cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Finitely generated ideals in certain function algebras

We give a proof, in a stronger form, of a conjecture proposed by A. Gleason. Assume D is a strongly pseudoconvex domain D ⋐ C2 with smooth boundary and let h: D → C be any function continuous in D and holomorphic in D. Assume further that (a, b) ϵ D, h(a, b) = 0. Then (∗) h(z1, z2) = (z1 − a) h1(z1, z2) + (z2 − b) h2(z1, z2) , where h1 and h2 are continuous in D and holomorphic in D. In addition we prove that if h satisfies certain Holder conditions at some points in ∂D, then one can obtain h1 and h2, which also satisfy those Holder conditions at the same points (Theorem 1). Our proof relies on a vanishing cohomology theorem which we prove using a recent result about estimates for solutions of the equation ∂u = ƒ.
Evolutionary rescue in a changing world

Evolutionary rescue occurs when adaptive evolutionary change restores positive growth to declining populations and prevents extinction. Here we outline the diagnostic features of evolutionary rescue and distinguish this phenomenon from demographic and genetic rescue. We then synthesize the rapidly accumulating theoretical and experimental studies of evolutionary rescue, highlighting the demographic, genetic, and extrinsic factors that affect the probability of rescue. By doing so, we clarify the factors to target through management and conservation. Additionally, we identify several putative cases of evolutionary rescue in nature, but conclude that compelling evidence remains elusive. We conclude with a horizon scan of where the field might develop, highlighting areas of potential application, and suggest areas where experimental evaluation will help to evaluate theoretical predictions.
A Note on Recent Seismic Activity in The Scottsville, Virginia, Area

Six seismic events occurred during 1981 in the vicinity of Scottsville, Virginia. Of these, the three largest (m b (Lg) = 3.4, 3.2, and 2.9) occurred on February 11, 1981, within a period of eight minutes. The largest event was felt over a 900 km 2 area and had a maximum intensity of IV (MM). These events may define a planar source volume at a depth of between 5 and 10 km that strikes N40°E and dips steeply to the southeast.
Thiol-ene Enabled Detection of Thiophosphorylated Kinase Substrates

Protein phosphorylation is a ubiquitous posttranslational modification that regulates cell signaling in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Although the study of phosphorylation has made great progres...
Developmental basis of disease: environmental impacts

Exposure to environmental chemicals and other environmental stressors have health impacts on the fetus that may not be apparent until later in life. The concept of developmental origins of disease should be expanded to include these early life exposures in addition to the effects of nutrition and maternal factors. This paper will describe the toxicological, biological and epidemiological issues that are pertinent to conducting research on environmental exposures early in life and their health consequences over the life span.
Active Disruption of an RNA-Protein Interaction by a DExH/D RNA Helicase

All aspects of cellular RNA metabolism and the replication of many viruses require DExH/D proteins that manipulate RNA in a manner that requires nucleoside triphosphates. Although DExH/D proteins have been shown to unwind purified RNA duplexes, most RNA molecules in the cellular environment are complexed with proteins. It has therefore been speculated that DExH/D proteins may also affect RNA-protein interactions. We demonstrate that the DExH protein NPH-II from vaccinia virus can displace the protein U1A from RNA in an active adenosine triphosphate-dependent fashion. NPH-II increases the rate of U1A dissociation by more than three orders of magnitude while retaining helicase processivity. This indicates that DExH/D proteins can effectively catalyze protein displacement from RNA and thereby participate in the structural reorganization of ribonucleoprotein assemblies.
Effects of antioxidants on the anti-proliferation induced by protein synthesis inhibitors in human brain tumor cells

The effects of protein synthesis inhibitors (cycloheximide, anisomycin, puromycin and emetine) on the growth of human brain tumor cells were investigated using U-373 MG human astrocytoma and SK-N-MC human neuroblastoma cell lines. These agents inhibited the growth of the tumor cells in a dose-dependent manner. However, these agents did not affect cell viability evaluated by the trypan blue exclusion method, indicating that growth inhibition was due to the inhibition of cell proliferation rather than the induction of cytotoxicity. Anti-proliferation induced by these agents was significantly blocked by the treatments with either free radical scavengers or antioxidants. These results suggest that enhanced oxidative stress may be involved in the anti-proliferation induced by the protein synthesis inhibitors in human brain tumor cells.
Work Characteristics Associated with Workplace Aggression in Aged Care Nurses and Nursing Assistants

Employees in aged care are at high risk of workplace aggression. Research rarely examines the individual and contextual antecedents of aggression for specific types of workers within these settings...
Two-wavelength Raman detector for noninvasive measurements of carotenes and lycopene in human skin

Carotenoids are an important part of the antioxidant system in human skin. Carotenoid molecules, provided by fruits and vegetables, are potent free radical quenchers that accumulate in the body. If not balanced by carotenoids and other antioxidants, free radicals may cause premature skin aging, oxidative cell damage, and even skin cancers. As carotenoids depletion may predispose a person to cancer or other disease, rapid and noninvasive measurement of carotenoid level in skin may be of preventive or diagnostic help. At the very least, such measurement can be used to obtain a biomarker for healthy levels of fruit and vegetable consumption. Recently we have developed noninvasive optical technique based on Raman spectroscopy. In this paper we describe compact optical detector for clinical applications that utilizes two-wavelength excitation. It selectively measures the two most prominent skin carotenoids found in the human skin, lycopene and carotenes. According to the medical literature, these two compounds may play different roles in the human body and be part of different tissue defense mechanisms. Dual-wavelength Raman measurements reveal significant differences in the carotenoid composition of different subjects.
Temporally Gating a Slow-Scan CCD with a Liquid Crystal Shutter

The application of charge-coupled device (CCD) technology to high-resolution luminescence microscopy is a recent development. The very high sensitivity, linear response, and field uniformity that are characteristic of a slow-scan, scientific CCD camera yield data of sufficient quality to make quantitative image analysis possible. However, the low temporal resolution of current CCD cameras is a major disadvantage. A CCD with a read noise level of less than 10 electrons typically has a readout rate in the 40–200 kHz range, which precludes the acquisition of a time-resolved image integrated over multiple excitation pulses without the use of an external gating device. Imaging in the time domain can potentially increase both the information content and the sensitivity of luminescence microscopy. For example: (1) fluorescent probe distributions can be resolved temporally as well as spatially, yielding improved image contrast; and (2) temporally gated detection of long-lived luminescence discriminates against scattered light and autofluorescence, which can yield improved sensitivity.
Pancreatic masses: A multi-institutional study of 364 fine-needle aspiration biopsies with histopathologic correlation†

Only 15% of primary malignant tumors are confined to the gland at the time of presentation. Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is valuable in confirming the malignant nature of these unresectable lesions. Benign pancreatic lesions and metastatic neoplasms can also be evaluated by fine-needle aspiration. We undertook a retrospective study to evaluate the efficacy of FNA in assessing pancreatic masses. Three hundred and sixty-four radiologically guided FNAs of the pancreas performed between 1986–1996 were reviewed. Surgical material was also evaluated when available and compared to the FNA material. There were 223 men and 141 women. Their ages ranged from 23–90, with a mean of 64 yr. Two hundred and twelve patients (58%) had primary malignant tumors, 183 had adenocarcinomas, 15 had mucinous cystadenocarcinomas, 12 had neuroendocrine tumors, and 2 had pleomorphic giant-cell carcinomas. Ninety-one (43%) had available surgical material which showed adenocarcinoma. Ninety-one patients (25%) had benign aspirates, including 53 showing benign ductal epithelium, 23 showing pancreatitis/inflammation, 10 showing pseudocysts, and 7 showing serous cystadenomas. Surgical material was available in 24 (26%) of these patients. Two of these showed adenocarcinoma. Sixteen aspirates (4%) were suspicious for malignancy, 13 (81%) of which showed adenocarcinoma on follow-up biopsies. Twenty-two aspirates (6%) showed metastatic neoplasms. Twenty-three (6%) had unsatisfactory specimens. Ten (43%) of these had follow-up biopsies, 3 of which were malignant. FNA of primary benign and malignant pancreatic masses is highly sensitive (98%) and specific (100%). Eighty-one percent of the suspicious lesions showed adenocarcinoma on follow-up biopsy. FNA of metastatic neoplasms to the pancreas is also very accurate. This technique can be useful in avoiding unnecessary surgery. Diagn. Cytopathol. 1998;19:423–427. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Support for a Waiting Room Time Tracker: A Survey of Patients Waiting in an Urban ED

Abstract Background Emergency Department (ED) crowding and inpatient boarding lead to lengthy wait times for patients, which may cause them to choose to leave without being seen. A new initiative to improve communication with patients is to provide an estimated wait time with a "time tracker" display, but it is unclear whether ED patients would welcome this. Objective To estimate the proportion of ED patients who would favor a time tracker display. Methods This survey-based study was conducted from March to July 2010 at an urban academic center. After being triaged, patients were asked to answer a multiple-choice questionnaire, asking their preference toward a time tracker display. Results Of the 375 patients who were approached, 340 (91%) participated. Two hundred fourteen of them (63%) preferred an ED with a time tracker, 53 (16%) were unsure, and 73 (21%) did not prefer an ED with a time tracker. Patients with low-acuity conditions (Emergency Severity Index [ESI] 4 or 5) were 1.2 times more likely (95% confidence interval 1.0–1.4) to favor a time tracker than those with higher acuity (ESI 3). Preference was not related to race, age, insurance status, or employment. Conclusions The majority of patients in our study preferred an ED with a time tracker display (63% for vs. 21% against). Support for a time tracker was higher among patients triaged with lower ESI levels (4 or 5). A time tracker is viewed positively by many patients and may be a beneficial addition in the ED waiting room.
SU‐GG‐I‐101: A Parallel Implementation for Fast Deformable Image Registration of Large Data Sets

Purpose: One major obstacle for using deformable image registration for online or near real‐time applications is its high computational cost. The goal of this study is to implement a practical parallel computing technique for image intensity‐based deformable registration of relatively large data sets.Method and Materials: Taking advantage of the locality characteristic of the deformed images, deformable image registration can be parallelized by dividing the entire volume into smaller sub‐volumes. We implemented a parallel solution with the single‐program‐multiple‐data (SPMD) programming model in a cluster. The cluster is composed of one lead computer and 12 nodes. To ensure continuity at boundaries of sub‐volumes, we added an overlapping volume, which became a computational overhead. We proposed two techniques to reduce the overlapping volume by applying pre‐registration during the coarse levels of a multi‐resolution approach, and by handling the boundary condition carefully when applying the smoothing filter during registration. The baseline data for comparison was the deformation result from one CPU. Results were compared in three difficult cases with large deformation and large data set. The scalability was also analyzed. Results: 8‐1 nodes appears to be enough to handle each case. Four overlapping slices combined with pre‐registration at coarse level were able to get the correct deformation field at the boundary of each sub‐volumes even in the presence of relatively large deformations. Computing times were 20.5s, 44.4s, and 76.5s for a prostate case (matrix size: 294*237*62), a head & neck case (361*414*87), and a breast case (465*371*157), respectively. The same data sets required 54.5s, 150.2s, and 331.6s to compute on a single CPU, respectively. Conclusion: We have implemented an effective parallel solution for deformable image registration which can handle large data sets in a short time.
Spiritual Rationality: Integrating Faith-Based and Secular-Based Problem Solving and Negotiation as Systems Design for Right Action

Faith-based (spiritual) and secular-based (rational) approaches to problem solving and negotiation are commonly viewed as strongly conflicting approaches. While analysis is used in faith-based problem solving, problem solutions can come directly from God (One, all there is) in which case advocates say that analysis is not really necessary. Problem solutions can also come from religious laws and practices providing values that serve as intermediates/surrogates (Section 11) for connectedness with God. These religious laws and practices are based on analysis and interpretation – much of it quite rational – of God's word/scriptures, the latter providing religious axioms. Axioms for secular-based problem solving follow scientific method. Faith and secular belief systems differ, but share some values. For advocates of secular-based problem solving, faith-based solutions (actions) that differ from the results of their own rational analyses are hard to accept. Rationality and spirituality represent different brain capabilities. Extending rationality to spiritual rationality can integrate these capabilities. With spiritual-rationality problem solving, an individual – whether his orientation is primarily faith-based or secular-based – validates a problem solution both rationally and spiritually for right action (decision) using a spiritual rationality validation test. If the solution is not valid, the individual continues problem solving trying to validate spiritual rationality of a solution. With spiritual rationality both a faith-based advocate and a secular-based advocate can each achieve internal consistency of rationality and spirituality. Conflict between them could still exist. However, their common adoption of spiritual rationality and the Evolutionary Systems Design (ESD) framework – providing a common methodology that highlights high-level purpose shared by individuals – can facilitate problem evolution leading to group agreed-upon solution (right action). The core axiom of ESD/spiritual-rationality problem solving is that individuals (agents) have a shared inherent purpose to experience connectedness with One. In integrating spirituality and rationality, spiritual rationality – by validating right action in problem solving and negotiation – can help maintain connectedness with One as shared inherent purpose in an individual's life.
Power Spectra of Sinusoidal Amplitude-Modulated Binary Signals

Power spectra for binary phase-shift keyed (PSK) and frequency-shift keyed (FSK) signals with combined sinusoidal amplitude modulation by the bit rate clock are presented. Such signal formats have application in "burst" communication systems wherein reliable bit synchronization is provided with relative receiver simplicity. Effects of the clock amplitude modulation index and phase are considered, and corresponding power spectra are illustrated. Further, effects of the clock parameters on the rate of spectral rolloff are given and compared with those of conventional PSK and FSK spectra.
Fetal mucolipidosis II (I-cell disease): radiologic and pathologic correlation

A pregnant woman whose previous child had a diagnosis of I-cell disease was referred for evaluation of the fetus. Fluid obtained by amniocentesis and maternal serum showed abnormally increased levels of lysosomal enzymes suggesting that the fetus had I-cell disease. Sonography at 18 weeks showed abnormally short femurs and intrauterine growth retardation. The pregnancy was electively terminated at 19 weeks' gestation and the diagnosis was confirmed. Radiographs of the fetus demonstrated that the bony dysplasia is present early in fetal life with diffuse decrease in bone mineralization, a coarse, lacy, trabecular pattern, overall shortening and under-modelling of the long bones, subperiosteal bone deficiency in the diaphysis giving the appearance of periosteal new bone, hypoplasia of the anterior superior aspect of the upper lumbar vertebral bodies, broad ribs, abnormal pelvis with squared iliac wings and flattened acetabular roofs, and a small irregular calcaneal ossification center. There was good correlation between the radiographic findings and the microscopic findings in the bones. We observed deficient endosteal bone formation, small epiphyses, and poorly developed intervertebral discs. We speculate that this indicates impaired production of extra-cellular matrix by several different types of specialized mesenchymal cells. Abnormalities of transport of glycoproteins other than lysosomal enzymes or excess of extracellular acid hydrolases may be involved in the pathogenesis.
The Mechanism of Propafenone‐Induced Slowing of Ventricular Tachycardia in Man as Defined by Analysis of Resetting Response Patterns

The major finding in this study was that all VTs in patients treated with propafenone had a fully excitable gap. As only well tolerated, uniform VT in patients with chronic coronary artery disease was included for study, this result may not apply for ventricular arrhythmias in other patient populations. This is incompatible with the hypothesis that propafenone slows VT by increasing refractoriness within the VT circuit. Instead, the drug-mediated prolongation in VT cycle length is caused by effects on conduction velocity in fully recovered tissue and/or a change in the barriers of the circuit.
Observing responses and discrimination learning

Abstract An operant response in the pigeon, whose performance results in exposure to the discriminative stimuli, is described and suggested as an experimental analogue for “observing.” Such an operant response is then used to explore the relationship between observing responses and discrimination learning in a variety of discrimination situations, of progressively increasing complexity. In general, the results support the contention that the development and maintainence of observing responses is closely related to the degree of differential behaviour manifested toward the discriminative stimuli. Certain modifications are suggested in the theoretical formulation underlying the concept of “observing responses.”
In Vivo Analysis of Lrig Genes Reveals Redundant and Independent Functions in the Inner Ear

Lrig proteins are conserved transmembrane proteins that modulate a variety of signaling pathways from worm to humans. In mammals, there are three family members – Lrig1, Lrig2, and Lrig3 – that are defined by closely related extracellular domains with a similar arrangement of leucine rich repeats and immunoglobulin domains. However, the intracellular domains show little homology. Lrig1 inhibits EGF signaling through internalization and degradation of ErbB receptors. Although Lrig3 can also bind ErbB receptors in vitro, it is unclear whether Lrig2 and Lrig3 exhibit similar functions to Lrig1. To gain insights into Lrig gene functions in vivo, we compared the expression and function of the Lrigs in the inner ear, which offers a sensitive system for detecting effects on morphogenesis and function. We find that all three family members are expressed in the inner ear throughout development, with Lrig1 and Lrig3 restricted to subsets of cells and Lrig2 expressed more broadly. Lrig1 and Lrig3 overlap prominently in the developing vestibular apparatus and simultaneous removal of both genes disrupts inner ear morphogenesis. This suggests that these two family members act redundantly in the otic epithelium. In contrast, although Lrig1 and Lrig2 are frequently co-expressed, Lrig1−/−;Lrig2−/− double mutant ears show no enhanced structural abnormalities. At later stages, Lrig1 expression is sustained in non-sensory tissues, whereas Lrig2 levels are enhanced in neurons and sensory epithelia. Consistent with these distinct expression patterns, Lrig1 and Lrig2 mutant mice exhibit different forms of impaired auditory responsiveness. Notably, Lrig1−/−;Lrig2−/− double mutant mice display vestibular deficits and suffer from a more severe auditory defect that is accompanied by a cochlear innervation phenotype not present in single mutants. Thus, Lrig genes appear to act both redundantly and independently, with Lrig2 emerging as the most functionally distinct family member.
Rethinking utility theory

Economists have had a long-standing concern with understanding and modeling the behavior of consumers, both in the narrow sense of their behavior as buyers of goods and services in product markets and as suppliers of services in labor markets, and in the broader sense of their collective purchases of public goods-schools and roads, air and water quality, national security, etc. Analysis of these issue has been cast as a constrained optimization problem: Consumers are perceived as choosing a particular bundle of goods and services, or a combination of work and leisure hours, or a set of taxes and public goods, that represents the optimum mix subject to the constraints of income and prices. Optimum simply means that no change can improve matters, and what is being optimized is utility or satisfaction. This paper provides a brief history of the development of utility theory, and suggests a reconceptualization of the basic sources of utility. The new formulation extends the range of interesting and important phenomena encompassed by the theory, reexamines the role of goods and services in producing utility, and simplifies the conceptual structure-at the cost of complicating the measurement problem as well as the analytic properties of the system. Some recent data reflecting the new conceptual structure are examined, and we note some implications of the theory and data for both scientific and policy issues.
The case of curers, noncurers, and biomedical experts in Pichátaro, Mexico. Resiliency in folk-medical beliefs.

We explore potential conceptual and cultural change in folk-medical models within a Mexican community that may have taken place over the past 30 years. Building on a study from the 1970s, we explore the effects a government-supported biomedical clinic had on the content and distribution of folk-medical concepts. Surprisingly, we find that despite a dramatic increase in access to biomedicine and a host of socioeconomic shifts opening access to new medical ideas, folk-medical knowledge in Pichataro, Michoacan, Mexico has remained largely unchanged with respect to its distribution and content. Curers and noncurers not only agree with one another but also continue to agree with a general model held in the 1970s. It is the medical models of clinic personnel that stand out as odd within the community. Yet, despite these conceptual differences, the biomedical facilities of the town are well attended.[folk-medical models, conceptual change, resiliency, Mexico]
CVD Cu Process Development and Integration for sub-0.18 µm Devices

The advent of inlaid Cu interconnects has presented new challenges for the industry to fill high aspect ratio dual inlaid features. CVD Cu offers advantages for excellent step coverage and is a technique extendible for future generations of devices. We have developed a robust CVD Cu process and a CVD/PVD reflow integration scheme. In this paper, we present results of an extensive study on CVD Cu process development and integration. The effects of various precursors, carrier gases (H2, He and N2) and barrier layers including CVD TiN, PVD Ta, PVD TaN, PVD Ta-Si-N, and a hybrid barrier, on the CVD Cu film properties and device electrical properties are discussed. The extendibility and challenges of current CVD Cu processing will also be discussed.
Scalable broadcast strategies for ad hoc routing protocols

In ad hoc wireless networks, routes are discovered either by means of a periodic update between 1-hop neighbors or by using a reactive routing protocol which relies on an explicit route discovery process. Although the major advantage of a reactive protocol is the reduction in the routing overhead, the conventional flooding mechanism used to propagate the route request (RREQ) message during the route discovery process does not scale well to large networks. In addition to the overhead problem, the way in which the route request gets propagated across the network affects the network performance in two different ways: (i) it determines how fast the route can be acquired; (ii) it is also an important factor in determining the availability and quality of the route. In this paper, we propose three novel RREQ broadcast techniques, i.e., weighted p-persistence, slotted p-persistence, and slotted p-persistence schemes. Our simulation results show that the proposed schemes can achieve up to 75% routing overhead reduction while keeping the route acquisition delay close or equal to the conventional flooding scheme.
H10 Posterior Sagittal Anorectoplasty (PSARP) with Total Urogenital Mobilization for Cloacae with a Common Channel Smaller than 3 cm

A posterior midline–sagittal incision is performed, running from the middle portion of the sacrum to the single perineal orifice, splitting the parasagittal fibres, ischiorectal fat, muscle complex and levator muscle to the level of the common channel and or rectal and vaginal walls (Fig. 1). The white fascia covering the posterior wall of the rectum is identified (Fig. 2). Two 5-0 silk stitches are placed in the posterior rectal wall, that is opened in the midline. The incision is extended, opening the vagina and the common channel (Fig. 3). A Foley catheter is inserted into the urethra. Multiple silk stitches are placed to provide uniform traction on the rectum. The lateral rectal wall is dissected. The rectal stitches are lifted superiorly and the common wall between rectum and vagina is dissected, ensuring that the vaginal and rectal walls remain intact (Fig. 4).
To save a nation : American countersubversives, the New Deal, and the coming of World War II

A brilliant study of the relationship between domestic politics and the shaping of foreign policy, showing how fascists, anti-Semites, and other right-wing extremists became unwitting allies of the Roosevelt administration in the debate over American entry into World War II.
Two-stage sigma-delta modulation

An exact analysis of the nonlinear difference equation describing a discrete time two-stage sigma-delta quantizer with DC and sinusoidal inputs is presented. It is shown that for DC inputs, the binary quantizer error of the second quantizer, which appears at the output of the modulator as a second-order difference, is asymptotically white, uniformly distributed, and uncorrelated with the input. For sinusoidal inputs, this result holds with one exception: the autocorrelation, which is a sum of weighted Bessel functions, does not correspond to that of a white noise process. At large oversampling ratios, the autocorrelation is approximately white and hence the white additive noise model is a good approximation for evaluating the first- and second-order moments. It is found that for both a sinc/sup 3/ decoder filter and an ideal low-pass filter decoder, the average quantization noise power is inversely proportional to the fifth power of the oversampling ratio R for both types of inputs. This represents an improvement over the single-loop sigma-delta quantizer by a factor of R/sup 2/. Simulation results that agree with the theoretical analysis are presented. >
Extended tail-biting schemes for turbo codes

In this letter, we investigate the problem of using tailbiting recursive systematic convolutional (RSC) codes in turbo codes. Tailbiting is not always possible for a given RSC code with fixed length. We propose an extended tailbiting method for RSC codes and compare it with another extension method proposed by Van Stralen, et al. (IEE Electron. Lett., vol. 35, pp. 1461-1462, 1999). Several schemes using these extended tailbiting RSC codes in turbo code systems are developed and compared.
Age and the Ethics of Tax Evasion

Some studies have found that people become more respectful of authority and the rule of law as they get older. However, other studies have had contrary findings. The next few pages analyze the relationship between age and attitudes toward the ethics of tax evasion, using the World Values survey data.
A simulation case study: Reducing outpatient waiting time of otolaryngology care services using VBA

Patients' waiting times in healthcare services are often long and unacceptable, and place great stress on clinic staff. This paper describes the development and use of a detailed simulation model of an Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) outpatient clinic at the University of Illinois Medical Center. Arena simulation software combined with Arena Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) are used to model the ENT clinic and their appointment system. VBA allows various appointment schedules to be examined and the interaction between the appointment system and patient waiting times to be evaluated. It has been shown that an alternative appointment schedule significantly reduces patient waiting times without a need for extra resources.
Schlafen-3 decreases cancer stem cell marker expression and autocrine/juxtacrine signaling in FOLFOX-resistant colon cancer cells

We have previously demonstrated that expression of the novel gene schlafen-3 (Slfn-3) correlates with intestinal epithelial cell differentiation (Patel VB, Yu Y, Das JK, Patel BB, Majumdar AP. Bioc...
Most-vital edge of a graph with respect to spanning trees

A most-vital edge of a connected graph with respect to spanning trees is an edge whose removal most reduces the number of spanning trees. Tsen et al. (1984) proposed a solution to the problem, based on determining the adjoint of a matrix of order n (n=number of nodes of the graph). This paper presents a solution based on determining the adjoint of /spl Psi//spl equiv/A/spl times/A/sup t/ (A=reduced incidence-matrix of the graph); the order of /spl Psi/ is (n-1). This procedure leads to a resistance-analog method to determine the vital edge of a graph with respect to the spanning trees.
Predicate projection in a bimodal spatial reasoning system

Spatial reasoning is a fundamental aspect of intelligent behavior, which cognitive architectures must address in a problem-independent way. Bimodal systems, employing both qualitative and quantitative representations of spatial information, are efficient and psychologically plausible means for spatial reasoning. Any such system must employ a translation from the qualitative level to the quantitative, where new objects (images) are created through the process of predicate projection. This translation has received little scrutiny. We examine this issue in the context of a bimodal spatial reasoning system integrated with a cognitive architecture (Soar). As part of this system, we define an expressive language for predicate projection that supports general and flexible image creation. We demonstrate this system on multiple spatial reasoning problems in the ORTS real-time strategy game environment.
Pilot Trial of a Patient-Specific Cutaneous Electrostimulation Device (MC5-A Calmare®) for Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy

Context. Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a major dose-limiting and persistent consequence of numerous classes of antineoplastic agents, affecting up to 30%e40% of patients. To date, there is no effective prevention or therapy. An evolving hypothesis for reducing CIPN pain involves direct nerve stimulation to reduce the pain impulse. Objectives. To evaluate the impact on CIPN associated with the MC5-A Calmare therapy device (Competitive Technologies, Inc. Fairfield, CT). Methods. The MC5-A Calmare therapy device is designed to generate a patient-specific cutaneous electrostimulation to reduce the abnormal pain intensity. Sixteen patients from one center received one-hour interventions daily over 10 working days. Results. Of 18 patients, 16 were evaluable. The mean age of the patients was 58.6 yearsdfour men and 14 womendand the duration of CIPN was three months to eight years. The most common drugs were taxanes, platinums, and bortezomib (Velcade, Millenium Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge MA). At the end of the study (Day 10), a 20% reduction in numeric pain scores was achieved in 15 of 16 patients. The pain score fell 59% from 5.81 � 1.11 before treatment to 2.38 � 1.82 at the end of 10 days (P < 0.0001 by paired t-test). A daily treatment benefit was seen with a strong statistically significant difference between the preand post-daily pain scores (P < 0.001). Four patients had their CIPN reduced to zero. A repeated-measures analysis using the scores from all 10 days confirmed these results. No toxicity was seen. Some responses have been durable without maintenance. Conclusions. Patient-specific cutaneous electrostimulation with the MC5-A Calmare device appears to dramatically reduce pain in refractory CIPN patients with no toxicity. Further studies are underway to define the benefit, mechanisms of action, and optimal schedule. J Pain Symptom Manage 2010;-:-e-. 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc on behalf of U.S. Cancer Pain Relief Committee.
Distributed Sensor Localization in Random Environments Using Minimal Number of Anchor Nodes

The paper introduces DILOC, a distributed, iterative algorithm to locate M sensors (with unknown locations) in Rm, m ges 1, with respect to a minimal number of m + 1 anchors with known locations. The sensors and anchors, nodes in the network, exchange data with their neighbors only; no centralized data processing or communication occurs, nor is there a centralized fusion center to compute the sensors' locations. DILOC uses the barycentric coordinates of a node with respect to its neighbors; these coordinates are computed using the Cayley-Menger determinants, i.e., the determinants of matrices of internode distances. We show convergence of DILOC by associating with it an absorbing Markov chain whose absorbing states are the states of the anchors. We introduce a stochastic approximation version extending DILOC to random environments, i.e., when the communications among nodes is noisy, the communication links among neighbors may fail at random times, and the internodes distances are subject to errors. We show a.s. convergence of the modified DILOC and characterize the error between the true values of the sensors' locations and their final estimates given by DILOC. Numerical studies illustrate DILOC under a variety of deterministic and random operating conditions.
Clinical characteristics of treatment-seeking prescription opioid vs. heroin-using adolescents with opioid use disorder

Abstract Objectives To compare the clinical characteristics of treatment-seeking prescription opioid-using adolescents with DSM-IV opioid use disorder (OUD) to those with heroin-using OUD adolescents. Method We analyzed the data on OUD adolescents (94, ages 14–18 years) extracted from the parent study dataset comparing clinical characteristics of treatment-seeking OUD to non-OUD adolescents from a adolescent substance abuse treatment program in Baltimore, MD. The sample consisted of 41 non-heroin prescription opioid-using and 53 heroin-using OUD adolescents who were assessed cross-sectionally using standardized interviews and self-reports. Chi-square and t-tests were performed to determine group differences on demographic, substance use, psychiatric and HIV-risk behaviors. Results Both groups were older (mean 17 years), predominantly Caucasian, and had a suburban residence; they had high rates of co-occurring psychiatric disorders (83%) and they reported moderately high depression symptoms. The heroin-using sample was more likely to have dropped out of school, be dependent on opioids and inject drugs using needles. The prescription opioid-using OUD youth were more likely to meet criteria for multiple SUDs (including prescription sedatives and psychostimulants), current ADHD and report selling drugs; and more likely to be court ordered to current treatment and report prior psychiatric treatment. Conclusions Both groups of treatment-seeking OUD adolescents had multiple comorbidities but there were substantial differences between prescription opioid-users and heroin-users. These differences may suggest different prognoses and treatment implications. Future research may shed light on the factors leading to differences in choice of opioids and their impact on treatment outcomes; and assess the role of agonist assisted treatments and integrated psychiatric care.
Conscience without cognition: The effects of subconscious priming on ethical behavior

Research in the field of behavioral ethics has traditionally viewed ethical decision making as rational and deliberate. However, some recent research has proposed a dual process model of ethical decision making that has both conscious and subconscious components (Reynolds, 2006). We extend current theory by using subconscious ethical and unethical priming to test the effects of subconscious processes on ethical behavior through an automatic process of schema activation and implicit association. Studies 1 and 2 extend self-concept maintenance theory (Mazar, Amir, & Ariely, 2008) by exploring the mediated process through which subconscious ethical and unethical primes trigger the activation of moral standards, thereby influencing categorization and subsequent responses to morally ambiguous situations. Study 3 demonstrates that both subconscious ethical and unethical priming reduce dishonesty even when participants are unmonitored and are given difficult performance goals that previously have been shown to lead to unethical behavior
Distribution, spread, and ecological associations of the introduced ant Pheidole obscurithorax in the southeastern United States

A field survey of the southeastern United States showed that Pheidole obscurithorax Naves, an ant introduced from South America, inhabits a 80-km-wide band along the coast between Mobile, Alabama, and Tallahassee, Florida, and is continuing to increase its range. In Tallahassee P. obscurithorax is rapidly spreading, and its nest density increased by a factor of 6.4 over a two-year period. Evidence suggests that P. obscurithorax has spread gradually by natural means. It coexists with the fire ant Solenopsis invicta Buren, appears to be part of a largely exotic community of ants that are tolerant of highly disturbed habitats, and seems to have little negative effect on the ant communities that it invades.
Banks, Taxes, and Nonbank Competition

This paper models banks’ choice of capital structure and interest rates on loans and deposits when financial services markets are characterized by economies of scope, corporate taxes, and competition from nonbanks (shadow banks). In markets with rich retail lending opportunities but limited retail savings, banks may choose high equity capital (low leverage) when they are not subject to corporate income taxes. When banks are taxed, equity capital declines and retail borrowers bear the tax burden. For the opposite case of markets with few lending opportunities but plentiful retail savings, banks minimize capital and the tax burden falls on depositors. When banks face greater nonbank competition for retail savings, equilibrium loan rates increase, encouraging entry from nonbank lenders. The model’s predictions are consistent with U.S. banks over the last two centuries. Recent empirical research on how taxes affect bank behavior also supports the model.
Haunted by the Babe: Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick's Columns about Babe Ruth

Abstract In 1961, Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick announced that Roger Maris's home run record would not be recognized unless he set it in 154 games, as record-holder Babe Ruth did. Frick's announcement sparked criticism and was later rescinded. This article demonstrates that the motive for Frick's actions was not concern for integrity of the game, but loyalty toward Ruth, as reflected both in his ghostwriting for Ruth and his columns in the New York Journal newspaper. Before becoming president of the National League in 1934, Frick was a newspaper sports journalist and one of the first sports broadcasters. His columns are examined both for his depictions of Ruth and for insight into his professional ethic as a sports journalist. The article concludes that Frick ignored the ethical conflicts inherent in his close friendship with Ruth—both in his ghostwriting and in his handling of the home run record.
Parsing Temporarily Ambiguous Complements

Holmes, Kennedy and Murray (1987) recently claimed that the empirical support for the Minimal Attachment Strategy of sentence parsing had been weakened by results they reported. They found that reading time for an ambiguous string of words did not decrease when it was preceded by an overt complementizer, which should have disambiguated it. Thus, they suggested that results that we (Frazier and Rayner, 1982) earlier attributed to Minimal Attachment were not due to “garden-path” effects, but rather reflected the extra complexity caused by having to process two sets of clausal relations instead of just one. In the present experiment, we replicated their experiment using eye movement data rather than the subject-paced reading task they used. We found that readers processed Nonminimal Attachment sentences with overt complementizers considerably faster than those without a complementizer. Our results showed that the complexity of Nonminimal Attachment sentences cannot be attributed to their clausal status per s...
The ECJ Has Spoken: Where Do We Stand with Standard of Proof in Merger Control?

Comments on the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling in Bertelsmann AG v Independent Music Publishers & Labels Association (Impala) (C-413/06 P), focusing on whether the same standard of proof applies in merger clearing decisions and in merger prohibition decisions under Regulation 139/2004 (Merger Regulation) art.2.
Recalibration of the U.S. National Prototype Kilogram

The U.S. national prototype kilogram, K20, and its check standard, K4, were recalibrated at the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM). Both these kilograms are made of platinum-iridium alloy. Two additional kilograms, made of different alloys of stainless steel, were also included in the calibrations. The mass of K20 in 1889 was certified as being 1 kg-0.039 mg. Prior to the work reported below, K20 was most recently recalibrated at the BIPM in 1948 and certified as having a mass of 1 kg-0.019 mg. K4 had never been recalibrated. Its initial certification in 1889 stated its mass as 1 kg-0.075 mg. The work reported below establishes the new mass value of K20 as 1 kg-0.022 mg and that of K4 as 1 kg-0.106 mg. The new results are discussed in detail and an attempt is made to assess the long-term stability of the standards involved with a view toward assigning a realistic uncertainty to the measurements.
Relations Between Teacher Questioning and Student Talk in One Elementary ELL Classroom

The purpose of this article is to raise awareness of how the varied form and responsive and response-able use of teacher questions can invite and direct not only more student talk in classrooms but elicit specific and varied features of student talk that enhance comprehension building and provide evidence of student engagement and high-level thinking. I examine one teacher’s questioning patterns and their relationship with types of student talk and learning in an elementary English language learning (ELL) classroom. I focus on two lessons, purposefully selected for differing student talk outcomes. I present a comparative look at descriptive statistics detailing teacher questioning patterning (in terms of typology, contingency, convergence-divergence, textual, extra-textual). I then illustrate how patterns of teacher questioning influence student talk and learning across these two lessons through close discourse analysis of representative classroom talk excerpts. I show how this teacher’s questions are var...
Proteomic Changes in Chicken Plasma Induced by Salmonella typhimurium Lipopolysaccharides

Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are cell wall components of Gram-negative bacteria that produce inflammation and sickness in higher animals. The objective was to identify plasma proteomic changes in an avian model of inflammation. Chickens were treated with either saline or LPS, and blood was collected at 24 hours postinjection. The pooled plasma samples were depleted of high-abundant proteins and analyzed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI)-time-of-flight mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS). MALDI analyses showed an increase in fibrinogen beta-derived peptide and a decrease in apolipoprotein-AII-derived peptide in LPS samples. Label-free quantitation of LC–MS/MS spectra revealed an increase in the levels of α1-acid glycoprotein, a chemokine CCLI10, and cathelicidin-2, but a decrease in an interferon-stimulated gene-12-2 protein in the LPS group. These differentially expressed proteins are associated with immunomodulation, cytokine changes, and defense mechanisms, which may be useful as candidate biomarkers of infection and inflammation.
Noise suppression for energy-resolved CT using similarity-based non-local filtration

In energy-resolved CT, images are reconstructed independently at different energy levels, resulting in images with different qualities but the same structures. We propose a similarity-based non-local filtration method to extract structural information from these images for noise suppression. For each pixel, we calculate its similarity to other pixels based on CT number. The calculation is repeated on each image at different energy levels and similarity values are averaged to generate a similarity matrix. Noise suppression is achieved by multiplying the image vector by the similarity matrix. Multiple scans on a tabletop CT system are used to simulate 6-channel energy-resolved CT, with energies ranging from 75 to 125 kVp. Phantom studies show that the proposed method improves average contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) of seven materials on the 75 kVp image by a factor of 22. Compared with averaging CT images for noise suppression, our method achieves a higher CNR and reduces the CT number error of iodine solutions from 16.5% to 3.5% and the overall image root of mean-square error (RMSE) from 3.58% to 0.93%. On the phantom with line-pair structures, our algorithm reduces noise standard deviation (STD) by a factor of 23 while maintaining 7 lp/cm spatial resolution. Additionally, anthropomorphic head phantom studies show noise STD reduction by a factor or 26 with no loss of spatial resolution. The noise suppression achieved by the similarity-based method is clinically attractive, especially for CNRs of iodine in contrast-enhanced CT.
Reluctant Partners: The Role of Preferences, Incentives, and Monitoring in Program Compliance

As devolution of responsibilities from higher-level governments to lower-level governments and nonprofits continues, more and more attention will be focused on implementation, specifically on how to convince reluctant partners to participate fully in program success. In spite of a considerable body of research on