cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
No one should die alone on our watch

Dying alone has never been a normative event in our society The coronavirus pandemic has precipitously created an environment of fear and panic, leading to the elimination of the dying vigil as a societal spiritual norm Many patients have died, and continue to die, alone in their beds without their families or loved ones Protection of healthcare workers and mitigation of legal liability are purported to be valid justifications for policies that have implemented these restrictions Yet, historically, the death vigil has been a highly valued event, and seen as an act of community and a spiritual event, in which the person is recognised as more than just a note in the medical record Two institutions developed policies that respect the death vigil while simultaneously remaining postured to protect healthcare workers These institutions defied the current trend observed in many clinical environments and refused to let patients die alone © Policy Press
The Amazing Bill Goddard

I first met Bill in the spring of 1965. My good friend George Hammond had told me that Bill was terrific and I should hang out with him.
Can MRI Differentiate between Infectious and Immune-Related Acute Cerebellitis? A Retrospective Imaging Study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Acute cerebellitis is an acute neurologic condition attributable to a recent or concurrent infection or a recent vaccination or ingestion of medication, with MR imaging evidence of cerebellar edema. MR imaging can confirm an anatomic abnormality and may allow the radiologist to establish a differential diagnosis. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the MR imaging findings in children with acute cerebellitis due to infectious versus immune-related conditions, in particular whether MR imaging findings allow differentiation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Electronic medical records were reviewed between 2003 and 2020 in our quaternary children’s hospital. Data included demographics and clinical records: presentation/symptoms, final diagnosis including acute cerebellitis and immune-related acute cerebellitis, length of stay, treatment, condition at discharge, and laboratory findings. Retrospective independent review of all brain MR imaging studies was performed. RESULTS: Forty-three patients (male/female ratio, 28:15) were included in this study. Average age at presentation was 7.08 years (range, 0.05–17.52 years). Thirty-five children had infectious and 8 children had immune-related acute cerebellitis. Significant differences in neuroimaging were the following: 1) T2-FLAIR hyperintense signal in the brainstem (37.50% versus 2.85%, P = .016); 2) T2-FLAIR hyperintense signal in the supratentorial brain higher in the immune-related group (37.50% versus 0.00%, P = .004); and 3) downward herniation, higher in the infectious acute cerebellitis group (42.85% versus 0.00%, P = .03). CONCLUSIONS: Acute cerebellitis is a rare condition, and MR imaging is helpful in the differential diagnosis. T2-FLAIR hyperintense signal in the brainstem and supratentorial brain may be indicative of immune-related acute cerebellitis, and downward herniation may be indicative of infectious acute cerebellitis.
IBM Personal System/2: a business perspective

Introduction IBM PERSONAL SYSTEM/2: A NEW BEGINNING: Meet the Family A Closer Look MODEL 50/60/80 OPTIONS AND PERIPHERALS: Displays Printers Memory Expansion Options Disk Storage Options Communications Options Other Options Option Compatibility Matrix USING YOUR MODEL 50/60/80 COMPUTER: Getting Your Feet Wet The Real Software - A Model Software Compatibility - Will PC Programs Work? Systems Application Architecture - The New Standard APPLICATIONS PROGRAMS: Application Program Alternatives Operating System Dependencies MODEL 50/60/80 OPERATING SYSTEMS: Introduction to Operating System Concepts Real Mode Operating Systems Protected Mode Operating Systems Operating System Summary Chart MODEL 50/60/80 COMMUNICATIONS: Computer Communications in the Office - An Introduction Terminal Emulation Local Area Networks and Model 50/60/80 Computers Appendixes Plotters Scanners Other Devices Cables Index,
Exploring Advanced Euclidean Geometry with GeoGebra

A quick review of elementary Euclidean geometry 1. The elements of GeoGebra 2. The classical triangle centers 3. Advanced techniques in GeoGebra 4. Circumscribed, inscribed, and escribed circles 5. The medial and orthic triangles 6. Quadrilaterals 7. The nine-point circle 8. Ceva's theorem 9. The theorem of Menelaus 10. Circles and lines 11. Applications of the theorem of Menelaus 12. Additional topics in triangle geometry 13. Inversions in circles 14. The Poincare disk.
Public Safety through Private Action: an Economic Assessment of BIDS*

Private actions to avoid and prevent criminal victimisation and assist public law enforcement are vital inputs into the crime-control process. One form of private action, the business improvement district (BID), appears particularly promising. A BID is a non-profit organisation created by property owners to provide local public goods, usually including public safety. Our analysis of 30 Los Angeles BIDs demonstrates that the social benefits of BID expenditures on security are a large multiple (about 20) of the private expenditures. Crime displacement appears minimal. Crime reduction in the BID areas has been accompanied by a reduction in arrests, suggesting further savings. Given the vital role of private individuals and firms in determining the effectiveness of the criminal justice system, and the quality and availability of criminal opportunities, private actions arguably deserve a more central role in the analysis of crime and crime prevention policy. 1 But the leading scholarly commentaries on the crime drop during the 1990s have largely ignored the role of the private sector (Blumstein and Wallman, 2000; Levitt, 2004; Zimring, 2007). The potentially relevant trends include: growing reporting rates; the growing sophistication and use of alarms; monitoring equipment and locks; the considerable increase in the employment of private security guards; and the decline in the use of cash (Cook and MacDonald, 2010). Private actions can be encouraged or discouraged through regulation of the insurance industry, reducing the costs of private co-operation with police and courts, gun control measures, and other means. The justification for such measures is the reasonable presumption that many sorts of private action to avoid, mitigate and respond to crime generate substantial externalities. Business improvement districts (BIDs) are a particularly promising institution for harnessing private action to cost-effective crime control. A BID is a non-profit organisation created by neighbourhood property owners to provide local public goods, including public safety. The organisation has the power to tax all the owners in the district, including those who did not sign the original petition. Previous evaluations of BIDs in Los Angeles (LA) indicate that they are successful in reducing crime rates (Brooks, 2008; MacDonald et al., 2009). We provide a further analysis of the costs and benefits, including the effect on arrests and spillovers, and we estimate a dose‐response
A nonlinear tracking controller for a haptic interface steer-by-wire systems

A nonlinear tracking controller is presented in the paper for the haptic interface in steer-by-wire automotive systems. Specifically, the controller is designed to ensure that the steering mechanism (i.e., directional control assembly) follows the operator commanded maneuvers at the driver interface. Further, the controller provides the driver with tunable force feedback, proportional to the reaction forces at the tire-road interface, and hence enhances the driver's performance. The controller ensures that the corresponding tracking errors are asymptotically forced to zero in the presence of parametric uncertainty; however, torque measurements are required. An extension is also presented that eliminates torque measurements.
Analytical expressions for average bit statistics of signal lines in DSP architectures

Accurate high-level power estimation methods are required for exploring the design space to obtain an, optimal low-power circuit. DSP architectures are regular and they consist of interconnected macro-blocks such as adders and multipliers. Previously the power dissipation of macro-blocks was related to the average bit statistics. Given the input word-level statistics for a DSP architecture, the word-level statistics at all the internal signal lines can be computed analytically using transfer function evaluation or by propagating the statistics. In this paper, we present simple analytical expressions for computing the average bit statistics using the word-level statistics of the signal lines in a DSP architecture.
Is Performance Tradeoff an Experimental Artifact

The purpose of the present study was to examine the utility of the resource notion, which is the basis for the secondary task technique of workload assessment. The unbiased optimum-maximum method proposed by Navon (1984) was used to manipulate task priority without conveying to the subjects that time-shared performance must tradeoff. Three task pairs that fell on a continuum of degree of shared resources were tested. The data showed that performance tradeoff is not an experimental artifact. Moreover, the data suggested that increased degree of shared resources led to increased resource allocation optimality and decreased time-sharing efficiency, as predicted by multiple resource theories. The present data suggests that resource theories are useful in explaining dual task performance, and that the secondary task can be a useful workload assessment tool.
Shelf life and changes in phenolic compounds of organically grown blackberries during refrigerated storage

Abstract Fruit of organically grown fresh market blackberry cultivars ‘Natchez’, ‘Ouachita’, and ‘Navaho’ harvested at shiny black and dull black ripeness stages were stored at 1 °C for 15 d or at 1 °C for 13 d plus 20 °C for 2 d. Berries were subjectively rated and anthocyanins and phenolic compounds were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine storage effects on berry postharvest quality and phenolic compounds. Berries harvested at the shiny black ripeness stage or those stored constantly at 1 °C had lower leakage, decay, and softness and a higher overall rating. ‘Navaho’ fruit had generally better storability compared to the other cultivars. Total anthocyanin content was generally higher in ‘Natchez’ and ‘Navaho’ than in ‘Ouachita’, and increased with storage at 20 °C for 2 d, while shiny black and dull black fruit were similar in anthocyanin content. Cyanidin 3-glucoside was found to represent 87–96% of the total anthocyanin content, and cyanidin 3-rutinoside, cyanidin 3-xyloside, and pelargonidin 3-glucoside were also detected. Total phenolic content increased during storage for all cultivars, especially when berries were stored at 20 °C for 2 d. Hydroxybenzoic acids were the primary phenolic compounds identified in fruit tissues of the three cultivars. Content and proportion of cyanidin 3-xyloside and vanillic acid in ‘Natchez’ were significantly lower than in ‘Ouachita’ or ‘Navaho’ fruit. Results indicate that the fruit of blackberry fruit of these cultivars, when grown organically, could be held with acceptable results when harvested at the shiny black stage of ripeness and stored at 1 °C. Transferring fruit to room temperature for as little as 2 d, even after cold storage, decreased marketability. In contrast, phenolic composition differed among cultivars and generally increased with storage.
Personal varrier: autostereoscopic virtual reality display for distributed scientific visualization

As scientific data sets increase in size, dimensionality, and complexity, new high resolution, interactive, collaborative networked display systems are required to view them in real-time. Increasingly, the principles of virtual reality (VR) are being applied to modern scientific visualization. One of the tenets of VR is stereoscopic (stereo or 3d) display; however the need to wear stereo glasses or other gear to experience the virtual world is encumbering and hinders other positive aspects of VR such as collaboration. Autostereoscopic (autostereo) displays presented imagery in 3d without the need to wear glasses or other gear, but few qualify as VR displays. The Electronic Visualization Laboratory (EVL) at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) has designed and built a single-screen version of its 35-panel tiled Varrier display, called Personal Varrier. Based on a static parallax barrier and the Varrier computational method, Personal Varrier provides a quality 3d autostereo experience in an economical, compact form factor. The system debuted at iGrid 2005 in San Diego, CA, accompanied by a suite of distributed and local scientific visualization and 3d teleconferencing applications. The CAVEwave National LambdaRail (NLR) network was vital to the success of the stereo teleconferencing.
Europium(III) complexation with alanine in water

Abstract A one to one complex is formed between Eu(III) and alanine in water, with the log of the complexation constant=−0.48±0.08 at 25 °C and an ionic strength of 1.0 in perchlorate media.
Thermodynamics of metal reactants for ammonia synthesis from steam, nitrogen and biomass at atmospheric pressure

Catalytic ammonia synthesis at approximately 30 MPa and 800 K consumes about 5% of the global annual natural gas production causing significant CO2 emissions. A conceptual solar thermochemical reaction cycle to produce NH3 at near atmospheric pressure without natural gas is explored here and compared to solar thermochemical steam/air reforming to provide H2 used in the Haber-Bosch process for NH3 synthesis. Mapping of Gibbs free energy planes quantifies the tradeoff between the yield of N2 reduction via metal nitridation, and NH3 liberation via steam hydrolysis vs. the temperatures required for reactant recovery from undesirably stable metal oxides. Equilibrium composition simulations suggest that reactants combining an ionic nitride-forming element (e.g., Mg or Ce) with a transition metal (e.g., MgCr2O4, MgFe2O4, or MgMoO4) may enable the concept near 0.1 MPa (at maximum 64 mol % yield of Mg3N2 through nitridation of MgFe2O4 at 1,300 K, and 72 mol % of the nitrogen in Mg3N2 as NH3 during hydrolysis at 500 K). © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 58: 3203–3213, 2012
A Multistate Empirical Valence Bond Approach to a Polarizable and Flexible Water Model

A new polarizable and flexible water potential has been developed based on the multistate empirical valence bond (MS-EVB) method. The model adds a charge-determination step to the simple point charge/flexible (SPC/F) potential. Two models have been developed: one that is polarizable only along the principal axis, and another that is polarizable in both directions within the molecular plane. The two models give nearly identical radial distribution functions (RDF) for the three site -site RDFs in water: oxygen-oxygen, oxygenhydrogen, and hydrogen-hydrogen. The new model exhibits a liquid structure that is more ordered than SPC/F but is still well matched to experiment. The gas-phase monomer and dimer properties of the polarizable models are much closer to the experimental result than is SPC/F. Experimental condensed phase properties, such as the bond angle, bond length, molecular dipole moment, and total energy, are also reasonably well reproduced. The static dielectric constant and self-diffusion constant of the model with two directions of polarizability are also reasonably accurate. The MS-EVB method is shown to provide a simple approach to including both polarizability and bond flexibility into a water potential.
Injectable and Photocrosslinkable Laminin Functionalized Biomaterials for Intervertebral Disc Regeneration

Biological and anatomical changes of intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration frequently occur in the nucleus pulposus (NP) [1]. Changes in NP matrix composition coincide with the loss of a distinct notochord derived cell population [2],[3], which may have the potential to generate or maintain a functional NP-like matrix. Immature NP cells reside in an environment rich in laminin and express specific laminin-binding receptors [4],[5]. Additionally, NP cells attach in higher numbers to laminins as compared to cells isolated from other regions of the IVD [6]. Our initial work demonstrated that matrix protein and stiffness modulate NP cell-cell interactions upon surfaces [7], with results that suggest soft, laminin-functionalized hydrogels may be useful for promoting an NP-like cell phenotype.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
Bonhoeffer, the Jewish People and Post-Holocaust Theology: Eight Perspectives; Eight Theses

Over the years since his death, dozens of interpreters - scholars, novelists, dramatists, filmmakers and devotional writers- have offered a variety of perspectives on Bonhoeffer’s relationship to the Jewish people. This article describes eight distinct, though overlapping and largely compatible, perspectives on this question. It then identifies the author’s own view of this important relationship by presenting and developing eight theses. The author concludes that the desire to portray Bonhoeffer as a guide for post-Holocaust theological reflection is based less in Bonhoeffer’s theological achievements than in the compelling nature of his witness and the dire need for Christian heroes from the Nazi era.
Zoster vaccine for the elderly

Understanding immune responses over time following natural varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection and vaccination is important with regard to the potential use of the newly developed herpes zoster (shingles) vaccine. This vaccine results in considerable reduction in the incidence and severity of zoster and its complications. Its impact on zoster epidemiology is anticipated to be significant, although further data will be necessary to plan its optimal use.
Dynamic Credit Rationing in the Home Mortgage Market

In this study a model of dynamic credit rationing in the home mortgage market by a profit-maximizing financial institution is developed. In the 1960s and 1970s it was widely believed that credit rationing was very important in the mortgage market. The recent deregulation and innovation in financial markets is belived to have resulted in a significant weakening of these availability effects. For the model developed it is shown that deposit diversification, such as the introduction of money market accounts in 1978, would tend to reduce the amount of any dynamic credit rationing that was occurring.
Effects of superoxide generated in vitro on glucuronidation of benzo[a]pyrene metabolites by mouse liver microsomes.

Abstract 1. 1. Glucuronidation of benzo[ a ]pyrene (B[ a ]P) metabolites, generated in situ by oxidative pathways, was studied using mouse liver uninduced microsomes. 2. 2. No coupling was evident between UDP-glucuronyltransferase and oxygenation of B[ a ]P. 3. 3. UDPGA protected microsomal macromolecules against binding of reactive B[ a ]P metabolites. 4. 4. Superoxide, and other reactive oxygen species decreased both the overall B[ a ]P metabolism and glucuronidation of some B[ a ]P metabolic products, and caused more extensive binding to macromolecules; UDPGA was less protective in this condition. 5. 5. Peroxidation of microsomes differentially affected glucuronidation of various metabolites of B[ a ]P, and of various model substrates, indicating that multiple glucuronyltransferases are involved in the conjugation of hydroxylated metabolites of B[ a ]P.
A new family of conjugate gradient methods

In this paper we develop a new class of conjugate gradient methods for unconstrained optimization problems. A new nonmonotone line search technique is proposed to guarantee the global convergence of these conjugate gradient methods under some mild conditions. In particular, Polak-Ribiere-Polyak and Liu-Storey conjugate gradient methods are special cases of the new class of conjugate gradient methods. By estimating the local Lipschitz constant of the derivative of objective functions, we can find an adequate step size and substantially decrease the function evaluations at each iteration. Numerical results show that these new conjugate gradient methods are effective in minimizing large-scale non-convex non-quadratic functions.
Biomechanical properties and correlation with collagen solubility profile in the posterior sclera of canine eyes with an ADAMTS10 mutation.

PURPOSE We examined the biomechanical properties and correlation with the collagen solubility profile of the posterior sclera in a canine model of primary open-angle glaucoma caused by the G661R missense mutation in the ADAMTS10 gene. METHODS Scleral strips from ADAMTS10-mutant (affected) dogs and age-matched controls were collected. Viscoelastic properties (i.e., complex modulus and tan[δ]) were measured using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) with a 0.15% sinusoidal strain at different frequencies superimposed upon different preloads. A tensile ramp was performed following DMA. The collagen solubility profile was examined using a colorimetric hydroxyproline assay to determine the amount of soluble and insoluble collagen. The viscoelastic properties were compared between groups using linear mixed models for repeated measures at different preloads and frequencies. The correlation between the biomechanical properties and collagen content were evaluated using Pearson correlations. RESULTS Complex modulus and tan(δ) were significantly lower in the affected group (P < 0.001), and the differences were consistent at different preloads and frequencies. The B value from the tensile ramp test also was significantly lower in the affected group (P = 0.02). The insoluble collagen was significantly lower in the affected group (P < 0.05) and correlated positively with the complex modulus (R = 0.88, P < 0.005). CONCLUSIONS An inherently weaker and biochemically distinct posterior sclera was observed in dogs with the G661R missense mutation in ADAMTS10 before clinical indications of optic nerve damage. It remains to be shown whether and how the altered scleral biomechanics may affect the rate of glaucoma progression following intraocular pressure elevation.
Jene Fabrik der Bücher. Über Lesesucht, ein Phantasma des medialen Ursprungs und die Kinder- und Jugendliteratur der Aufklärung

This text discusses the debate over reading addiction in the second half of the 18th century from the perspective of media history. It first points out how this discourse was shaped by the criticism of books and fiction within the philosophy and pedagogy of the enlightenment and examines essential aspects of the debate itself. In a second step it describes the late 18th century as a threshold of media history development that—not least in its explicit use of the theme of reading addiction—produced foundational effects that are functionally equivalent to similar other paradigm shifts in media history. The debate over reading addiction is thus shown to be the first important discourse on the damaging effects of media on juveniles in modern times; the arguments offered here are not only comparable to later debates on media—they set the stage. A final comparison of this debate with other discourses on media foundation shows that all of them—whether in the 18th or in the early 21st century—follow a model that Schramm and Roberts have called the "bullet theory" of media effects.
Periodic solutions of two species interaction models with lags

Abstract The classical Volterra-Lotka system of differential equations modeling the interaction of two species is considered under the assumption that the interaction and/or density inhibition terms may possess time lags (of a very general nature). Under the assumption that there exists a positive equilibrium, sufficient conditions are given which guarantee the existence of nonconstant, positive periodic solution. These conditions are algebraic in nature and are easily and straightforwardly applied. A few specific examples (namely, some predator-prey and competing species models) are discussed and are used to illustrate how lags are able to alter significantly the general dynamics of the classical equations. The mathematical approach is to construct periodic solutions which bifurcate from the equilibrium (using the net birth rates as free parameters) by making use of Liapunov-Schmidt type expansions, an approach which requires the proof of a Fredholm-type alternative for Stieltjes integrodifferential systems.
Delayed closure of the ductus arteriosus.

Seven infants are described who experienced respiratory difficulty soon after birth, recovered, and subsequently developed typical findings of a patent ductus arteriosus. Five of the infants were in severe protracted congestive heart failure. All recovered with medical management of the cardiac failure and have no residual evidence of cardiac disease.
Design Graphs for Thermal Contact Conductance of Similar and Dissimilar Light Alloys

An extensive set of graphical solutions is presented for thermal contact conductance of similar and dissimilar pairings of three light metals (i.e., aluminum alloy 6061-T6, magnesium alloy AZ31B, and titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V) widely used in aerospace applications. This graphical format greatly simplifies the process of making estimates of conductance. The plots encompass wide ranges of surface size (2 to 20 cm diameter), roughness (0.1 to 10 μm), and nonflatness (1 μm to 1 mm). The graphs were generated from a model developed by Lambert and Fletcher which compares favorably to the majority of 1265 experimental conductance results from the literature. Herein, the model has been revised, making it simpler and more accurate. A brief derivation of the model is included. Instructions on how to interpret the graphs are provided, as well as practical considerations in using and applying them. The model is compared to new conductance data for similar and dissimilar contacts of the three aforementioned alloys.
Discontinuous Galerkin Time Domain for Maxwell's equations on GPUs

In this paper, we discuss our approach on the GPU implementation of the Discontinuous Galerkin Time-Domain (DGTD) method to solve the time dependent Maxwell's equations. We exploit the inherent DGTD parallelism and combine the GPU computing capabilities with the benefits of a local time-stepping strategy. The combination results in significant increase in efficiency and reduction of the computational time, especially for multi-scale applications.
Lower extremity segment coordination during barefoot running

Running footwear is designed to control rearfoot pronation and to protect against running related injuries. Although several researchers have identified the benefits of running footwear (Divert et ...
Late-Onset Krabbe’s Disease Mimicking Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis

A previously healthy 3-year-old female presented with rapidly progressive neurologic deterioration. She was initially diagnosed with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis but was subsequently found to have late-onset Krabbe's disease.
Orientation or dis-orientation?

This study was undertaken in an effort to determine the effect of freshman orientation upon student perceptions of university environment, knowledge of university information, and attitudes toward the orientation experience. The most important finding was that orientation significantly influenced student perception of university environment, as measured by the CUES. On the Practicality, Awareness, and Scholarship scales, differences between the pre-test and post-test groups were found to be significant at the .01 level of confidence; on the Community scale the difference was significant at the .05 level. The interesting point is, however, that these differences were not in the desired or expected direction.
Requirement of vascular integrin alpha v beta 3 for angiogenesis

Angiogenesis depends on the adhesive interactions of vascular cells. The adhesion receptor integrin alpha v beta 3 was identified as a marker of angiogenic vascular tissue. Integrin alpha v beta 3 was expressed on blood vessels in human wound granulation tissue but not in normal skin, and it showed a fourfold increase in expression during angiogenesis on the chick chorioallantoic membrane. In the latter assay, a monoclonal antibody to alpha v beta 3 blocked angiogenesis induced by basic fibroblast growth factor, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and human melanoma fragments but had no effect on preexisting vessels. These findings suggest that alpha v beta 3 may be a useful therapeutic target for diseases characterized by neovascularization.
Formation of propranolol in the iris-ciliary body from its propranolol ketoxime precursor: a potential antiglaucoma drug

Abstract A new site-specific chemical delivery system (CDS) for propranolol was designed and investigated as a novel potential antiglaucoma agent. Effect of this compound, propranolone oxime ( 1 ), on the intraocular pressure (IOP) of rabbits was studied at two different concentrations (0.5% and 1.0%) by unilateral application to normal rabbits. Compound 1 effectively lowered the IOP at both dose levels, and its action was more prolonged and pronounced than that of propranolol (Bodor et al., 1988). Administration of 1 to the eye of rabbits was not associated with irritation, contrary to topical administration of propranolol. Propranolol ( 3 ) was detected in the different eye compartments for up to 2 h following administration of the oxime ( 1 ). Propranolol ( 3 ) was not, however, detected in the rat's blood following systemic administration of the oxime.
Crucible of Liberty: 200 Years of the Bill of Rights

Seven scholars - Kermit Hall, John Hope Franklin, Samual Walker, Stephen J. Whitfield, Paul Murphy, David Bodenhamer and James W. Carey - explore the history and contemporary meaning of the first ten amendments to the US Constitution.
FEM Voxel Modeling of the Tubular Embryonic Chick Heart for Finite Strain Analysis

Significant progress has been made in the study of the developmental biomechanics of the embryonic chick heart through the use of the finite element method (FEM) [1, 2, 3]. Our work focuses on the geometry of the Hamburger-Hamilton stages 9–12 embryonic chick heart, approximately the time when the heart begins to function and undergoes drastic morphological changes, such as c-looping. Our objective is to devise a method for building an accurate 3D solid FEM mesh used for nonlinear analysis of the myocardium (MY) and cardiac jelly (CJ). The models are based on the extraction of voxels from optical coherence tomography (OCT) images of an arrested developing heart. To alleviate the problem of jagged edges introduced by the hexahedral voxel structure, we present a method for geometric smoothing and mesh coarsening. The performance of the voxel and smoothed models are tested given physiological loading conditions (pressure, biological growth, muscle contraction), to ascertain which model should be used for modeling the c-looping process.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
739 INDIRECT EVIDENCE FOR IMMATURITY OF GALLBLADDER AND BILE DUCTDLAR WATER REABSORPTION IN THE NEWBORN DOG

Bile secretion in the dog is immature at birth and develops during postnatal life (Hepatology 2:717). To determine whether the developmental changes in secretory activity are associated with age-related changes in bile composition, electrolyte levels in plasma, gallbladder bile and hepatic bile were measured in anesthetized suckling puppies of 0-3 (n=3), 7-21 (n=5) and 28-42 (n=8) days of age and fed (n=4) and 24-hr fasted (n=4) adult dogs. Plasma concentrations (meq/1) of sodium (140-148), chloride (101-111), and bicarbonate (20-27) were the same in all animals. Gallbladder bile volume (ml/kg) was similar among puppies (0.2-1.7 mean=0.74) and fed adult animals (0.67±0.3), but significantly higher in fasted dogs (1.13±0.3). Gallbladder bile acid content was 65±11, 89±17, 144±27, 146±42, and 318±46 μeq/kg in these respective groups. Gallbladder sodium concentrations increased with age (176±14, 188±17, 217±18, 252±12, and 279±15 meq/1), whereas bicarbonate (43±9, 32±6, 14±7, 11±4 and 6±2 meq/1) and chloride levels (55±16, 33±11, 24±7, 16±7 and 6±2 meq/1) decreased. In spontaneously secreted hepatic bile, sodium levels increased (161±6, 167±8, 184±10, 176±12, and 179±12, meq/1) and chloride decreased (96±5, 87±9, 80±8, 74±9, and 60±14 meq/1) with age. Bicarbonate concentrations were similar in puppies of different ages (23±4, 22±4, and 19±6 meq/1), but higher in adult dogs (38±7 and 32±7 meq/1). Bile acid concentrations in these respective groups were 30±10, 14±4, 19±7, 49±7 and 78±12 meq/1. 14C-erythritol bile-to-plasma ratio also increased with age in the puppies (1.02±0.05, 1.05±0.08 and 1.24±0.11). In adult dogs, the solute ratio was higher in fasted (1.70±0.24) than fed (1.38±0.14) animals. These results support the view that, in the dog, the gallbladder and the biliary epithelium share a common mechanism for water reabsorption (Na-coupled Cl transport), and suggest that such a mechanism is immature at birth and develops during postnatal life.
Edge-Weighted Personalized PageRank: Breaking A Decade-Old Performance Barrier

Personalized PageRank is a standard tool for finding vertices in a graph that are most relevant to a query or user. To personalize PageRank, one adjusts node weights or edge weights that determine teleport probabilities and transition probabilities in a random surfer model. There are many fast methods to approximate PageRank when the node weights are personalized; however, personalization based on edge weights has been an open problem since the dawn of personalized PageRank over a decade ago. In this paper, we describe the first fast algorithm for computing PageRank on general graphs when the edge weights are personalized. Our method, which is based on model reduction, outperforms existing methods by nearly five orders of magnitude. This huge performance gain over previous work allows us --- for the very first time --- to solve learning-to-rank problems for edge weight personalization at interactive speeds, a goal that had not previously been achievable for this class of problems.
Structural characterization of semicrystalline polymer blends by small-angle neutron scattering

Abstract A series of phase-separated polyethylene-polypropylene blends, which have undergone different thermal treatments, have been analysed by small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). The coherent scattering from normal hydrogenated blends is virtually zero, but strong contrast may be induced by partial or complete deuteration (labelling) of either phase. Here, the scattering from blends with complete labelling of the polyethylene phase was analysed to provide the domain dimensions by means of a theory due to Debye using an exponential correlation function. By this means the mean chord intercept lengths of both phases were shown to be in the range 1000–10000A. The scattering from blends with partial labelling of the polyethylene was analysed to give the radius of gyration of the molecules in the polyethylene domains, which was found to be close to that measured in the homopolymer. For melt-quenched blends the deuterated polyethylene was shown to be statistically distributed in the polyethylene phase, whereas for slow-cooled blends, partial segregation of the labelled molecules occurred.
Merging traveling waves for the porous-Fisher's equation☆

Abstract We study a reaction-diffusion equation model for population dynamics. By focusing on the diffusive behavior expected in a population that seeks to avoid over-crowding, we derive a nonlinear-diffusion porous-Fisher's equation. Using explicit traveling wave solutions, initially-separated, expanding populations are studied as they first coalesce. The nonlinear interactions of the merging populations are examined using perturbation theory and the method of matched asymptotic expansions. Results are also extended to the axisymmetric case.
Effect of excess zinc on cadmium disappearance from rat plasma following intravenous injection.

Abstract Studies of the interaction of zinc and cadmium in the isolated perfused rat liver indicate that excess zinc in the perfusion medium inhibits cadmium uptake by the liver. In order to verify these observations in vivo , the effect of excess zinc on cadmium clearance from plasma in the intact rat was investigated at two cadmium dose levels, 0.15 and 0.30 mg Cd/kg of body weight. Cadmium disappearance from plasma was inhibited by excess zinc in a dose related manner at both cadmium dose levels. Greatest inhibition (55%) of cadmium clearance was attained at a Zn:Cd molar ratio of 17, the highest ratio investigated. Excess zinc in plasma (concentrations in plasma greater than 200 μmole/L) resulted in an increase in the volume of distribution of cadmium. A suggested explanation for this effect was displacement of albumin bound cadmium by excess zinc.
Falling intonation in the one- and two-syllable utterances of infants and preschoolers

Abstract Previous research showed that 1-year-olds produce less pitch change in monosyllabic nuclear tones than 4-year-olds. This finding implies that infants have not acquired intonation based on a “magnitude criterion.” The present study was designed to evaluate children's early intonation development based on a “contrast criterion.” In this approach, the pitch change that infants use in final accented syllables is compared to the pitch change they use in nonfinal accented syllables. Although the absolute pitch change that infants produce is reduced relative to older children, it is possible that infants produce a wider pitch change in final than in nonfinal syllables and thereby mark a key grammatical contrast based on position-in-utterance. To test this hypothesis, one- and two-syllable utterances were acoustically analyzed in 10 English-speaking 1-year-olds and 10 4-year-olds. The results indicated that only the 4-year-olds produced intonation in accordance with the contrast criterion. Further analyses of the relation between pitch and timing supported the conclusion that 1-year-old infants do not actively control intonation to mark complete utterances.
Extensively ossifying oral leiomyoma: a rare histologic finding

Oral leiomyoma are rare neoplasms of the oral cavity. Ossification within leiomyoma is not unusual but is mostly reported in leiomyoma of the deep soft tissue. Ossifying leiomyoma is extremely rare in the head and neck. We identified a total of three cases of extensively ossified leiomyoma in the head and neck in the literature including lesions in the lateral pterygoid muscle and orbit. To the best of our knowledge, only one case of extensively calcified leiomyoma has been reported in the oral cavity. We present two such rare cases of oral leiomyoma with extensive intratumoral calcifications and ossification. Ossified leiomyoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of calcified or hard/firm soft tissue masses in the oral cavity.
ATLAS MDT neutron sensitivity measurement and modeling

Abstract The sensitivity of the ATLAS precision muon detector element, the Monitored Drift Tube (MDT), to fast neutrons has been measured using a 5.5 MeV Van de Graaff accelerator. The major mechanism of neutron-induced signals in the drift tubes is the elastic collisions between the neutrons and the gas nuclei. The recoil nuclei lose kinetic energy in the gas and produce the signals. By measuring the ATLAS drift tube neutron-induced signal rate and the total neutron flux, the MDT neutron signal sensitivities were determined for different drift gas mixtures and for different neutron beam energies. We also developed a sophisticated simulation model to calculate the neutron-induced signal rate and signal spectrum for ATLAS MDT operation configurations. The calculations agree with the measurements very well. This model can be used to calculate the neutron sensitivities for different gaseous detectors and for neutron energies above those available to this experiment.
Mechanical Coupling Between Myofibroblasts and Cardiomyocytes Slows Electric Conduction in Fibrotic Cell Monolayers

Background—After cardiac injury, activated cardiac myofibroblasts can influence tissue electrophysiology. Because mechanical coupling through adherens junctions provides a route for intercellular communication, we tested the hypothesis that myofibroblasts exert tonic contractile forces on the cardiomyocytes and affect electric propagation via a process of mechanoelectric feedback. Methods and Results—The role of mechanoelectric feedback was examined in transforming growth factor-β–treated monolayers of cocultured myofibroblasts and neonatal rat ventricular cells by inhibiting myofibroblast contraction and blocking mechanosensitive channels. Untreated (control) and transforming growth factor-β–treated (fibrotic) anisotropic monolayers were optically mapped for electrophysiological comparison. Longitudinal conduction velocity, transverse conduction velocity, and normalized action potential upstroke velocity (dV/dtmax) significantly decreased in fibrotic monolayers (14.4±0.7 cm/s [mean±SEM], 4.1±0.3 cm/s [n=...
The effect of HCl and NaOH treatment on structural transformations in a ball-milled anthracite after thermal and chemical processing

Nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) was observed after reactive ball milling of anthracite coal with cyclohexene, a high-temperature (1400 °C) thermal anneal, and a 4 M HCl treatment followed by a 10 M NaOH treatment. A crystalline carbon region was also observed when the thermal anneal was omitted. This crystalline region is highly unstable and converts to NCD and carbon onions via electron irradiation in the TEM. X-ray diffraction, Raman, ash content, and temperature-programmed oxidation (TPO) data suggest that tetrahedral amorphous carbon is formed during milling, iron carbides are formed during the thermal anneal step, and both the HCl and NaOH purification steps lead to changes in carbon structure. NaOH oxidizes metal carbides and this process may contribute to NCD formation.
The ultra-violet absorption spectra of substituted phenyl amino-1,2,3-triazoles

The ultra-violet absorption spectra of isomeric substituted phenyl amino-1,2,3-triazoles have been studied. The influence of the substituents in the 1-, 4-, and 5-positions is discussed. The spectra of these triazoles have been of significant use for analytical and structural studies in this heterocyclic system.
Physiology and endocrinology symposium: a proteome-based model for sperm mobility phenotype.

Sperm mobility is defined as sperm movement against resistance at body temperature. Although all mobile sperm are motile, not all motile sperm are mobile. Sperm mobility is a primary determinant of male fertility in the chicken. Previous work explained phenotypic variation at the level of the sperm cell and the mitochondrion. The present work was conducted to determine if phenotypic variation could be explained at the level of the proteome using semen donors from lines of chickens selected for low or high sperm mobility. We began by testing the hypothesis that premature mitochondrial failure, and hence sperm immobility, arose from Ca 2+ overloading. The hypothesis was rejected because staining with a cell permeant Ca 2+ -specific dye was not enhanced in the case of low mobility sperm. The likelihood that sperm require little energy before ejaculation and the realization that the mitochondrial permeability transition can be induced by oxidative stress arising from inadequate NADH led to the hypothesis that glycolytic enzymes might differ between lines. This possibility was confirmed by 2-dimensional electrophoresis for aldolase and phosphoglycerate kinase 1. This outcome warranted evaluation of the whole cell proteome by differential detergent fractionation and mass spectrometry. Bioinformatics evaluation of proteins with different expression levels confirmed the likelihood that ATP metabolism and glycolysis differ between lines. This experimental outcome corroborated differences observed between lines in previous work, which include mitochondrial ultrastructure, sperm cell oxygen consumption, and straight line velocity. Although glycolytic proteins were more abundant within highly mobile sperm, quantitative PCR of representative testis RNA, which included mRNA for phosphoglycerate kinase 1, found no difference between lines. In summary, we propose a proteome-based model for sperm mobility phenotype in which a genetic predisposition puts sperm cells at risk of premature mitochondrial failure as they pass through the excurrent ducts of the testis. In other words, we attribute mitochondrial failure to sperm cell and reproductive tract attributes that interact to affect sperm in a stochastic manner before ejaculation. In conclusion, our work provides a starting point for understanding chicken semen quality in terms of gene networks.
Effect and distribution of vitamin BT.

Abstract 1. 1. Evidence for the effect of vitamin BT on the growth and survival of the larva of the meal worm Tenebrio molitor has been presented. In the absence of BT, the larvae die when reaching the age of 3–4 weeks. 2. 2. Similar symptoms of deficiency have been described for one other insect, the larva of a beetle Palorus ratzeburgi. 3. 3. Yeast is a fairly good source of BT, showing good activity in quantities of 1–2% of the dry diet. Several dehydrated animal tissues, such as liver, heart, lung, stomach lining, and duodenum showed optimal effects in quantities of 0.1–0.25% of the diet. The activity of milk is of a similar order, and whey constitutes a highly concentrated and convenient starting material (activity 0.1%). Egg is a poor source of BT and so are most materials of vegetable origin with the exception of wheat germ which shows an activity similar to that of yeast (2% in the diet). 4. 4. The following organisms have failed to respond to BT: rat, chick, guinea pig, Tetrahymena, Streptococcus faecalis R (Strepogenin), Leuc. citrovorum, L. bulgaricus, and B. thermoalimentosum. The activity of BT is different from that of folic acid and its conjugates and from vitamin B12.
Genetically encoded fluorescent sensors for studying healthy and diseased nervous systems

Neurons and glia are functionally organized into circuits and higher order structures via synaptic connectivity, well-orchestrated molecular signaling and activity-dependent refinement. Such organization allows the precise information processing required for complex behaviors. Disruption of nervous systems by genetic deficiency or events such as trauma or environmental exposure can produce a diseased state in which certain aspects of inter-neuron signaling are impaired. Optical imaging techniques allow the direct visualization of individual neurons in a circuit environment. Imaging probes specific for given biomolecules might help elucidate their contribution to proper circuit function. Genetically encoded sensors can visualize trafficking of particular molecules in defined neuronal populations, non-invasively in intact brain or reduced preparations. Sensor analysis in healthy and diseased brains might reveal important differences and shed light on the development and progression of nervous system disorders. We review the field of genetically encoded sensors for molecules and cellular events and their potential applicability to the study of nervous system disease.
Response to lysine supplementation by laying hens fed practical diets.

Abstract Three experiments were conducted with Single Comb White Leghorn laying hens kept in wire floored cages to determine the effect of supplementing practical rations with l -lysine. Wheat-based rations containing 20% distillers dried grains with solubles (DDG/S) depressed rate of egg production and egg weight below that obtained with rations containing no DDG/S. Adding l -lysine to the ration containing DDG/S corrected the depression in egg production and egg weight. A basal ration containing corn, 20% DDG/S and cottonseed meal was used to estimate the requirement of laying hens for lysine. The results indicate that a level between 666 and 788 mg. per hen per day is necessary for optimum performance. A summarization of recent published results suggests that the requirement for lysine is higher for hens fed rations containing wheat in contrast to corn. In either case, however, the requirement appears to be higher than that currently suggested by the National Research Council.