cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Identifying Opportunities to Provide Family-centered Care for Families With Children With Type 1 Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

Abstract Study Purpose The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand, from the parent perspective, the experience of the family whose child has Type 1 spinal muscular atrophy (Type 1 SMA), in the emergency center, hospital, and clinical care settings to identify opportunities for improved family-centered care (FCC). Design and Methods This study used a qualitative descriptive design with individual or small group interviews guided by a semi-structured questionnaire. Reviewers used framework analysis to identify gaps in the provision of FCC and opportunities for improvement with respect to services health professionals may provide families of children with Type 1 SMA. Results Nineteen families with 22 children with Type 1 SMA participated. Results are organized according to eight basic tenets of FCC. Family-to-family interactions strongly impacted participants' decision-making and perceived level of support. Participants valued strong family/provider partnerships, feeling heard and respected by their providers, and receiving complete education regarding disease trajectory. Conclusions Our analyses revealed both successful application of FCC and gaps in care where FCC could have been used to benefit families who have children with Type 1 SMA. As a pediatric chronic illness affects the whole family, FCC is important in maintaining the providers' focus on the family during the child's care. Practice Implications There are opportunities for nursing, social work, care managers and others to engage as care coordinators to explain the family's goals and values to the medical team. Care coordinators help ensure understanding between families and providers, empowering the family to articulate their hopes and concerns.
Imaging assessment of cardioprotection mediated by a dodecafluoropentane oxygen-carrier administered during myocardial infarction

Abstract Introduction The objective of this study was to investigate the cardioprotective effects of a dodecafluoropentane (DDFP)-based perfluorocarbon emulsion (DDFPe) as an artificial carrier for oxygen delivery to ischemic myocardium, using 99mTc-duramycin SPECT imaging. Methods Rat hearts with Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) was prepared by coronary ligation for 45-min followed by reperfusion. The feasibility of 99mTc-duramycin in detecting myocardial I/R injury and its kinetic profile were first verified in the ischemic hearts with 2-h reperfusion (n = 6). DDFPe (0.6 mL/kg) was intravenously administered at 10 min after coronary ligation in fifteen rats and saline was given in thirteen rats as controls. 99mTc-duramycin SPECT images were acquired in the DDFPe-treated hearts and saline controls at 2-h (DDFPe-2 h, n = 7 and Saline-2 h, n = 6) or 24-h (DDFPe-24 h, n = 8 and Saline-24 h, n = 7) of reperfusion. Results SPECT images, showing “hot-spot” 99mTc-duramycin uptake in the ischemic myocardium, exhibited significantly lower radioactive retention and smaller hot-spot size in the DDFPe-2 h and DDFPe-24 h hearts compared to controls. The infarcts in the Saline-24 h hearts extended significantly relative to measurements in the Saline-2 h. The extension of infarct size did not reach a statistical difference between the DDFPe-2 h and DDFPe-24 h hearts. Ex vivo measurement of 99mTc-duramycin activity (%ID/g) was lower in the ischemic area of DDFPe-2 h and DDFPe-24 h than that of the Saline-2 h and Saline-24 h hearts (P Conclusions Significant reduction in myocardial I/R injury, as assessed by 99mTc-duramycin cell death imaging and histopathological analysis, was induced by DDFPe treatment after acute myocardial ischemia. 99mTc-duramycin imaging can reveal myocardial cell death in ischemic hearts and may provide a tool for the non-invasive assessment of cardioprotective interventions.
Automated patient linking for electronic health record and child welfare databases

There are 427,000 children in protective custody in the United States. A lack of integration between the child welfare data system and electronic health record systems complicates the communication...
Correction: Genome scanning with array CGH delineates regional alterations in mouse islet carcinomas

Nature Genet. 29, 459–464 (2001). Our paper was published online on 5 November. Regrettably, we inadvertantly omitted Norma Nowak from the list of authors. The correct list appears above; the corrected list of affiliations follows.
Introduction of Procalcitonin Testing and Antibiotic Utilization for Acute Exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Background:The majority of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) are triggered by nonbacterial causes, yet most patients receive antibiotics. Treatment guided by pro...
Predictors of mental health court completion

ABSTRACTWhile Mental Health Courts have been found to be effective in reducing recidivism, this is only if participants successfully complete the program. This study aimed to identify specific pred...
New seed collections of North American pitseed goosefoot (Chenopodium berlandieri) and efforts to identify its diploid ancestors through whole-genome sequencing.

Pitseed goosefoot ( Chenopodium berlandieri ) is an ecologically diverse wild/weedy North American species within the primary gene pool for improving South American quinoa ( Chenopodium quinoa ). Both taxa are 36-chromosome allotetraploids with subgenomes AA and BB. The A genome is found in a large number of diploids in the Americas, along with one Northeast Asian taxon, and was recently shown to be the maternal ancestor, while the paternal B genome is closely related to several extant Eurasian diploids. Two of our primary objectives were 1) to determine the extent of genetic diversity in the allotetraploid C. berlandieri-quinoahircinum complex and 2) to characterize the evolutionary path from polyploidization to domestication in these taxa. In an effort to survey genetic diversity, in 2018, we made seed collections of southern Texas, southern Great Plains, and New England coastal ecotypes of C. berlandieri as well as sympatric diploids. With respect to the second goal, we performed wholegenome sequencing of two Sonoran Desert Chenopodium A-genome diploids in subsection Cellulata and Andean cultivated C. pallidicaule in subsection Leiosperma . When paired reads were aligned to the whole-genome reference of C. quinoa strain ‘QQ74’, the match percentages were 99.31, 99.23, and 98.53 for C. watsonii , C. sonorense , and C. pallidicaule , respectively. These data strongly support C. watsonii as being the most closely related of these three species to the A-genome ancestor of quinoa. Ongoing sequencing efforts with a larger panel of diploids are aimed at identifying the maternal ancestor of C. quinoa and C. berlandieri , if extant.
Articulatory synthesis: nasal sounds and male and female voices

We describe the implementation of an articulatory speech synthesizer using a discrete circuit model that converts the acoustic equations into linear algebraic equations. The algorithm is fast, flexible and stable. Three experiments were conducted with the synthesizer to determine: (1) the effect of the sinuses on the quality of nasal sounds; (2) the effect of the velopharyngeal port opening on nasal sounds; (3) the effect of fundamental frequency, vocal tract area, vocal fold parameters and excitation on the synthesis of female voices.
Riparian land cover and hydrology influence stream dissolved organic matter composition in an agricultural watershed

Abstract Dissolved organic matter (DOM) represents an essential component of the carbon cycle and controls biogeochemical and ecological processes in aquatic systems. The composition and reactivity of DOM are determined by the spatial distribution of its sources and its residence time in a watershed. While the effects of agricultural land cover on DOM quality have been reported across spatial and temporal scales, the influence of riparian land cover on stream DOM composition has received little attention. Furthermore, the combined effects of riparian land cover and streamflow rates on DOM composition require investigation. To this end, a multi-year (2016–2018) DOM characterization study was conducted using bi-weekly water samples collected from seven sub-watersheds nested within the Little River Experimental Watershed (LREW) near Tifton, Georgia, USA. DOM optical properties were determined to assess compositional variations using UV–Vis and excitation-emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy coupled with parallel factor (PARAFAC) analysis. PARAFAC analysis indicated that DOM in the LREW was dominated by three humic-like fluorescing components of terrestrial, microbial, and anthropogenic origin and a protein-like component. DOM composition was influenced by riparian land cover and hydrology, and shifted towards recently produced, low molecular weight DOM with low aromaticity as the percentage of agricultural land within riparian wetlands increased. During periods of high discharge and high baseflow, the DOM pool was dominated by recalcitrant and terrestrial-derived material but shifted towards protein-like and microbial-derived with increasing cropland in the riparian area. The results of this two-year study indicate that the replacement of forested riparian buffers with agricultural land can result in altered DOM composition which may affect carbon cycling and downstream water quality in agricultural watersheds.
A Social Blow: The Role of Interpersonal Relationships in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

Abstract Background Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI; concussion) is a common and costly public health concern that exhibits diverse patterns of recovery, making ascertainment of prognosis difficult. Interpersonal factors are critical determinants of health and linked to both adjustment to injury and illness and may critically impact mTBI outcomes. However, their potential role remains largely unexplored at present. Objectives To provide a framework for incorporating interpersonal factors into the study and treatment of mTBI. Methods We provide a narrative summary of the existing literature on adjustment to mTBI and present an overview of interpersonal biopsychosocial frameworks for adjustment to injury and illness. Results We discuss ways of applying interpersonal framework models to the study of mTBI. In addition, we identified several factors or themes shared across frameworks that mTBI researchers and clinicians can integrate into their work. Finally, we discuss gaps in the literature and suggest directions for future research. Conclusions Adding an interpersonal framework to established biopsychosocial models in mTBI would allow for novel opportunities for prediction of symptom course and for the development of novel interventions.
Characterization of Chemically Modified Cottons by ESCA

ESCA has been used to study the composition of textiles and the changes produced when these textiles are treated with a variety of reagents capable of altering the surface and/or the bulk properties of the sample. From a measure of the relative intensities of the C ls and O ls signals obtained from blends of cotton and polyester, a determination of the percent composition was made. Conventional flame retardants for cotton fabrics consist of nitrogen and phosphorus resins which form polymers within and on the surface of the fibers. The oxidation state of the phosphorus was monitored as catalyst, reagent, and drying and curing conditions were varied. Additionally, the location of the flame retardant polymer relative to the fiber surface was determined. Some fluoro-chemical polymers applied to cotton produce both oil repellency and soil release properties. An ESCA examination of these treated fabrics in the dry and water-wet state indicate that some polymer inversion occurs in the wetting process.
Chemical composition of soil-associated ash from the southern California Thomas Fire and its potential inhalation risks to farmworkers

Abstract The increasing frequency and severity of wildfires poses human health risks, especially for those within burnt regions. The potential health effects of fire ash on farmworkers in orchards via inhalation exposure after fire is rarely studied. After the 2017 Thomas Fire, in Ventura County (California, USA), fire ash and corresponding soil samples were collected from several impacted orchards and analyzed for eight trace elements (TEs) and 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Results indicate that except for mercury (Hg), the concentrations of TEs and PAHs were higher in ash samples compared with the corresponding soil samples. In general, ash samples showed greater potential to expose farmworkers to health risks than the corresponding soil samples. One site had particularly high concentrations of As (778 mg kg−1), Cr (629 mg kg−1), and Cu (499 mg kg−1) in the ash. This location corresponds to a house which was burned during the Thomas Fire, which might have contained chromated copper arsenate as a wood preservative. Therefore, the existence of construction materials in orchards could add hazardous materials to ash deposited on soil. Furthermore, a monitored dust generation experiment was designed to obtain the particle emission factors (PEF) of soil and ash, which is an essential parameter for the calculation of inhalation health risks. A two-fold difference in the PEFs was found between ash and the corresponding soil sample. Hence, health risks through inhalation exposure from fire ash may be underestimated if the default PEF suggested by the US Environmental Protection Agency is used.
CRISPR Technology for Ocular Angiogenesis

Among genome engineering tools, Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)-based approaches have been widely adopted for translational studies due to their robustness, precision, and ease of use. When delivered to diseased tissues with a viral vector such as adeno-associated virus, direct genome editing can be efficiently achieved in vivo to treat different ophthalmic conditions. While CRISPR has been actively explored as a strategy for treating inherited retinal diseases, with the first human trial recently initiated, its applications for complex, multifactorial conditions such as ocular angiogenesis has been relatively limited. Currently, neovascular retinal diseases such as retinopathy of prematurity, proliferative diabetic retinopathy, and neovascular age-related macular degeneration, which together constitute the majority of blindness in developed countries, are managed with frequent and costly injections of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agents that are short-lived and burdensome for patients. By contrast, CRISPR technology has the potential to suppress angiogenesis permanently, with the added benefit of targeting intracellular signals or regulatory elements, cell-specific delivery, and multiplexing to disrupt different pro-angiogenic factors simultaneously. However, the prospect of permanently suppressing physiologic pathways, the unpredictability of gene editing efficacy, and concerns for off-target effects have limited enthusiasm for these approaches. Here, we review the evolution of gene therapy and advances in adapting CRISPR platforms to suppress retinal angiogenesis. We discuss different Cas9 orthologs, delivery strategies, and different genomic targets including VEGF, VEGF receptor, and HIF-1α, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of genome editing vs. conventional gene therapies for multifactorial disease processes as compared to inherited monogenic retinal disorders. Lastly, we describe barriers that must be overcome to enable effective adoption of CRISPR-based strategies for the management of ocular angiogenesis.
Photoacclimation state of Thalassiosira weissflogii is not affected by changes in optical depth under a fluctuating light regime simulating deep mixing

Satellite-based remote sensing allows for global estimates of phytoplankton primary productivity by converting measurements of ocean color or photon absorption into units of carbon fixation. Models which perform this conversion often require an estimate of phytoplankton photoacclimation state such as the carbon to chlorophyll a ratio (C:Chl). Recently, our group developed a new photoacclimation model that can be applied to models of primary production. The model assumes that the phytoplankton photoacclimation state is not affected by periods of darkness during deep mixing beneath the photic zone, due to reduction of the plastoquinone pool in darkness and the subsequent deactivation of the signal for chlorophyll synthesis. In this study, we tested these assumptions by culturing the marine diatom Thalassiosira weissflogii under fluctuating light conditions simulating three different optical depths with progressively increasing deep mixing periods. The photoacclimation state, measured by the ratio of C:Chl, in T. weissflogii was not affected by changes in the length of simulated deep mixing periods. In addition, analysis of photosynthesis vs. irradiance (PE) curves showed that increases in optical depth caused decreases in both the maximum Chl-normalized rate of photosynthesis (Pb max ) and in the slope of light-limited photosynthesis (αb ), but had no effect on the half-saturation irradiance (Ek , another metric of photoacclimation). However, measurements of chlorophyll fluorescence during simulated deep mixing did not support the hypothesis that the PQ pool was reduced during dark periods. Thus, our findings support the use of the photoacclimation model for estimating primary production while suggesting the need for further research into the mechanisms controlling photoacclimation in the upper mixed layer environment of the ocean.
To move beyond the paradigms of Western medicine

In Inflamed, physician Rupa Marya and scholar Raj Patel use the concept of in­flammation to probe the many ills cur­rently plaguing humanity and the planet. The text moves uneasily between inflam­mation as a cause of illness, inflamma­tion as a signal that something is wrong, and inflammation as a framework for examining European and Ameri­can colonialism, which Marya and Patel consider the root cause of contemporary inequities.
Bionanofluids and mass transfer characteristics

Abstract Industrial processes are always on the lookout for the improvement of efficiencies through process and material design. Nanofluids entailing a dispersion of nanoparticles in a base fluid have garnered attention to their superior performance, while bionanofluids take this a step further in introducing bioconvection, accounting for the swimming motion of gyrotactic microorganisms. Their promising application potential makes them a topic of much interest through research and industrial development. This chapter works through reviews and presents information starting with the preparation and stabilization methods and principles of nanofluids to their current applications, focusing on mass transfer processes of bionanofluids. The chapter then reviews the various types of mass transfer processes, investigating the mechanism of enhanced mass transfer, moving onto mathematical modeling to understand the parity between mass and heat transfer. The review then delves into bionanofluids, their applications in mass transfer, and an elucidation of the models of their mass transfer. A conclusion and the future outlook are finally presented.
Low-Temperature Fabrication of Mesoporous Titanium Dioxide Thin Films with Tunable Refractive Indices for One-Dimensional Photonic Crystals and Sensors on Rigid and Flexible Substrates

Highly transparent mesoporous titanium dioxide (TiO2; anatase) thin films were prepared at room temperature via ultraviolet (UV) irradiation of hybrid polymer–TiO2 nanoparticle thin films. This approach utilized a UV-curable polymer in conjunction with the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 to form and degrade the organic component of the composite films in one step, producing films with well-controlled porosity and refractive index. By adjustment of the loading of TiO2 nanoparticles in the host polymer, the refractive index was tuned between 1.53 and 1.73. Facile control of these properties and mild processing conditions was leveraged to fabricate robust one-dimensional photonic crystals (Bragg mirrors) consisting entirely of TiO2 on silicon and flexible poly(ethylene terephthalate) substrates. The mesoporous Bragg mirrors were shown to be effective chemical vapor sensors with strong optical responses.
Proceedings of the eighteenth ACM symposium on Operating systems principles

At the dawn of the new millennium, it is useful to pause and reflect on the role of SOSP. It is hard to believe that SOSP is over 35 years old! The first one was held in 1965, long before many of the attendees of this conference were born. In those 35 years, computing has been transformed in ways that were unimaginable back in 1965. Somehow, SOSP has retained its reputation as the premier forum for research results in experimental computer systems. How has it succeeded in this role for so long?I believe that there are two reasons. First and foremost is the dedication and hard work of the many individuals who have served on the SOSP program committees. These are talented individuals with heavy demands on their time. Their willingness to devote a substantial part of that time to the SOSP review process shows their commitment to preserving the quality of SOSP. The second reason is SOSP's broad charter. In spite of the emergence of more specialized conferences in areas such as networking, mobile computing, reliability and security, SOSP continues to welcome work of the highest quality in those areas. This broad view of experimental computer systems has served SOSP well, and will continue to be one of its strengths as we discover further new dimensions to computing.This year we received 85 submissions: lower than in the past two SOSPs, but well within the observed long-term range. We accepted 17 of the 85, and nominated two as award papers to ACM TOCS ("Untrusted Hosts and Confidentiality: Secure Program Partitioning" and "BASE: Using Abstraction to Improve Fault Tolerance"). All acceptances were conditional, pending successful shepherding by a program committee member. This long-standing SOSP tradition has been an important factor in ensuring high quality. The reviewing process we used was a variant of one that has worked well in the past. Four program committee members reviewed each paper; each of those members also obtained one review from an external reviewer. Thus, most papers received eight reviews. In addition, each program committee member was required to skim about half the papers he or she did not review. This combination of deep understanding as well as broad familiarity with the submissions led to thoughtful and well-informed discussions at the program committee meeting. Some of the negative decisions were painful and heartbreaking: we felt that many of the rejected papers showed a lot of promise, and that improved versions would be strong future submissions to SOSP or other conferences. Besides the reviewed papers, the conference has three invited speakers, a poster session, and a work-in-progress session.
Contamination problems with reuse of laryngeal mask airways and laryngoscopes

Background. In many countries around the world reusable laryngeal mask airways (LMAs) are still in use despite the availability of cheap disposable LMAs. This study was designed to determine if the technique recommended in U.S. hospitals for cleaning of LMAs and laryngoscope blades is sufficient to prevent contamination. Materials and Methods . Previously used, cleaned, and autoclaved LMAs and laryngoscope blades were randomly collected from operating rooms and stained for 30 min at room temperature with erythrosinB dye. Two new and unused LMAs (negative controls) and two used and uncleaned LMAs (positive controls) were similarly stained. LMAs were rinsed with water and protein staining was evaluated by the investigators using specific criteria. In addition to the used and cleaned blades, an additional six used but not cleaned bladesacted as positive controls and two new blades were used as negative controls. Analysis of variance and two-tailed Fisher exact test were used to compare the difference in staining between various parts of the LMA. Results. Our data showed that 19/19 (100%) of the used LMAs had some degree of surface protein contamination, ranging from light to heavy staining. Moderate to heavy staining was present in 14/19 (74%) of these LMAs. The location of protein stains on the inner surface, compared to the outer surface or edgeswas statistically insignificant (P>0.05). For the laryngoscope blade portion of the study, the cleaned blades were statistically indistinguishable from the blades just removed from a patient's oropharynx. Conclusions. Cleaned, autoclaved, reusable LMAs and laryngoscope blades at a U.S.-based University hospital contained significant surface protein contamination. These results demonstrated that current cleaning methods are ineffective at removing LMA and blade surface proteins and confirm similar evidence from European hospitals. Hence reusing LMAs is not recommended. In our hospital, we now only use disposable LMAs while the laryngoscope blades follow the same cleaning protocol as before. The use of the Slater laryngoscope blade sleeves has been recommended.
Chromium(VI) Oxide–Quinoline

(CrO3) [1333-82-0] CrO3 (MW 99.99) InChI = 1S/Cr.3O InChIKey = WGLPBDUCMAPZCE-UHFFFAOYSA-N (quinoline) [91-22-5] C9H7N (MW 129.16) (mild selective reagent for the oxidation of primary and secondary alcohols to the corresponding carbonyl compounds under basic conditions) Preparative Methods: the reagent is prepared either in solid solid form prior to use or in situ in excess base in the presence of the alcohol.1 Handling, Storage, and Precautions: caution all chromium(VI) reagents must be handled with care. The mutagenicity of chromium(VI) compounds is well documented.2 This reagent should be handled in a fume hood.
Prosecution Complex: America's Race to Convict and Its Impact on the Innocent

Acknowledgments Introduction Part I. Fair Play? Prosecutorial Behavior Prior to Trial 1 Charging Ahead 2 In the Interest of Full Disclosure: Discovery in Criminal Cases 3 Plea Bargaining Pitfalls Part II. Beyond a Reasonable Doubt? Reasons to Doubt Prosecutorial Conduct during Trial 4 Preparation and Examination of Witnesses 5 Test Tubes on Trial: Prosecutors and Forensic Evidence 6 Closing the Door on Innocence: Improper Summations by Prosecutors Part III. The Fallacy of Finality: Prosecutors and Post-Conviction Claims of Innocence 7 Prosecutorial Resistance to Post-Conviction Claims of Innocence 8 A Closer Look: Prosecutors and Post-Conviction DNA Testing 9 In Denial: Prosecutors' Refusal to Accept Proof of an Inmate's Innocence Conclusion Notes Index About the Author
Performance study of a concurrent multithreaded processor

The performance of a concurrent multithreaded architectural model, called superthreading, is studied in this paper. It tries to integrate optimizing compilation techniques and run-time hardware support to exploit both thread-level and instruction-level parallelism, as opposed to exploiting only instruction-level parallelism in existing superscalars. The superthreaded architecture uses a thread pipelining execution model to enhance the overlapping between, threads, and to facilitate data dependence enforcement between threads through compiler-directed, hardware-supported, thread-level control speculation and run-time data dependence checking. We also evaluate the performance of the superthreaded processor through a detailed trace-driven simulator. Our results show that the superthreaded execution model can obtain good performance by exploiting both thread-level and instruction-level parallelism in programs. We also study the design parameters of its main system components, such as the size of the memory buffer, the bandwidth requirement of the communication links between thread processing units, and the bandwidth requirement of the shared data cache.
Methamphetamine mediates immune dysregulation in a murine model of chronic viral infection

Methamphetamine (METH) is a highly addictive psychostimulant that not only affects the brain and cognitive functions but also greatly impacts the host immune system, rendering the body susceptible to infections and exacerbating the severity of disease. Although there is gathering evidence about METH abuse and increased incidence of HIV and other viral infections, not much is known about the effects on the immune system in a chronic viral infection setting. We have used the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) chronic mouse model of viral infection in a chronic METH environment and demonstrate that METH significantly increases CD3 marker on splenocytes and programmed death-1 (PD-1) expression on T cells, a cell surface signaling molecule known to inhibit T cell function and cause exhaustion in a lymphoid organ. Many of these METH effects were more pronounced during early stage of infection, which are gradually attenuated during later stages of infection. An essential cytokine for T-lymphocyte homeostasis, Interleukin-2 (IL-2) in serum was prominently reduced in METH-exposed infected mice. In addition, the serum pro-inflammatory (TNF, IL12 p70, IL1β, IL-6, and KC-GRO) and Th2 (IL-2, IL-10, and IL-4) cytokine profiles were also altered in the presence of METH. Interestingly CXCR3, an inflammatory chemokine receptor, showed significant increase in the METH treated LCMV infected mice. Similarly, compared to only infected mice, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in METH exposed LCMV infected mice were up regulated. Collectively, our data suggest that METH alters systemic, peripheral immune responses and modulates key markers on T cells involved in pathogenesis of chronic viral infection.
Transracial Adoption of Children with Developmental Disabilities: A Focus on Parental and Family Adjustment.

ABSTRACT This study investigated the transracial adoption of children with developmental disabilities. Thirty-four families who had adopted a child transracially were compared with 63 families who had adopted a child inracially; additionally, we compared adoptions in 13 families who had adopted both transracially and inracially. The adjustment of mothers and fathers was gauged separately at three time points using measures of depression, stress, family strengths, and subjective well-being. Results indicated few differences in functioning between transracial and inracial adoptive parents. Mothers in both conditions maintained low depression scores and comparable means on all other outcome variables. Fathers also revealed similar adjustment patterns despite adoption type. Thus, parents experience both short- and long-term positive outcomes from the transracial adoption of children with developmental disabilities.
Sexual concerns in cancer patients: a comparison of GI and breast cancer patients.

Purpose Although sexual concerns have been examined in breast cancer (BC), these concerns remain understudied and undertreated for patients with gastrointestinal (GI) cancer. Objectives were to: (1) assess sexual concerns in GI cancer patients compared with breast cancer patients; (2) examine whether sexual concerns are stable over time in GI and breast cancer patients; and (3) evaluate whether sexual concerns in GI and breast cancer are significantly associated with quality of life, symptom severity, and disease interference, and whether these associations change over time.
Thrombosis During the Healing Phase

Twenty dogs were treated with either acetylsalicylic acid or a lactose placebo for 5.5 ± 2.3 days before surgical or chemical injury to the carotid and femoral arteries and for the following 34.5 days. Only the laboratory diener had knowledge of the random table used to select type of treatment until after all determinations had been completed. Following sacrifice the arteries were classified for the presence of intimal proliferation, defects in the internal elastica, presence of organized thrombi and the percentage of recanalization, and the presence of fresh thrombi and the percentage of occlusion. Thrombi were present in 8% of the arteries of dogs treated with acetylsalicylic acid and in 36% of those treated with placebo. This difference is significant (P<0.01). The degree of intimal proliferation and defects in the internal elastica were not significantly different between the two groups. We conclude that in dogs acetylsalicylic acid therapy during the healing phase following arterial injury protects ...
A fast and simple assay for busulfan in serum or plasma by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry using turbulent flow online extraction technology

Abstract Busulfan is used in myeloablative preparation regimens for hematopoietic bone marrow transplantation. Due to its narrow therapeutic range therapeutic drug monitoring of busulfan is recommended. In this study a fast and simple method for measuring busulfan in serum or plasma by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) has been developed utilizing turbulent flow online extraction technology. Serum or plasma was mixed with acetonitrile containing d8-busulfan. After centrifugation the supernatant was injected onto a turbulent flow preparatory column then transferred to a C18 analytical column monitored by a tandem mass spectrometer set at positive electrospray ionization. The analytical cycle time was 4.0 min. The method was linear from 0.15 to 41.90 μmol/L with an accuracy of 87.9–103.0%. Inter- and intra-assay CVs across four concentration levels were 2.1–7.8%. No significant carryover or ion suppression was observed. No interference was observed from commercial control materials containing more than 100 compounds. Comparison with a well established LC–MS/MS method using patient specimens (n = 45) showed a mean bias 1.3% with Deming regression of slope 1.02, intercept −0.02 μmol/L, and a linear correlation coefficient 0.9883. The LC–MS/MS method coupled with turbulent flow online sample cleaning technology described here offers reliable busulfan quantitation in serum or plasma with minimum manual sample preparation and was fully validated for clinical use.
Application of life cycle inventory analysis to fuel tank system design

Life Cycle Assessment is becoming an important tool for guiding environmental design improvements in the automotive industry. This paper reports the life cycle inventory profiles for two fuel tank systems based on a collaborative effort between the National Pollution Prevention Center at the University of Michigan, General Motors Research and Development, and the National Risk Management Research Laboratory of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Two 31 gallon functionally equivalent fuel tank systems used on a 1996 light duty vehicle were investigated: a multi-layer HDPE tank with a steel shield and PVC coated steel straps, and a steel tank with a HDPE shield and painted steel straps. Overall, the HDPE fuel tank system is environmentally preferable to the steel tank system based on the set of inventory results presented in this investigation. The Life Cycle Inventory analysis indicated lower energy burdens for the HDPE tank system and comparable solid waste burdens for both systems. The total life cycle energy consumption for the steel and HDPE tank systems were 4.9 GJ and 3.6 GJ per tank, respectively. The energy consumption and most of the air pollutants inventoried occurred as a consequence of the use phase. The solid wastes were generated primatily during the material production phase for the steel tank (13 kg) and during the end-of-life management phase for the HDPE tank (14 kg). This study also highlights data analysis and modeling challenges, including manufacturing and use phase allocation methods.
A comparison of the genetic and physical size of the streptomycin resistance locus in Pneumococcus.

Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the 30S ribosomal proteins derived from six streptomycin resistant strains indicates that each mutation alters the same ribosomal protein (str-r protein). Preliminary data utilizing SDS gels indicates that thestr-r protein has a molecular weight between 10,000 and 20,000 daltons. No significant differences could be detected between the molecular weight of thestr-r protein when it is derived either from a sensitive or from a resistant strain, including those derived from strains carrying multisite mutations of different genetic size. We have estimated the size of the multisitestr-r mutations to be less than 30 base pairs. Two factor crosses withstr-r markers in the trans position demonstrate recombination frequencies expected of closely linked, intragenic markers although cotransfer frequencies, of these same markers from the cis position, are very low. It is concluded that the cotransfer frequencies represent a marker effect and possible explanations are discussed. A reinterpretation of the genetic map of the pneumococcalstr-r locus is presented.
Error diffusion applied to the manipulation of liquid-crystal display subpixels

Flat-panel displays based on liquid crystal technology are becoming widely used in the medical imaging arena. Despite the impressive capabilities of presently-existing panels, some medical images push their boundaries. We are working with mammograms that contain up to 4800 x 6400 14-bit pixels. Stated differently, these images contain 30 mega-pixels each. In the standard environment, for film viewing, the mammograms are hung four-up, i.e. four images are located side by side. Because many of the LCD panels used for monochrome display of medical images are based on color models, the pixels of the panels are divided into sub-pixels. These sub-pixels vary in their numbers and in the degrees of independence. Manufacturers have used both spatial and temporal modulation of these sub-pixels to improve the quality of images presented by the monitors. In this presentation we show how the sub-pixel structure of some present and future displays can be used to attain higher spatial resolution than the full-pixel resolution specification would suggest while also providing increased contrast resolution. The error diffusion methods we discuss provide a natural way of controlling sub-pixels and implementing trade-offs. In smooth regions of the image contrast resolution can maximized. In rapidly-varying regions of the image spatial resolution can be favored.
MEAN AND VOLATILITY TRANSMISSION FOR LATIN AMERICAN EQUITY MARKETS

This study uses a two‐step GARCH‐M procedure to observe mean‐return and volatility transmissions between Latin American markets and to Latin America from external markets during the period 1993–2000. The results indicate that mean‐return transmissions are common both within region and from external markets. The volatility transmission results are consistent with contagion theory and indicate that traders use both domestic news events as well as information contained by volatility in other markets in their information set.
WAVE FRONT STRESS RELAXATION IN A ONE DIMENSIONAL NONLINEAR INELASTIC MATERIAL WITH TEMPERATURE AND POSITION DEPENDENT PROPERTIES

Abstract : Analytical solutions are obtained for stress, velocity and strain at the wave front in a suddenly loaded semi-infinite rod of a material with a linear instantaneous response and nonlinear inelastic response. The material properties are assumed to depend on position directly or through a dependence on a prescribed nonuniform temperature field. Detailed solutions are obtained for two examples - a nonlinear viscoelastic material with temperature dependent parameters and a rate-sensitive plastic material which may have temperature dependent parameters and yield point. (Author)
Inhibitory Plasticity in a Lateral Band Improves Cortical Detection of Natural Vocalizations

The interplay between excitation and inhibition in the auditory cortex is crucial for the processing of acoustic stimuli. However, the precise role that inhibition plays in the distributed cortical encoding of natural vocalizations has not been well studied. We recorded single units (SUs) and local field potentials (LFPs) in the awake mouse auditory cortex while presenting pup isolation calls to animals that either do (mothers) or do not (virgins) recognize the sounds as behaviorally relevant. In both groups, we observed substantial call-evoked inhibition. However, in mothers this was earlier, longer, stronger, and more stereotyped compared to virgins. This difference was most apparent for recording sites tuned to tone frequencies lower than the pup calls' high-ultrasonic frequency range. We hypothesize that this auditory cortical inhibitory plasticity improves pup call detection in a relatively specific manner by increasing the contrast between call-evoked responses arising from high-ultrasonic and lateral frequency neural populations.
Structure/function analysis of TDP-43 neurotoxicity in C. elegans

TDP-43 is a conserved RNA binding protein with known roles in mRNA splicing and stability. Cytoplasmic deposition of TDP-43 has been linked to multiple neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS and frontotemporal lobar dementia (FTLD). We have engineered pan-neuronal expression of human TDP-43 protein in C. elegans, with the goal of generating a convenient in vivo model of TDP-43 neurotoxicity. Full-length (wild type) human TDP-43 expressed in C. elegans is nuclear as is observed in human cells. Transgenic worms with neuronal human TDP-43 expression exhibit an uncoordinated phenotype and have abnormal motorneuron synapses. By using this uncoordinated phenotype as a read-out of TDP-43 neurotoxicity, we have investigated the contribution of specific TDP-43 domains as well as TDP-43 sub-cellular localization to toxicity. Deletion of either RNA recognition domain (RRM1 or RRM2) completely blocks neurotoxicity, as does deletion of the C-terminal region. These deleted TDP-43 variants still accumulate in the nucleus, although their subnuclear distribution is altered. In contrast, N-terminal deletions result in the formation of toxic cytoplasmic aggregates. Mutation of the TDP-43 nuclear localization signal (NLS) results in cytoplasmic deposition of fulllength TDP-43, which is not toxic. Mutations that alter two TDP-43 caspase cleavage sites (D89/219E), however, do not reverse TDP43 toxicity. Our results demonstrate that TDP-43 neurotoxicity can result from either nuclear activity of the full-length protein or accumulation of cytoplasmic aggregates composed of C-terminal fragments. These results suggest that there may be (at least) two different mechanisms of TDP-43 neurotoxicity.
Unions and coal mine safety: Comment

In a recent article in this journal, Appleton and Baker tried to account for the variability in mine injury rates by using several variables, one of which we claim to be an inadequate measure of the climate for safety brought about by unionization. In this paper, we criticize their empirical work for lack of documentation, misinterpretation of analyses, and poor model specification; and their generalizations to global union effects and to specific union practices. We also offer several suggestions that could improve the applicability of future research to decisions about whether coal miners’ unions beneficially influence their members’ safety.
Radon levels in a Pennsylvania dial painting facility from measurements by Victor Hess

The U.S. Radium Corporation plant in Bloomsburg, PA, was one of two major radium dial painting facilities in the United States during the post-World War II era. Victor Hess, of the Physics Department of Fordham University, was responsible for radon breath measurements from workers at this plant. His room air sample results, over 300 measurements dating from 1949 through 1966, form a unique data base for reconstructing radium dial worker radon exposures in that era. Monday morning radon levels averaged about 150 Bq m−3, well below the tolerance level of 370 Bq m−3. That average is representative of radium dial painting areas of the plant. Most areas, particularly offices and technical support areas, had radon levels comparable to local residential averages. Levels in the radium laboratory areas throughout most of the study period were above the tolerance limit; the highest location averaged 603 Bq m−3. radon levels in laboratory areas were significantly reduced in the last six years of the study, but radon levels in other parts of the plant remained relatively constant. These values, because of time of collection, may modestly underestimate radon concentrations during work hours in much of the plant and significantly overestimate it in laboratory areas.
Why Analyst Overconfidence About the Functional Form of Demand Models Can Lead to Overpricing

Generally, profit predictions are made conditional upon a particular functional form. The typical caveat offered is that this is not the "true" demand model, but is instead some reasonable approximation. We show how the notion of an approximation can be explicitly represented using a random coefficient model. Our model nests the usual situation of complete model certainty as a special case. We go on to show how ignoring the uncertainty in functional form induced by approximation will lead to erroneous pricing decisions that may frequently lead to overpricing. For example, an inelastic, double-log demand model implies infinite optimal prices. This is clearly a nonsensical, analyst recommendation. We propose a more general form of the double-log model that allows for high confidence in the observed price range, but incorporates increased uncertainty about the adequacy of the double-log approximation as prices move beyond the observed range. The optimal pricing solutions for this new model are lower than those for the usual case with complete certainty. In fact, we find well-defined optimal pricing solutions even for in elastic double-log demand models. This is a finding of great practical importance, given that aggregate demand models tend to be inelastic for grocery categories, and that log demand models are frequently used (Hoch et al. 1995). We argue that the lackof recognizing uncertainty in the modeling process may par- tially account for why there is a seeming disparity between observed retail prices and the optimal prices implied by maximizing total category profits using estimated demand models (Little and Shapiro 1980). The problems of making optimal pricing decisions using double-log demand models calibrated with store-level scanner data have been recognized. Previous solutions are to constrain the results to achieve reasonable solutions (Reibstein and Gatignon 1984, Montgomery 1997) or to avoid these models altogether in favor of household choice models aggregated to the store-level (Vilcassim and Chintagunta 1995). Our assessment of the problem is that it is not necessarily an issue of model specification, but one of inference. In other words, double-log models fit well, but optimization leads to out-of-range predictions. Our suggestion is that inferences from an estimated demand model need to be approached with some caution. Specifically, uncertainty about predictions will always exist. If this uncertainty is incorporated into models such as the double-log form, then much better inferences can be made. It is our hope that this research will encourage others to think not only about model specification and estimation, but also inference.
Overweight and Obese Low-Income Women: Restorative Health Behaviors Under Overwhelming Conditions

In this grounded theory study we used semistructured interviews to explore how 16 low-income uninsured Midwestern United States women who were overweight or obese felt about their condition. Using grounded theory, we identified a central problem-overwhelming conditions exemplified by numerous stressors in the lives of the participants. Despite these overwhelming conditions, the participants identified numerous restorative health behaviors in five dimensions: health, economics, environment, knowledge, and commitment. Health care providers should be cognizant of their patients' complex lives and support them in identifying, adopting, and maintaining health-restoring behaviors that work for them.