of oncologic surgery, their use for pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) has been less widespread. However, with the introduction of a robotic platform, surgeons have been able to overcome the technical challenges that limited the adoption of laparoscopic PD. Robotic PD (RPD) can now be performed with the same safety and oncologic outcome profile as open PD and is the preferred surgical approach in our institution. Here, we describe our technique for RPD, which separates the procedure into seven component steps: mobilization, dissection of the porta hepatis and pancreatic neck, uncinate process dissection, gallbladder removal, pancreaticojejunostomy, hepaticojejunostomy, and gastrojejunostomy.
Resident Rounds Part III: Case Report: Metastatic Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma in an African American Female.

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is the most common skin cancer diagnosed in African Americans.1 Twenty to forty percent of cSCCs reported in African Americans are related to chronic scarring processes or areas of in ammation.2 Risk factors for developing cSCCs in patients of color include chronic scars resulting from burns, skin ulcers, and radiation sites; and chronic inflammatory diseases such as discoid lupus and hidradenitis suppuritiva.1 Although skin cancer only accounts for 1% to 2% of cancers diagnosed within African Americans, it is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in this population.1,3 Significant delays in diagnosis and treatment are largely thought to be responsible for this prognostic incongruity. The rate of metastasis in patients of color is 31%, compared with only 4% in Caucasians.4,5 Early recognition by physicians and increased awareness resulting in preventative measures by patients may decrease this noted disparity. J Drugs Dermatol. 2016;16(1):81-84..
What’s the Mission? Discursive Power and Human Rights–Based Language in Anti-Trafficking Organizations

One of the ways individuals or groups in power preserve their power is through the vehicle of language. As such, the message that an organization sends regarding its mission, vision, values, and or goals is just as important as the actual services with which it provides. Nowhere is this truer than within the realm of anti-trafficking service provision. Through content analysis of the mission, goal, vision, and value statements of 162 organizations who are funded to combat human trafficking, the research team examined how organization statements articulate a human rights–based approach. The study findings were that organizations who further the primacy of rights did it in four distinct ways: advocating for human rights seeing human rights as something survivors lack empowering survivors and viewing survivors as rights-holders. However, overall, there is still an under-utilization of human rights as a framework.
Reading the news on Twitter: Source and item memory for social media in younger and older adults.

Social media content is well-remembered, possibly because of its personal relevance and gossipy nature. It is unclear whether the mnemonic advantage of social media extends to a population less familiar with these platforms and whether knowing the content is from social media sources influences memory. This study examined how the presentation of news-like content in social media affected both item and source memory across two age groups. Younger adults (n = 42) and older adults (n = 32) studied tweets and news headlines that appeared in the format of Twitter posts or CNN headlines - these items were designed to be either congruent (e.g., tweets formatted as Twitter posts) or incongruent (e.g., tweets formatted as CNN headlines). For item memory, both age groups correctly recognized tweets more than headlines. Source identification was more accurate when format and content were congruent than incongruent. Signal detection analyses indicated that the source advantage for congruent items was largely driven by a bias to select the format that matched the content’s original source and that this tendency was stronger in older adults. These results replicate previous literature on the mnemonic advantage of social media content. Although both younger and older adults remembered the content of social media better than the content of news sources, older adults were more sensitive than younger adults to congruency effects in source memory. These findings suggest that older adults rely more on their prior knowledge of conventional language and style in traditional and social media.
Bounded-time recovery for distributed real-time systems

This paper explores bounded-time recovery (BTR), a new approach to making cyber-physical systems robust to crash faults. Rather than trying to mask the symptoms of a fault with massive redundancy, BTR detects faults at runtime and enables the system to recover from them – e.g., by transferring tasks to other nodes that are still working correctly. When a fault does occur, there is a brief period of instability during which the system can produce incorrect outputs. However, many cyber-physical systems have physical properties – such as inertia or thermal capacity – that limit the rate at which the state of the system can change; thus, a very brief outage is often acceptable, as long as its duration can be bounded, to perhaps a few milliseconds.BTR has some interesting properties: for instance, it has a much lower overhead than Paxos, and, unlike Paxos, it can take useful actions even when the system partitions or a majority of the nodes fails. However, it also poses a very unusual scheduling problem that involves creating sets of interrelated schedules for different failure modes. We present a scheduling algorithm called Cascade that can quickly find suitable schedules. Using a prototype implementation, we show that Cascade scales far better than a baseline algorithm and reduces the scheduling time from hours to a few seconds, without sacrificing quality.
Cambios y continuidades

This article intends to indentify and analyze key subjects in the contemporary investigation of political communication in Latin America. The premise of this analysis is that the study of media and political processes in Latin America helps to understand the contributions of regional studies to the rest of the field. Although the role of regional studies has been extensively debated in politics and in comparative sociology (Bates, 1997; Hall & Tarrow, 1998), it still has not been sufficiently discussed either in political communication or in the field of communication. This is especially surprising considering the great number of studies dedicated to international topics as well as the predominance of globalization debates within the field of communication during the last two years. Upon this foundation, the analysis is organized around three themes central to current investigations about the region: the mediatization of politics, the challenges faced by media democracy, and the links between media, civic participation, and political conflict.
Ictal EEG in patients with autistic spectrum disorder and epilepsy

Abstract Objective Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder frequently associated with epilepsy and epilepsy is a leading cause of death in ASD patients. Despite growing interest in genetic, neurophysiological and clinical overlaps, data on ictal electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings in ASD are lacking since behavioral disorders often make it difficult to obtain EEG recordings. We examined ictal EEG features in a consecutive series of patients with ASD and epilepsy. Methods We retrospectively identified 400 consecutive patients with ASD and epilepsy at our Level 4 Epilepsy center between 2015 and 2019; 45 had at least one EEG-recorded seizure captured. Demographics, age of nonfebrile seizure onset, age of ASD diagnosis, language, magnetic resonance imagining findings, genetic testing and EEG studies were reviewed. Seizures were classified by semiologic and electrographic features. Ictal findings were analyzed. Results A total of 497 seizures were captured in 45 patients: 20 patients with focal onset epilepsy had 126 seizures (median: 1, range: 1-30), 17 patients with generalized onset epilepsy had 88 seizures (median: 2, range: 1-15), 7 patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome had 270 seizures (median: 12, range: 1-74) and one patient had both right hemisphere focal and generalized onsets (12 focal, 1 generalized). Significance Our study is the first to analyze a large set of ictal data in patients with autism spectrum disorder, a population traditionally difficult to obtain ictal recordings. Our results confirm the diverse spectrum of seizure types and provide clinical-EEG correlates of seizures in ASD patients. Both focal-onset and generalized-onset seizures were recorded, confirming that ASD patients have higher rates of both focal and generalized epilepsy syndromes. Among patients with focal epilepsy, temporal and frontal onsets were frequent, suggesting the possibility of epilepsy surgery or brain stimulation. EEG to classify seizures and epilepsies is critical to determine therapeutic options and effort should be made to obtain EEGs in this heterogenous population.
Depth-bounded Graph Partitioning Algorithm and Dual Clocking Method for Realization of Superconducting SFQ Circuits

Superconducting Single Flux Quantum (SFQ) logic with switching delay of 1ps and switching energy of 10−19J is a potential emerging candidate for replacing Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) to achieve very high speed and ultra energy efficiency. Conventional SFQ circuits need Full Path Balancing (FPB), which tends to require insertion of many path balancing buffers (D-Flip-Flops). FPB method increases total power consumption as well as total area of the chip. This article presents a novel scheme for realization of superconducting SFQ circuits by introducing a new depth-bounded graph partitioning algorithm in combination with a dual clocking method (slow and fast clock pulses) that minimizes the aforesaid path balancing overheads. Experimental results show that the proposed solution reduces total number of path balancing buffers and total static power consumption by an average of 2.68× and 60%, respectively, when compared to the best of other methods for realizing SFQ circuits. However, our scheme degrades the peak throughput; therefore, it is especially valuable when the actual throughput of the SFQ circuit is much lower than the peak theoretical throughput. This is typically the case due to high-level data dependencies of the application that feeds data into an SFQ circuit.
Neural Network-Based Gear Failure Prediction in a Brushless DC Actuation System

Due to its inherent efficiency and reliability, brushless DC (BLDC) driven actuation systems are widely used in a variety of industries such as aerospace, electric transportation and industrial positioning. However, it is inevitable that various types of faults can develop in the actuator either from the BLDC motor or geared positioning systems. This paper, focusing on actuator load positioning system failures, proposes a data-driven based failure prediction method. Run-to-failure data is first collected from test-beds of specific BLDC actuation systems and then critical features representing system performance are extracted. There are also dynamic behavioral tests used, which are designed to provide discrete measurements reflecting system health conditions. Ultimately, based on optimized mapping between the two groups of information, a general neural network model is developed to establish a nonlinear trajectory model for failure progression. The model also allows for prediction of gear failure without the interruption of performing dynamic behavioral tests during continuous working condition. This approach provides for real time monitoring of system behavior as well as possibility of the predicting the Remaining Useful Life (RUL) of the actuation system. Although many efforts have been done to predict gear wear based on vibration signal, the proposed method is formulated within a "sensor-less" environment and makes full use of existing on-board sensing information, which provides the possibility of a closed-loop control system for life management.
Perceptions, beliefs, and needs of Japanese people with knee osteoarthritis during conservative care: A qualitative study

Patients’ perceptions and beliefs of disease could be influenced by their lifestyle and culture. Although it is important to understand their perceptions and beliefs toward disease to prevent and manage osteoarthritis (OA) through conservative care, this topic has not been investigated in Japanese people with knee OA. Therefore, this qualitative study aims to clarify how Japanese patients with knee OA experience and perceive their symptoms and disabilities, and how they face them during conservative care. Participants were recruited by purposive sampling. Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine patients (2 men and 7 women; mean age, 74.3 ± 5.5 years) with knee OA until data saturation was reached. Interview data comprised participants’ accounts of particular personal experiences of living with knee OA, including their perceptions and attitudes toward knee OA-related symptoms and disabilities. Two physiotherapists (one with extensive experience conducting qualitative studies) and four physiotherapy students conducted the interviews. Recorded interview data were transcribed verbatim in Japanese. Data analysis, including developing a coding scheme, was conducted based on a grounded theory approach. Two core categories were extracted from the data: ‘Negative experiences’ and ‘Coping with difficulties’. ‘Negative experiences’ included three main categories: ‘Self-analysis on the cause of knee OA’, ‘Difficulties in daily life due to knee symptoms’, and ‘Psychological barrier’. ‘Coping with difficulties’ included three main categories: ‘How to deal with knee pain and difficulty in moving’, ‘Information considered useful to cope with knee OA’ and ‘Importance of connecting with others’. Japanese patients with knee OA desired evidence-based information and to connect with other people in the same situation to solve problems related to their condition. To address patients’ concerns, medical professionals should conduct careful interviews and obtain information regarding patients’ past experiences, and understand their experiences related to knee OA. Symptoms and difficulties experienced by patients with knee OA should be managed by evidence-based information integrating their perceptions and beliefs toward knee OA.
Recovery of Function in Senile Dementia of the Alzheimer Type

From the standpoint of the clinical investigator, there appears to be no more difficult issue to address than recovery of function in diseases or processes which progressively deplete brain and behavioral function. Age or disease-associated changes in behavior might be compensated or alleviated in a variety or combination of ways, however. These include behavioral-strategy alterations, pharmacologic manipulations, administration of growth or trophic factors, and transplantation of neural cells into a donor brain, in either an orthotopic or heterotopic location. Each of these shall be discussed briefly, utilizing as a model the clinical entity of senile dementia of the Alzheimer type (AD). We shall speculate on the use of these various strategies to palliate or reverse the symptoms or biochemical changes associated with advanced age or Alzheimer’s disease
The Characterization of Individual Redox Ions in Glasses

The presence of particular redox states of multivalent elements in glasses {and in glass forming melts} control important physical as well as chemical properties of the glasses {and their corresponding melts}. Although the multivalent elements in glass-forming systems are typically the same as those encountered in aqueous solutions, the characterization of these elements in their various redox states may be quite different in the two solvent systems.
Probability of Ruin: A Useful Alternative to the Expected Utility Hypothesis in Firm Decision Making

In any science there are frequently periods of time during which alternative hypotheses hold the allegiance of competing groups of scholars. When the competing theories outperform each other with respect to different classes of phenomena, so neither is clearly and universally superior to the other, then both theories will be adhered to for long periods of time even though they may contradict each other in part. In such circumstances, neither theory is a valid interpretation of the data, but pragmatism dictates using each wherever part of the theory seems to provide useful predictions. Such has been the situation in physics for some years with respect to the debate between the quantum and wave theories.
Lived Experiences of Nursing Autonomy: a Phenomenological Exploration

ABSTRACT LIVED EXPERIENCES OF NURSING AUTONOMY: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL EXPLORATION by Rebekah Dubrosky The University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, 2015 Under the Supervision of Professor Mary Jo Baisch The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the meaning that acute care, bedside nurses’ assign to their autonomous actions. A feminist critique of the nursing work environment was applied using standpoint theory. This was balanced and supplemented by a post-modern critique using Foucault’s method of assessing power and knowledge in relation to the discipline of a profession. This study was designed to explore how issues of gender, knowledge, and power affected participants’ interpretations of their autonomous actions. This study used a qualitative, phenomenological approach with an emergent design. Purposive sampling was used to find registered nurses currently working in acute care settings and whose only form of practice was the provision of direct patient care. 10 Participants were recruited by email and snowball sampling and were from a wide variety of specialty areas. Data were collected using three semi-structured interviews. Each participant was interviewed three times, which allowed for an in-depth exploration of the issues of autonomy, gender, and power. The interviews were audio-recorded and then transcribed verbatim. The transcribed interviews were analyzed using DEDOOSETM, a ￼!ii web-based qualitative data management software program designed to facilitate analysis of qualitative data. Participants revealed that the context in which they acted was crucial to their autonomy. Poor nurse-physician relationships and fear created a negative context in which autonomy was inhibited while trust and respect created an environment in which autonomy could flourish. For these participants autonomy meant that they were able to do the right thing for their patients and it led to positive patient outcomes. Participants felt that gender issues negatively impacted their relationships with physicians which in turn negatively impacted their autonomy. While most participants discussed the positive benefits of nurse empowerment they had largely negative reactions to power in general. The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of gender and power on the autonomous decisions and practice of bedside nurses. It is clear that gender issues impact nurses’ work environments. Developing policies to improve nursing autonomy will require that we understand the social and political context in which these actions occur.
Hotelling's T-Squared Statistic

The T2 statistic is used to test hypotheses about the population mean vector μ and to obtain confidence region for μ when the covariance matrix Σ is unknown.
Design of Minimal-Order Observer for Singular Systems

This paper considers the design of observer for generalized state space systems. The design approach is based on the concepts of the Moore-Penrose matrix generalized inverse and the Drazin inverse. In contrast to the Luenberger observer theory, a new method is proposed which does not presuppose the observer structure. A further discussion on alternative design approaches is provided and it is shown that under certain conditions a direct method for the design of full and minimal-order observer is possible. Illustrative examples are included.
Recruitment of Chief Justices on State Supreme Courts: A Choice between Institutional and Personal Goals

We examine career patterns of 257 associate state supreme court justices and the conditions under which some of these justices were elevated to chief justice. We posit that recruitment of chief justice is used to advance judges' personal policy preferences in some instances, but in other states recruitment of this position is used to appease actors who can punish judges for objectionable decisions. We further hypothesize that chief justice control over opinion assignment shapes the recruitment process and the probability any given justice will become chief justice. Results show that the recruitment process leads associate justices to choose chief justices based on policy goals when this position is afforded the power to control opinion assignment. In these states, the median member of the court has the greatest probability of becoming chief justice. Alternatively, when the chief justice lacks opinion assignment control, institutional goals influence the decisions made by associate justices.
Cytosolic phospholipase A2α blockade abrogates disease during the tissue-damage effector phase of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by its action on APCs.

Cytosolic phospholipase A2α (cPLA2α) is the rate-limiting enzyme for release of arachidonic acid, which is converted primarily to PGs via the cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 pathways and to leukotrienes via the 5-lipoxygenase pathway. We used adoptive transfer and relapsing–remitting forms of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of multiple sclerosis, in two different strains of mice (SJL or C57BL/6) to demonstrate that blockade of cPLA2α with a highly specific small-molecule inhibitor during the tissue-damage effector phase abrogates the clinical manifestation of disease. Using the adoptive transfer model in SJL mice, we demonstrated that the blockade of cPLA2α during the effector phase of disease was more efficacious in ameliorating the disease pathogenesis than the blockade of each of the downstream enzymes, cyclooxygenase-1/2 and 5-lipooxygenase. Similarly, blockade of cPLA2α was highly efficacious in ameliorating disease pathogenesis during the effector phase of EAE in the adoptive transfer model of EAE in C57BL/6 mice. Investigation of the mechanism of action indicates that cPLA2α inhibitors act on APCs to diminish their ability to induce Ag-specific effector T cell proliferation and proinflammatory cytokine production. Furthermore, cPLA2α inhibitors may prevent activation of CNS-resident microglia and may increase oligodendrocyte survival. Finally, in a relapsing–remitting model of EAE in SJL mice, therapeutic administration of a cPLA2α inhibitor, starting from the peak of disease or during remission, completely protected the mice from subsequent relapses.
Hyperbolic temperament and borderline personality disorder

Zanarini and Frankenburg (2007) described the "essential nature" of borderline psychopathology as involving intense and chronic inner pain deriving from a hyperbolic temperament that is mediated through interpersonal behaviors. These interpersonal behaviors can either provoke kindling events that promote the expression of borderline pathology or buffer against borderline symptoms. This study was designed to test this general hypothesis and to articulate both the temperamental and the mediating constructs implicated in this theory more specifically. A questionnaire containing the elements of this theory was administered to non-clinical (N = 545), clinical (N = 316) and treatment (N = 50) samples. Covariance analyses supported a hyperbolic temperament factor and four mediating factors labeled passive, agentic, validation seeking, and detached. Overall, validity correlations conformed to predictions in showing a strong association between hyperbolic temperament and borderline and other forms of personality pathology, and in demonstrating varying relations between the mediating factors with adaptivity, including psychiatric improvements in a treatment trial. The place of this theoretical model of borderline pathology beside other theories that tend to emphasize personality traits or interpersonal patterns are discussed, and clinical implications of the model are highlighted.
Allograft mitral valve replacement.

Allograft valves have been used in cardiac valve replacement for over 40 years. Early failures of allograft mitral valve replacement (AMVR) were attributed to inadequate allograft preservation or unsuccessful implantation techniques. Due to an improved understanding of mitral valve function gained from experience in mitral valve reconstruction, improved imaging techniques for preoperative assessment, and improved methods of allograft preservation, there has been a resurgence of interest in AMVR. The use of bioprosthetic valves in children and young adults is characterized by reduced durability and early valve failure. With the use of mechanical valves, there is a significant long-term risk of morbidity and mortality resulting from thrombosis or hemorrhagic complications from anticoagulation. Additionally, anticoagulation is often difficult to manage in children. The advantages of using allograft mitral valves include the avoidance of anticoagulation and the preservation of the subvalvar apparatus and its role in ventricular function. At our institution, successful early results with AMVR have been obtained in eight children and young adults with previous atrioventricular septal defects, previous placement of mitral valve prostheses, rheumatic valvular disease, and bacterial endocarditis. Our early results and those of others are encouraging for the continued use of AMVR in children and young adults. Long-term follow-up will be necessary to assess the durability and function of these allograft mitral valves.
Turning Gene Regulation on Its Head

Regulation of the trp operon in E. coli (which contains genes encoding enzymes that make the amino acid tryptophan) has been well worked out. The expression of the trp operon in other bacteria, such as B. subtilis, is less well understood. In a Perspective, Losick and Sonenshein describe new work (Valbuzzi and Yanofsky) that reveals the workings of the B. subtilis trp operon and the unique way in which this organism fine-tunes gene expression.
INTEGER-MAGIC SPECTRA OF CYCLE RELATED GRAPHS

For any h 2 N; a graph G = (V;E) is said to be h-magic if there exists a labeling l : E(G) i!Zh i f0g such that the induced vertex set labeling l + : V (G) i!Zh deflned by l + (v) = X uv2E(G) l(uv)
Biofilms in Chronic Rhinosinusitis

Bacterial biofilms are three-dimensional aggregates of bacteria encased in secreted exopolysaccharides and lack the vulnerability to antibiotics that planktonic bacteria demonstrate. Biofilm-forming bacteria are very common in the otolaryngology literature and have been demonstrated to form in chronic sinusitis, otitis media, chronic tonsillitis, adenoiditis, and device infections such as tympanostomy and tracheostomy tubes. Bacterial biofilms are a likely contributing factor to medically recalcitrant chronic rhinosinusitis. Tactics developed to treat planktonic bacteria are ineffective against bacteria in a biofilm. This helps explain a portion of the persistent and recurrent infections observed in chronic rhinosinusitis. Understanding how biofilms form is fundamental to developing rational strategies for prevention and treatment of biofilm-associated chronic rhinosinusitis. New investigations into therapeutic remedies aimed at eradicating biofilm infections are ongoing and hold promise for developing treatment modalities for individuals suffering from recurrent infections associated with chronic rhinosinusitis.
The irrationality of interscholastic football as a means of preparing adolescents for adulthood

A popular reason offered to justify the existence of interscholastic football is that the sport trains players for later life. Divoky and Schrag (1972) quote a high school coach: "They [the learn about work. They learn about criticism and about praise. They learn what liIe is going to be like." Football is an aggressive, often violent sport; the coach cited gives his players "an almost uninterrupted stream of abuse"; he apparently condones "a pool [among his players] for the man who will put the [opposing] quarterback out of the game," saying that iF the game is played correctly, "your opponents will learn to fear you and respect you" (p. 60). This argument does not withstand close scrutiny. It is doubtful that an employer outside of a military service would be justified or respected For treating employees with similar abuse or for condoning ~ h ~ s i c a J violence; and it is hard to imagine that any employee could claim self-respect for enduring it. The coach would probably not accept physical abuse from his colleagues; to allow adolescents to treat each other in such a way would seem to constitute highly questionable behavior. A second weakness lies in the stated goal of education. Education is a process of preparing children for later life, not a sink-or-swim type of project made to reflect anarchy or tyranny. Football's most apparent characteristics are the violent intimidation of protagonists and unquestioning obedience to instructions. These aspects of the sport are the very antithesis of the careful thought and discernment championed by the educational community. In any case, football is by no means a reflection of adulthood, but a celebration of youth. It entails depression when one's team loses and orgiastic triumph when i t wms. I t is not a form of adult-like steadiness and calm but childish histrionics-the overexaggeration of both happiness and sadness. Do these behaviors teach players about "what life 1s gomg to be like"? I t is doubtful that educatoa truly believe interscholastic football to be preparation lor adulthood. These are entertained by football. and despite its inherent violence and sexism show no sign of wishing to end it. The argument noted here is of no value, yet is cited in literature as justification.
Long-term outcome after pneumonectomy for nonsmall cell lung cancer

Long-term survivors (5 or more years) of pneumonectomy for nonsmall cell lung cancer are at risk for late death from cancer recurrence, second primary malignancies, and cardiopulmonary insufficiency related to the adverse physiological effects of pneumonectomy. A retrospective study of pneumonectomy patients was done to quantify the risks of late death from these causes. Of 246 patients treated for nonsmall cell lung cancer by pneumonectomy, medical records of 49 who survived 5 or more years were reviewed. Follow-up for the 49 long-term survivors ranged from 60 to 240 months, with a mean of 113 months. Twenty-five (51%) of the long-term survivors were alive at the time of the study. Twenty-four (49%) had died. Causes of death included late lung cancer recurrence (6 patients), second primary malignancies (7 patients), cardiopulmonary insufficiency (4 patients), and miscellaneous causes unrelated to cancer and its treatment (7 patients). Long-term survival after pneumonectomy for nonsmall cell lung cancer occurs in 20% of patients. Late lung cancer recurrence and second primary malignancies are important causes of death in these patients. Late cardiopulmonary insufficiency related to adverse physiological consequences of pneumonectomy is uncommon. Long-term follow-up is recommended after pneumonectomy for nonsmall cell lung cancer.
Leveraging field data for impact analysis and regression testing

Software products are often released with missing functionality, errors, or incompatibilities that may result in failures, inferior performances, or user dissatisfaction. In previous work, we presented the Gamma approach, which facilitates remote analysis and measurement of deployed software and permits gathering of program-execution data from the field. In this paper, we investigate the use of the Gamma approach to support and improve two fundamental tasks performed by software engineers during maintenance: impact analysis and regression testing. We present a new approach that leverages field data to perform these two tasks. The approach is efficient in that the kind of field data that we consider require limited space and little instrumentation. We also present a set of empirical studies that we performed, on a real subject and on a real user population, to evaluate the approach. The results of the studies show that the use of field data is effective and, for the cases considered, can considerably affect the results of dynamic analyses.
Model calculations of inverse photoemission.

The electron-energy distribution of inverse-photoemission yield at fixed photon energy is calculated for a one-dimensional model of the potential energy that allows for both a bulk band gap and a surface barrier with an image-potential tail. By varying the width of the band gap in this model, surface states can be transformed into surface resonances. The variations of peak locations, strengths, and widths during such transformations are examined in detail and compared with the predictions of simpler models.
The Gene e.1 (nudE.1) of T4 Bacteriophage Designates a New Member of the Nudix Hydrolase Superfamily Active on Flavin Adenine Dinucleotide, Adenosine 5′-Triphospho-5′-adenosine, and ADP-ribose

The T4 bacteriophage gene e.1 was cloned into an expression vector and expressed in Escherichia coli, and the purified protein was identified as a Nudix hydrolase active on FAD, adenosine 5'-triphospho-5'-adenosine (Ap(3)A), and ADP-ribose. Typical of members of the Nudix hydrolases, the enzyme has an alkaline pH optimum (pH 8) and requires a divalent cation for activity that can be satisfied by Mg(2+) or Mn(2+). For all substrates, AMP is one of the products, and unlike most of the other enzymes active on Ap(3)A, the T4 enzyme hydrolyzes higher homologues including Ap(4-6)A. This is the first member of the Nudix hydrolase gene superfamily identified in bacterial viruses and the only one present in T4. Although the protein was predicted to be orthologous to E. coli MutT on the basis of a sequence homology search, the properties of the gene and of the purified protein do not support this notion because of the following. (a) The purified enzyme hydrolyzes substrates not acted upon by MutT, and it does not hydrolyze canonical MutT substrates. (b) The e.1 gene does not complement mutT1 in vivo. (c) The deletion of e.1 does not increase the spontaneous mutation frequency of T4 phage. The properties of the enzyme most closely resemble those of Orf186 of E. coli, the product of the nudE gene, and we therefore propose the mnemonic nudE.1 for the T4 phage orthologue.
Implications of Qualitative Research for Nutrition Education Geared to Selected Hispanic Audiences

Abstract As part of a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-funded research project, Minimal Contact Education for Cholesterol Change, we used formative, qualitative research methods to adapt nutrition education materials for four major Hispanic subgroups living in southeastern New England (Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Colombians, and Guatemalans). Since culture, eating habits, and food terminology differed by group, our challenge was to develop Spanish-language versions of the materials that were culturally appropriate for all. To do so, we used formative, qualitative research methods, including peer-led individual interviews, focus groups, and shopping trips to Hispanic food markets.This paper discusses the formative, qualitative research methods used, the methodology for translation, the findings of the research, and implications for others involved in the development and adaptation of nutrition education materials for diverse Hispanic audiences.
Formation of In nanoparticles on InP wafers by laser-assisted etching

Indium nanoparticles were formed by laser etching an InP (100) wafer in a 10% chlorine–helium atmosphere maintained at ~5–8 × 10−5 Torr. The wafer was irradiated by a homogenized ultraviolet beam with a series of 50–4500 pulses at a fluence of 230 mJ/cm2. The surface was also irradiated using fluences from 50 to 340 mJ/cm2 with 600 pulses. The irradiated surfaces were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and Raman spectroscopy. Raman spectroscopy confirmed that the irradiated surface layer remains crystalline. According to EDS analysis, the surface particles are composed primarily of indium. SEM images show that the number of pulses and the pulse intensity can control the size distribution of the particles.
Proteomic analysis of endocytic vesicles: Rab1a regulates motility of early endocytic vesicles

Texas-Red–asialoorosomucoid (ASOR) fluorescence-sorted early and late endocytic vesicles from rat liver were subjected to proteomic analysis with the aim of identifying functionally important proteins. Several Rab GTPases, including Rab1a, were found. The present study immunolocalized Rab1a to early and late endocytic vesicles and examined its potential role in endocytosis. Huh7 cells with stable knockdown of Rab1a exhibited reduced endocytic processing of ASOR. This correlated with the finding that Rab1a antibody reduced microtubule-based motility of rat-liver-derived early but not late endocytic vesicles in vitro. The inhibitory effect of Rab1a antibody was observed to be specifically towards minus-end-directed motility. Total and minus-end-directed motility was also reduced in early endocytic vesicles prepared from Rab1a-knockdown cells. These results corresponded with virtual absence of the minus-end-directed kinesin Kifc1 from early endocytic vesicles in Rab1a knockdown cells and imply that Rab1a regulates minus-end-directed motility largely by recruiting Kifc1 to early endocytic vesicles.
Probing the surface electrochemical properties of electrodeposited metal layers by chemisorption of redox-active species: iodine on silver-plated platinum

Abstract The surface electrochemical properties of Ag layers electrodeposited on smooth polycrystalline Pt electrodes has been investigated by observing the changes in the redox behavior of iodine chemisorbed on the bimetallic surface at critical stages of the electrodeposition process. It has been found that: (i) the electrochemical behavior of chemisorbed I at a given Ag coverage is the same whether deposition was performed before or after I adsorption; I is always the outermost layer. (ii) I − ( aq ) is oxidatively chemisorbed as iodine onto the electrodeposit regardless of Ag coverage. (iii) Chemisorbed iodine can be cathodically stripped from the Ag electrodeposit; the redox potential for the I( ads )/I − ( aq ) couple on Ag is shifted by about −1.5 V relative to that for the I 2 ( aq )/I − ( aq ) couple; the chemisorption strength of zerovalent iodine on Ag is 220 kJ mol −1 larger than that of I − . (iv) Deposition of 0.25 and 0.5 layer of Ag yielded results which could be rationalized in terms of I desorption from two chemisorbed states: one coordinated to Pt, the other to Ag. (v) Deposition of one layer of Ag exhibited unique I coverage vs potential plots which suggested that the bimetallic surface consisting of one Ag layer on Pt substrate possesses distinct interfacial properties. (vi) The redox behavior of I chemisorbed on two monolayers of Ag was very similar to those of bulk Ag, signifying that the surface chemistry of two monolayers of Ag is identical to that of the bulk material.
Reaction mechanisms in organophosphate vapor phase lubrication of metal surfaces

Abstract This paper discusses the surface chemistry of a number of reactants and species that are probable intermediates in vapor phase lubrication chemistry. In order to understand the mechanism by which arylphosphates [(RO) 3 PO] such as tricresylphosphate [R=CH 3 C 6 H 4 –] react to form lubricating films on metal surfaces, several of the likely elementary steps are illustrated using experiments with model compounds on the Cu(111) surface. Trimethylphosphite [(CH 3 O) 3 P] has been used as a simple model for the phosphates and experiments suggest that the initial step in the decomposition mechanism is P–O bond breaking to form alkoxy groups. Other evidence suggests that under some conditions the decomposition of arylphosphates may be initiated by either P–O or the C–O cleavage to produce adsorbed aryloxy or aryl intermediates. The decomposition of aryloxy groups or aryl groups then leads to the deposition of carbon into the lubricating films. The chemistry of aryl, alkyl, aryloxy, and alkoxy species has been investigated on the Cu(111) surface. In either the alkoxy groups produced by P–O cleavage or the alkyl groups produced by C–O cleavage the presence of β-CH bonds has a strong influence on the rate of carbon deposition onto the surface. In the arylphosphates which would produce either aryl or aryloxy groups, the lack of β-CH bonds leads to greater rates of carbon deposition onto the surface than for either alkyl or alkoxy groups.
The Quantizing Effect of Potentials on the Critical Number of Reaction–Diffusion Equations

We give an almost complete characterization of the relation between the critical Fujita number of the equation Δu−Vu+up−ut=0 and the potentials V behaving like ±a/(1+d(x)b). Here a>0 and b is any real number. The only type of V not covered is when V(x)∼−a/(1+d(x)b) with b>2 and a is not small. It is interesting to note that when V=±a/(1+d(x)2) we are at a border line case where the critical exponent (depending on a) can vary from 1 to ∞. For all other V (except the ones the theorem does not cover), the critical Fujita number takes only three discrete values: 1, ∞, and 1+2n in the Euclidean case. We also obtain global estimates of Schrodinger heat kernels and a Liouville theorem for a semilinear elliptic equation.