cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
PV Cell Cracks and Impacts on Electrical Performance

Cell cracking in PV modules can lead to a variety of changes in the modules operation, with vastly different performance degradation based on the type and severity of crack. In this work, we correlate cell crack metrics in images with current-voltage (I-V) curve features on a sample set of 38 four-cell Al-BSF and PERC mini-modules showing a range of fracture and electrical properties. Impacts of cracking on electrical performance demonstrated in this work include cell shunting and electrical isolation of cell regions, shown with electroluminescence (EL) images and I-V tracing. Cracks and other EL image properties are quantified with algorithmic computer vision techniques, and correlated with I-V properties at the cell and module levels.
qModeL: A plug‐and‐play model‐based reconstruction for highly accelerated multi‐shot diffusion MRI using learned priors

PURPOSE To introduce a joint reconstruction method for highly undersampled multi-shot diffusion weighted (msDW) scans. METHODS Multi-shot EPI methods enable higher spatial resolution for diffusion MRI, but at the expense of long scan-time. Highly accelerated msDW scans are needed to enable their utilization in advanced microstructure studies, which require high q-space coverage. Previously, joint k-q undersampling methods coupled with compressed sensing were shown to enable very high acceleration factors. However, the reconstruction of this data using sparsity priors is challenging and is not suited for multi-shell data. We propose a new reconstruction that recovers images from the combined k-q data jointly. The proposed qModeL reconstruction brings together the advantages of model-based iterative reconstruction and machine learning, extending the idea of plug-and-play algorithms. Specifically, qModeL works by prelearning the signal manifold corresponding to the diffusion measurement space using deep learning. The prelearned manifold prior is incorporated into a model-based reconstruction to provide a voxel-wise regularization along the q-dimension during the joint recovery. Notably, the learning does not require in vivo training data and is derived exclusively from biophysical modeling. Additionally, a plug-and-play total variation denoising provides regularization along the spatial dimension. The proposed framework is tested on k-q undersampled single-shell and multi-shell msDW acquisition at various acceleration factors. RESULTS The qModeL joint reconstruction is shown to recover DWIs from 8-fold accelerated msDW acquisitions with error less than 5% for both single-shell and multi-shell data. Advanced microstructural analysis performed using the undersampled reconstruction also report reasonable accuracy. CONCLUSION qModeL enables the joint recovery of highly accelerated multi-shot dMRI utilizing learning-based priors. The bio-physically driven approach enables the use of accelerated multi-shot imaging for multi-shell sampling and advanced microstructure studies.
Predicate fronting in Yiddish and conditions on multiple copy Spell-Out

Predicate fronting with doubling (also known as the predicate cleft) has long been a challenge for theories of syntax that do not predict the pronunciation of multiple occurrences. Previous analyses that derive the construction via syntactic movement, including those attributing verb doubling to the formation of parallel chains (e.g., Aboh 2006; Kandybowicz 2008), are incompatible with remnant movement (Muller 1998), which does not give rise to doubling. This article presents data from the predicate fronting construction in Yiddish, in which verbs always double but complements never do. I argue that these seemingly contradictory pronunciation facts can be reconciled even if one assumes that phrasal movement and head movement are both syntactic. More specifically, the pronunciation of occurrences in Yiddish (doubled or not) follows from the general conditions on Spell-Out (or Transferpf) defined by Collins and Stabler (2016), modified only to accommodate syntactic head movement. Post-syntactic PF repairs are thus not required to account for the facts of the Yiddish predicate fronting construction. If such repairs are needed to generate doubling phenomena in other languages, they should be explicitly defined so as to modify or override the predictions of default Spell-Out conditions.
Steam Reforming of Methanol, Ethanol and Glycerol over Catalysts with Mesoporous Supports: A Comparative Study

Hydrogen generation via steam reforming of alcohols (SRA) has gained tremendous attention among green energy industries, research scientists and government policy makers. A variety of mesoporous heterogeneous catalysts used to produce hydrogen from alcohols like methanol (SRM), ethanol (SRE) and glycerol (SRG) are discussed. Siliceous mesoporous supports, e.g. SBA-15, MCM-41, MCM-48 and KIT-6, have proven to be substantially thermally stable compared to metal oxide supports such as TiO2, Al2O3 and CeO2. While Cu-based catalysts are commonly used for SRM, Ni- and Co-based catalysts are preferred for SRE and SRG reactions. Addition of promoters like group 1 and 2 metals to these monometallic catalysts significantly improves reducibility of the metal oxides as well as the basicity of the catalysts that minimize deactivation of catalysts by coking. Synergistic effects of bimetallic catalysts such as Cu-Ni, Pd-Ni and Ni-Co to increase hydrogen selectivity and long-term stability of the catalysts are discussed. Hydrogen selectivity and feed conversion of 100% can be attained depending on the reaction conditions like temperature, feed flow rate, type of catalyst, catalyst loading and alcohol/water molar ratio.
Rental tenure and rent burden: progress in interdisciplinary scholarship and pathways for geographical research.

Rental housing accommodates more than a billion tenants worldwide, and in recent years, rentership has been increasing in some countries. Given reduced access to homeownership in various locations due to several causes, it is critical to focus on rentership which has received relatively less attention compared to homeownership, especially within the geography scholarship. In this review article, we identify four key themes that have naturally emerged from the close examination of recent interdisciplinary literature on rentership and rental affordability. These include: (1) rental housing financialization; (2) the proliferation of single-family rentals resulting from the U.S. foreclosure crisis; (3) the determinants and consequences of rent burden; and (4) the relationship between rent burden and regional economic specialization. We discuss these themes and propose potential opportunities for the geographic analysis of rent burden, its determinants, and their relationships with regional economic specialization. We posit that the four identified themes have been developing in apparent isolation, thus making scholarship less consistent. Moreover, research on rent burden is disjointed in itself, which makes it difficult to establish a unified narrative and interlinked subthemes within the rent burden literature. Nonetheless, we contextualize the four themes in their application to geography and frame our discussion around the central notion of this article—rent burden.
Pocket-Sized Ultrasound Versus Traditional Ultrasound Images in Equine Imaging: A Pictorial Essay.

Abstract This pictorial essay aims to display the image quality of pocket-sized ultrasound devices and hospital-based equipment to provide clinicians visual information about the potential uses of point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) in equine practice. Twenty-two paired images were obtained using traditional ultrasound equipment and pocket-sized ultrasound devices from patients evaluated at veterinary teaching hospitals. Images of many common ultrasound windows and miscellaneous sonographic abnormalities were obtained using pocket-sized ultrasound equipment.
Frequency and importance of interpersonal communication about a school-based intervention with parents, peers, and teachers: application of social interface model

Social interface model (SIM) explicates the important roles of family, peer, and school microsystems in intervention research. The present study used surveys to explore how Nicaraguan adolescents w...
Cervical Cancer Screening Behaviors Among Asian Indians in the United States: A Systematic Review

While Asian Indians (AIs) are the third fastest-growing Asian minority population in the United States, they fall short of the Healthy People cervical cancer screening target goals, with rates averaging 70% compared to 83% among non-Hispanic Whites. The purpose of this systematic review is to examine factors influencing cervical cancer screening behaviors among AIs in the US. Medline, CINAHL, PubMed, PsychINFO, and ProQuest databases were searched for qualitative and quantitative studies conducted between 1990 and 2017 that focused on cervical cancer screening behaviors among AIs in the US. The seven selected quantitative cross-sectional descriptive studies show that acculturation, length of stay in the US, age, education level, employment, cultural beliefs, and language influence cervical cancer screening behaviors among AIs in the US. Results from this systematic review inform development of culturally sensitive interventions to raise awareness and engagement in cervical cancer screening among AIs.
Delegating Care, Evading Review: The Federal Tort Claims Act and Access to Medical Care in Federal Private Prisons

Accounts of the conditions inside America’s prisons and our government’s treatment of people who are incarcerated often never escape the prison’s walls; that is, unless one is willing to listen to the many people seeking redress for harms they have endured through the courts. Seminal lawsuits, from Farmer v. Brennan to Brown v. Plata to Estelle v. Gamble, have shaped the way prisoners, prisoners’ rights advocates, and correctional systems view and approach incarceration. But the impact of prisoners’ suits goes only as far as the law provides a remedy for people who allege violations of their rights. This Article highlights and focuses on one discrete — but critical — way in which the federal government evades judicial review of its conduct: its reliance on the Federal Tort Claims Act's independent-contractor exception when faced with prisoners’ claims of inadequate medical care in private prisons. Private prisons are not unique to the federal government. Indeed, states, counties, and municipalities rely increasingly on the contract services of corporations to operate prisons and jails. But many states recognize a common-law principle that the provision of adequate medical care to prisoners is a nondelegable duty of state and municipal governments. This means that the governmental entity contracting for the operation of the prison or the provision of medical care within the prison cannot evade liability for torts relating to the provision of medical care by simply asserting the responsibility was delegated to the contractor. This duty ensures an accountability structure remains in place despite the government’s delegation of a traditional state function to a private business. Increasingly, the federal government attempts to evades its own nondelegable duty of care owed to prisoners in its custody, however, by invoking the FTCA’s independent-contractor exception. When federal prisoners confined in private prisons attempt to hold the federal government liable for inadequate care they have received in those prisons, the government asserts it cannot be liable for the conduct of a third-party contractor. And to date, many courts have adopted this view of the government’s role when relying on the services of private prisons. This Article asserts this lack of parity between the remedies available to state prisoners and federal prisoners in private prisons undermines the rights of people in federal custody and is contrary to public policy: It incentivizes the federal government to contract away the quintessential government function of incarcerating its citizens, at a time when the business of incarceration is booming.
Toward a Marketplace for Aerial Computing

The rapid proliferation of commodity drones has expanded interest in building applications that acquire imagery, video, and sensor data at scale. In addition, recent work on drone programming frameworks have simplified the development of aerial computing apps that gather this data. These advancements have popularized the drones-as-a-service model, where large drone fleets serve multiple apps simultaneously. This paper proposes a marketplace for aerial computing, where apps can gather aerial data on demand and providers can offer up their drones for aerial computing. We introduce Aerialis, a drones-as-a-service platform that schedules tasks to drones by arbitrating bids submitted by apps. Aerialis allows apps with different semantics and spatiotemporal preferences to express how much they would like to pay for each aerial computing task. It then aggregates requests across apps, and schedules tasks on drones according to a marketplace policy (e.g., maximizing revenue or guaranteeing quality-of-service to apps). We build a prototype of Aerialis, and implement urban sensing apps to monitor air pollution, measure road traffic, and profile cellular throughput. We discuss operational challenges in deploying Aerialis, and show how the measurements collected from our real-world experiments offer valuable insights for engineers and city planners.
Developmental Formulation and Psychotherapy of Borderline Adolescents

Treatment of the borderline adolescent requires a highly sophisticated, multimodal treatment formulation that is based on a developmental, psychodynamic formulation of the patient and family system. The therapeutic model chosen must fit the case as well as possible, but, of necessity, may change as the patient grows and develops. It is of utmost importance to understand the patient's process of growth and development and the utilization of each particular model of psychotherapy chosen. Therapeutic techniques should derive from the model(s) of treatment and should constantly be analyzed during the course of psychotherapy with these very difficult patients. The case example illustrates the treatment of a borderline personality patient who, in Goldstein and Jones's model, initially was in Group IV, the withdrawn and socially isolated group, but as therapy developed, fell into Group II in her defiance, disrespectful stance toward her mother, belligerance, and antagonism both in the family and in therapy. She progressively was able to relinquish her defensive stance of denial, projection, and splitting, and became more aware of her affect. As she progressed in therapy, her mood shifted from states of anger to states of depression and self-consciousness and her treatment was facilitated by use of pharmacotherapeutic agents and a very close-knit outpatient team. It is important to emphasize the value of a close-knit working outpatient team in the psychotherapy.
Criminal Practitioners: Ethics & Conflicts

This 36-page 2010 CLE (continuing legal education) brochure is titled “Criminal Practitioners: Ethics & Conflicts.” It was presented to public defenders. It analyzes ethical obligations and conflict issues affecting both prosecutors and defense counsel in criminal cases. Topics include (1) attorney-client relationship, (2) right to counsel, (3) effective assistance of counsel, (4) conflict of interest, (5) denial of or interference with a Defendant’s constitutional rights, (6) attorney as advocate, (7) attorney as officer of the court, (8) attorney as witness, (9) responsibilities of a prosecutor, and (10) discovery in criminal cases.
A comparison of computer-controlled versus manual administration of vecuronium in humans.

The short elimination half-life of vecuronium suggests it may be delivered more efficiently by continuous infusion than by traditional bolus injections. The objective of this study was to compare manual administration with computer-controlled administration. Anesthesia was induced in 22 patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists [ASA] physical status I and II) with fentanyl and sodium thiopental and maintained with halothane and nitrous oxide in oxygen. Neuromuscular function was assessed at the hypothenar eminence and the adductor pollicis (train-of-four stimulation). A bolus of 0.1 mg/kg of vecuronium was given to obtain 100% twitch depression for tracheal intubation. After twitch height returned to 25% of control, relaxation was maintained by traditional bolus injections (group 1, n = 7), manually controlled continuous infusion (group 2, n = 7), or computer-controlled continuous infusion (group 3, n = 8). In all three groups the desired level of relaxation was 90% twitch depression. Variability of relaxation differed significantly among the three groups (group 1: 10.5%, group 2: 12.4%, group 3: 7.1%). Twitch height was more constant with computer control than with either bolus injections or manual infusion (P < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the drug requirement (group 1: 1.60 μg/kg/min, group 2: 1.51 μg/kg/min, group 3: 1.45 μg/kg/min). Variability in the mechanomyogram (n = 12) was much higher than in the electromyogram (n = 10). Computer-controlled infusion may be a useful adjunct for the anesthesiologist who desires a stable level of patient relaxation when using short-acting, nondepolarizing relaxants.
Is the Federal Income Tax Code Unconstitutionally Vague

Taxes are the price of living in a civilized society and no one disputes the right of the federal government to tax income. However, the federal tax code may have become so complicated that it is unconstitutionally vague. A law is unconstitutionally vague when a person of ordinary intelligence cannot determine what is required of him or her. There is a presumption that laws are constitutional and that presumption can only be rebutted by clear and convincing evidence. However, there is a broad and deep body of clear and convincing evidence that the tax code is so complex that it is unconstitutionally vague. The contribution of this article is to create a record of tax code complexity that can be used as the basis for judicial action.
Controversial Aspects of Candidiasis in the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Fungal infections are widely recognized as common and frequently life-threatening opportunistic infections in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Candida species and Cryptococcus neoformans are responsible for the vast majority of fungal infections in patients with AIDS, and although cryptococcal infections are often fatal, infections due to Candida are the most frequent opportunistic infection encountered in AIDS.
The use of lexical basis functions to characterize faces, and to measure their perceived similarity

Over the last decade researchers have devised algorithms that can provide similarity measures between pairs of face images. These have been somewhat successful in estimating the similarities between face images under controlled conditions. However, those similarity measures do not parallel subjective similarity, as perceived by humans. In some applications it is important to have a similarity metric that closely parallels that of humans. This paper describes a method for discovering the high-level features that are used by humans to judge facial similarity through the use of "lexical basis functions" gleaned from a lexicon of the English language. This method estimates the similarity of each pair of images in a set of face images by two independent methods - by the subjective evaluation of human observers, and by the use of "lexical basis functions" to represent the multidimensional content of each image with a feature vector. The similarity measure computed with these feature vectors is shown to corr-elate with the subjective judgment of human observers, and thus provides both a more objective method for evaluating and expressing image content, and a possible path to automating the process of similarity measurement in the future.
Aryloxypropanolamine and Catecholamine Ligand Interactions with the β1-Adrenergic Receptor: Evidence for Interaction with Distinct Conformations of β1-Adrenergic Receptors

Pharmacological responses to aryloxypropanolamines were examined in cells expressing rat or human β 1 -adrenergic receptors (ARs) using adenylyl cyclase assays. The aryloxypropanolamines CGP 12177 and LY 362884, originally developed as β 3 -AR agonists, were found to stimulate the β 1 -AR. Interestingly, both CGP 12177 and LY 362884 exhibited an anomalous biphasic effect on β 1 -AR. Low concentrations of either CGP 12177 or LY 362884 potently blocked isoproterenol-induced stimulation of β 1 -AR, whereas higher concentrations of these compounds stimulated the β 1 -AR. The unusual interaction of these aryloxypropanolamine ligands with the β 1 -AR was further characterized using β-AR antagonists. Activation of β 1 -AR by CGP 12177 or LY 362884 was observed to be significantly more resistant to blockade by β-AR antagonists compared with activation by catecholamines. These results suggest that catecholamines and aryloxypropanolamines interact with distinct active conformations of the β 1 -AR: a state that is responsive to catecholamines and is blocked with high affinity by CGP 12177 and LY 362884, and a novel state that is activated by aryloxypropanolamines but is resistant to blockade by standard β-AR antagonists. Moreover, dependence of antagonist affinity on agonist structure is unprecedented, and its implications on the use of β-AR agonists such as CGP 12177 in receptor classification are discussed.
Model predictive filtering MR thermometry: Effects of model inaccuracies, k-space reduction factor, and temperature increase rate.

Purpose Evaluate effects of model parameter inaccuracies (thermal conductivity, k, and ultrasound power deposition density, Q), k-space reduction factor (R), and rate of temperature increase ( ) in a thermal model-based reconstruction for MR-thermometry during focused-ultrasound heating. Methods Simulations and ex vivo experiments were performed to investigate the accuracy of the thermal model and the model predictive filtering (MPF) algorithm for varying R and , and their sensitivity to errors in k and Q. Ex vivo data was acquired with a segmented EPI pulse sequence to achieve large field-of-view (192 × 162 × 96 mm) four-dimensional temperature maps with high spatiotemporal resolution (1.5 × 1.5 × 2.0 mm, 1.7 s). Results In the simulations, 50% errors in k and Q resulted in maximum temperature root mean square errors (RMSE) of 6°C for model only and 3°C for MPF. Using recently developed methods, estimates of k and Q were accurate to within 3%. The RMSE between MPF and true temperature increased with R and . In the ex vivo study the RMSE remained below 0.7°C for R ranging from 4 to 12 and of 0.28–0.75°C/s. Conclusion Errors in MPF temperatures occur due to errors in k and Q. These MPF temperature errors increase with increase in R and , but are smaller than those obtained using the thermal model alone. Magn Reson Med, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Landlessness, Health, and the Failures of Reform in the Peruvian Highlands

L'A. montre comment, au Perou, les reformes foncieres et agraires depuis les annees 1960, ainsi que les reformes sanitaires, n'ont pas reussi a reduire les problemes de l'inegalite et de l'absence de possession de terres. Les conditions de la production agricole sont devenues precaires. Le regime alimentaire et la sante sont lies aux revenus et aux conditions socioeconomiques des groupes domestiques
Production and separation of formate dehydrogenase from Candida boidinii

Abstract The production of FDH in a 40-l bioreactor was carried out with methanol as the inducer to reach the final intracellular FDH activity of 35 U/g cell. Among different permeabilization methods studied, treatment with toluene at a relatively small amount resulted in the cells with the highest FDH activity. Crude FDH cell extract obtained by ultrasonically breaking down the cell wall was treated with polyethyleneimine (PEI) to separate FDH from other proteins. By adding PEI at a low concentration of 0.04 mg/ml to the cell extract, ∼50% of the proteins formed aggregates with PEI and precipitated; however, FDH was not in these aggregates and remained in the solution. After the PEI treatment, the specific FDH activity increased by 1.6-fold. SDS-PAGE analysis showed that PEI precipitation removed some impurity protein molecules that cannot be separated by affinity chromatography with Sepharose-Procion Blue HERB as the separation ligand, and thus improved the separation efficiency. The adsorbed FDH in the affinity column was eluted with KCl solution. Adding 5 mM NAD + in 0.2 M KCl improved the FDH elution and increased the specific FDH activity by 1.38-fold as compared to elution with 1 M KCl. Overall, the PEI precipitation and dye affinity chromatographic process obtained a high recovery yield of 56% with a 5.5-fold increase in the specific FDH activity from the crude cell extract.
Alternative forms of a strain-specific neutralizing antigenic site on the Sindbis virus E2 glycoprotein

Abstract Experiments with monoclonal antibodies raised against two laboratory strains of Sindbis virus, SB and SIN, suggested the existence of a strain-specific neutralizing antigenic site (E2-b) on the E2 glycoprotein. A comparison of monoclonal antibody binding patterns and E2 glycoprotein gene sequences of six laboratory strains distinguished three different configurations of E2-b that correlated with specific amino acid substitutions at position 216 of the E2 glycoprotein. Further study of neutralization escape mutants selected with E2-b-specific antibodies confirmed that amino acid 216 is a major determinant of the E2-b antigenic site. Eight of nine mutants showed a coding change at position 216. One neutralization escape mutation created a new glycosylation site at position 213 and resulted in an E2 protein with an altered migration rate in SDS-PAGE. The neutralization escape mutants studied included amino acid substitutions not found in the laboratory strains that revealed differing binding requirements for two E2-b-specific monoclonal antibodies. The E2-b site is contrasted with the E2-c neutralizing antigenic site described previously (R. A. Olmsted, W. J. Meyer, and R. E. Johnston, 1986, Virology 148, 245–254) .
Transrectal hybrid natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) nephrectomy in a porcine model.

OBJECTIVE To examine feasibility of transrectal hybrid natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) nephrectomy in the porcine model. NOTES uses ports of entry to the peritoneal cavity instead of abdominal wall incisions, thereby eliminating visible scar and also potentially reducing postoperative pain. METHODS After obtaining Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee approval, 3 female pigs (45 kg) underwent transrectal hybrid NOTES nephrectomy (2 right, 1 left). Pneumoperitoneum was created by a periumbilically-inserted 12-mm trocar, through which a laparoscope was advanced to obtain intraabdominal visualization. A horizontal incision was made 2 cm above the dentate line and a submucosal tunnel was created in the posterior rectal wall/presacral space. A dual-channel gastroscope was advanced through the submucosal tunnel and retroperitoneum to the level of the kidney using air insufflation. A window in the peritoneum was created and renal mobilization was completed. A transumbilically applied laparoscopic 45-mm stapler was used to transect the ureter and renal hilum. A specimen extraction bag was deployed transrectally and the specimen was delivered intact, followed by transrectal incision closure. RESULTS Transrectal hybrid NOTES nephrectomy was successfully performed in all cases. Mean operative time was 180 minutes (30 minutes for rectal access). Estimated blood loss was 50 mL. On necropsy, no intraabdominal injuries were noted. CONCLUSIONS In this initial report on feasibility of transrectal hybrid NOTES nephrectomy, we were able to perform the procedures with minimal blood loss and extract intact specimen. Survival studies are prerequisite to assess sterility and short- and long-term complications. This approach may be useful as an alternative to transvaginal access.
Primary damage state in finite neutron irradiated BeO specimens

Abstract Machine calculations (IBM 7090) were made to estimate the influence of the neutron energy spectrum, incident neutron angular distribution and specimen size and shape, upon the primary damage state in finite, neutron-irradiated BeO specimens. Neutron spectra pertinent to test holes in the ETR and ORGR reactors as well as monoenergetic neutrons with energies in the range 0.01–10 MeV were employed. Semi-infinite, slab and columnar specimen geometries were treated. The primary knock-on atom concentration, total defect concentration and embryo vacancy cluster concentration produced by a unit, energy-integrated neutron flux were computed. The primary knock-on atom energy distribution and the embryo cluster size distribution were also obtained. Primary knock-on atom characteristics were obtained using a Monte Carlo method in which experimental angular distribution cross sections were used to describe anisotropic neutron scattering in the center of mass system as a function of neutron energy. The nature of the damage produced by primary knock-on atoms of a given type and energy was estimated by computing the entire collision cascade induced by this energetic atom in an exact representation of the wurtzite lattice structure of BeO. This deterministic calculation was used to study cluster production and to provide the four-element matrix of displacement functions required to compute the number of displaced atoms in a binary system.
Bulk crystallization of poly(aryl ether ether ketone) (PEEK)

Concurrent measurements of transmitted polarized light intensity and recording of the phenomenon of crystallization through polarized optical microscopy have resolved some of the controversies on the bulk crystallization behavior of poly(aryl ether ether ketone) (PEEK). The process of bulk crystallization was studied through the separation of the nucleation and growth steps. Avrami plots have shown three characteristic ranges. It was observed that a first slope at low crystallization times is associated with massive heterogeneous nucleation and/or local-order-promoted primary nucleation of spherulitic crystals. A second gradual decrement in intensity follows, showing a logarithmic tendency. It represents a mixture of at least three parallel mechanisms. These are associated with the end of the process of crystallization of the primary spherulites and in large proportion the nucleation and growth, at lower rates, of sporadically nucleated spherulites. In addition, there is some contribution from secondary crystallization to the transmitted light emerging. The whole group of nucleated spherulites continue growing up to the point of impingement, which loosely marks the beginning of the third region. This last region with lower slope than the first one and an exponential tendency reflects secondary crystallization at long times. The general characteristics of the processes of nucleation and growth are discussed.
Role of adiponectin in the protective action of dietary saturated fat against alcoholic fatty liver in mice.

The protective effect of dietary saturated fatty acids against the development of alcoholic liver disease has long been known, but the underlying mechanism is incompletely understood. Here we examined the involvement of the adipocyte hormone adiponectin. Circulating adiponectin levels were significantly elevated by chronic ethanol administration to mice consuming a high saturated fat diet. The increase in circulating adiponectin was associated with the activation a set of hepatic signaling pathways mediated through AMPK, PPARα, and PGC-1α, which in turn led to markedly increased rates of fatty acid oxidation, prevention of hepatic steatosis, and alleviation of liver enzyme changes. Furthermore, treatment of rat 3T3-L1 adipocytes with saturated fatty acids (palmitic or stearic acids) in the presence of ethanol increased secretion of adiponectin and enhanced activity of a mouse adiponectin promoter. In conclusion, the protective action of saturated fat against the development of alcoholic fatty liver in mice is partially mediated through induction of adiponectin. The present findings suggest a novel paradigm for dietary fatty acids in the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver disease, and provide a promising therapeutic strategy, which is nutritional modulation of adiponectin, in treating human alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Toxicity of thermal decomposition products of urea formaldehyde and phenol formaldehyde foams

Abstract Toxicological investigations of two synthetic polymeric cellular materials commonly used for insulation purposes were completed. These two materials were urea formaldehyde foam and phenol formaldehyde foam. Both materials were submitted to thermal stress and mice were exposed to the thermal decomposition products. Evaluation of the sensory irritating properties, physiological stress, mortality, and histopathological changes due to exposure to the thermal decomposition products revealed that those from urea formaldehyde were highly irritating, very stressful, more toxic than wood, and induced cardiomyopathy.
Contingent methadone take-home doses reinforce adjunct therapy attendance of methadone maintenance patients

Two studies utilized within-subjects designs to determine whether take-home methadone doses can reinforce adjunct therapy attendance of drug abuse patients. These studies varied the reinforcement density and the schedule of methadone take-home doses. In Study 1, patients (n = 10) either could or could not receive a take-home following each therapy session. Study 2 patients (n = 15) could either earn take-homes following each therapy session attended (i.e., 2 take-homes per week) or could earn one take-home dose following each attendance to two consecutive sessions attended. In both studies experimental conditions alternated during three-week blocks of time. Across studies, any reinforcement by take-home doses produced more attendance at therapy sessions than that observed in the no reinforcement condition. Take-home incentive effects were strongest when each of the two weekly therapy sessions was reinforced by a methadone take-home dose. Increased attendance was not associated with reduced drug use, due perhaps to high rates of pre-study drug use and limited therapy duration. Contemporary opioid abusers present with multiple problems that methadone was never intended to treat. The present studies illustrate a method by which methadone treatment can improve the likelihood of delivering other services that may prove effective in treating some of these problems.
Computational image processing for a computer vision system using biomimetic sensors and eigenspace object models

Two challenges to an effective, real-world computer vision system are speed and reliable object recognition. Traditional computer vision sensors such as CCD arrays take considerable time to transfer all the pixel values for each image frame to a processing unit. One way to bypass this bottleneck is to design a sensor front-end which uses a biologically-inspired analog parallel-process design. The authors are working to develop such a biomimetic sensor based on the eye of the common house fly (Musca domestica). This approach is showing great promise in producing image information such as edge maps with negligible delay. Additionally, this sensor has demonstrated an impressive ability to detect objects at subpixel resolution. However, the format of the image information provided by such a sensor is unlike traditional image formats, and therefore requires novel computational manipulations to make best use of this sensor output. The real-world object recognition challenge is being addressed by using a subspace method which uses object models created in the eigenspace of multiple reference object poses. In past work, the authors have successfully demonstrated image object recognition techniques for surveillance images of various military targets using such eigenspace appearance representations. This work, which was later extended to partially occluded objects, can be generalized to a wide variety of object recognition applications. The technique is based upon a large body of eigenspace research described elsewhere. Briefly described, the technique creates target models by collecting a set of target images and finding a set of eigenvectors that span the target image space. Once the eigenvectors are found, an eigenspace model (also called a subspace model) of the target is generated by projecting target images on to the eigenspace. New images to be recognized are then projected on to the eigenspace for object recognition. For occluded objects, we project the image on to reduced dimensional subspaces of the original eigenspace (i.e., a subspace of a subspace or a sub-eigenspace). We then measure how close a match we can achieve when the occluded target image is projected on to a given sub-eigenspace. We have found that this technique can result in significantly improved recognition of occluded objects. In order to manage the combinatorial explosion associated with selecting the number of subspaces required and then projecting images on to those sub-eigenspaces for measurement, we use a variation on the A* (called A-star) search method. The challenge of tying these two subsystems (the biomimetic sensor and the subspace object recognition module) together into a coherent and robust system is formidable. It requires specialized computational image and signal processing techniques that are discussed in this paper, along with preliminary results. The authors believe that this approach will result in a fast, robust computer vision system suitable for the non-ideal real-world environment.
Pentagastrin infusions in patients with panic disorder I. Symptoms and cardiovascular responses

Abstract Cholecystokinin (CCK) may mediate human anxiety and animal data suggest that cholecystokinin antagonists could provide an important advance in the treatment of anxiety disorders. The study of CCK receptor systems in psychiatric patients has, however, been severely limited by the lack of available probes. We utilized intravenous infusions of pentagastrin, a selective CCK-B receptor agonist, and studied behavioral and cardiovascular responses in 10 patients with panic disorder and 10 normal controls. Pentagastrin produced substantial symptomatology, including anxiety, and increases in heart rate and blood pressure, in both patients and controls. Patients were more sensitive to the panicogenic effects of the pentagastrin. Panic attacks occurred in 70% of patients and 0% of controls. Patients' symptom responses were very similar to their "typical" panic attacks and to symptoms produced by CCK 4 . Pentagastrin provides a readily available alternative to CCK 4 for studying the CCK receptor system and exploring its involvement in human anxiety.
CHAUNCY HARRIS AND EDWARD ULLMAN, “THE NATURE OF CITIES”: A FIFTIETH YEAR COMMEMORATION

(1997). CHAUNCY HARRIS AND EDWARD ULLMAN, “THE NATURE OF CITIES”: A FIFTIETH YEAR COMMEMORATION. Urban Geography: Vol. 18, Chauncy Harris and Edward Ullman, 'The Nature of Cities': A Fiftieth Year Commemoration, pp. 1-3.
Effect of the antiscatter grid and target/filters in full-field digital mammography

Computer Analysis of Mammography Phantom Images (CAMPI) is a method for making quantitative measurements of image quality. This paper reports on further applications of the method to a prototype full-field digital mammography (FFDM) machine. The specific aim was to investigate the effect on speck Signal-to- Noise-Ratio (SNR) of grid vs. non-grid techniques and different target-filter imaging conditions, for 4-cm thick phantoms. Images of a 50-50 composition, 4-cm thick phantom containing a mammography accreditation phantom insert plate, were acquired on a General Electric FFDM machine under conditions of constant pixel value and constant mean glandular dose. They were obtained under conditions of grid and no-grid with the Mo-Mo target/filter. Also acquired were 4-cm phantom grid images at constant dose using different targets-filter combinations (Mo/Mo, Mo/Rh, Rh/Rh) and different phantom material glandular-fat compositions (percentages: 30-70, 50- 50, 70-30). Analyses of the images yielded signal-to-noise- ratio (SNR) for the specks and a non-uniformity measure. The SNR was converted to a Figure of Merit (FOM) by dividing by the square root of the mean glandular dose. For the grid-non- grid study, the FOM plots showed a broad maximum at about 26 - 28 kVp, meaning that this range is optimal in dose efficiency for imaging a 4-cm breast of 50-50 composition. The non-grid FOM values were greater than the grid values, meaning that the former was more dose-efficient. For the Target/Filter study the FOM also showed broad maxima as a function of kVp. The overall trends were as follows: (1) the Mo-Rh combination was superior to the Mo-Mo combination for all tissue compositions and kVps, and was generally superior to Rh-Rh except for kVp greater than 30. (2) The optimal kVp moves towards higher values for more glandular (dense) breast equivalent material. (3) At the optimal kVp, Mo-Rh is the superior combination, outperforming both Mo-Mo and Rh-Rh for imaging a 4-cm breast. The non-uniformity was higher by 60% for the non-grid condition, and this negated its dose efficiency advantage. In the non-grid mode the non-uniformity is quite dependent on the phantom dimensions and position, implying that scatter is a significant contributing factor. The Rh-Rh combination also yielded a higher non-uniformity than did Mo-Mo and Mo-Rh. The Mo-Rh target filter combination appears to be the best overall choice for imaging the 4-cm breast of arbitrary composition. In-spite of its superior dose efficiency, we recommend against using the non-grid technique until a better uniformity correction procedure is adopted.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Nonadherence to medical appointments is associated with increased plasma HIV RNA and decreased CD4 cell counts in a community-based HIV primary care clinic

Abstract This study examined the association of appointment nonadherence to markers of disease severity using one year of demographic and health information on 995 individuals with HIV in primary care at an urban community health centre. At the latest visit, 106 of 946 valid cases (11.2%) had a CD4 less than or equal to 200, and 454 of 936 valid cases (48.5%) had detectable plasma HIV RNA (greater than 50 copies/ml). Using logistic regression, appointment nonadherence (number of missed appointments) was a significant predictor (p<.03) of having an AIDS-defining CD4 count over and above the effects of number of kept appointments (p<.0001), and whether or not the patient was taking HAART (p<.002). Appointment nonadherence was also a significant predictor (p<.05) of having a detectable viral load over and above the effects of number of kept appointments (p<.003), HAART (p<.0001) and age (p<.004). Looking only at individuals with a detectable viral load at the earliest visit, the only significant unique predi...
Changes in haemolymph and cuticle proteins during the moulting process in the American cockroach

Abstract 1. 1. Twelve negatively charged protein bands were found by acrylamide gel electrophoresis to be present in the haemolymph of the American cockroach during the moulting cycle. 2. 2. Fourteen soluble cuticle proteins appear at one stage of ecdysis, some having similar mobilities to the blood proteins. 3. 3. The levels of concentration are discussed with emphasis on the blood and cuticle protein relationships.
Profile analysis of standardized intelligence test performance of very high IQ children

Practitioners are frequently faced with the need to evaluate the intellectual skills of individuals with very high levels of functioning. Due to the statistical rarity of these persons, few tests have sufficient range of scores for a detailed analysis of intraindividual differences in performance. This paper describes a method using age equivalents and standard scores to recreate the full range of variability in the scores of high-functioning individuals. The method allows for a more complete interpretation of performance that can lead to better educational and therapeutic programming.
Preservation of motor neuron Ca2+ channel sensitivity to insulin-like growth factor-1 in brain motor cortex from senescent rat

Despite the multiple effects on mammals during development, the effectiveness of the insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) to sustain cell function and structure in the brain of senescent mammals is almost completely unknown. To address this issue, we investigated whether the effects of IGF-1 on specific targets are preserved at later stages of life. Voltage-gated Ca2+ channels (VGCC) are well-characterized targets of IGF-1. VGCC regulate membrane excitability and gene transcription along with other functions that have been found to be impaired in the brain of senescent rodents. As the voluntary control of movement has been reported to be altered in the elderly, we investigated the expression, function and responsiveness of high (HVA)- and low-voltage-activated (LVA) Ca2+ channels to IGF-1, using the whole-cell configuration of the patch-clamp and RT-PCR in the specific region of the rat motor cortex that controls hindlimb muscle movement. We detected the expression of α1A, α1B and α1E genes encoding the HVA Ca2+ channels P/Q, N and R, respectively, but not α1C, α1D, α1S encoding the L-type Ca2+ channel in this region of the brain cortex. IGF-1 enhanced Ca2+ channel currents through P/Q- and N-type channels but not significantly through the R-type or LVA channels. IGF-1 enhanced the amplitude but did not modify the voltage dependence of Ca2+ channel currents in young (2- to 4-week-old), young adult (7-month-old) and senescent (28- to 29-month-old) rats. These results support the concept that despite the reported decrease in circulating (liver) and local (central nervous system) production of IGF-1 with ageing, key neuronal targets such as the VGCC remain responsive to the growth factor throughout life.
Photoinduced isomerization and electron transfer in the all-trans-retinyl cation

Two-laser flash photolysis was carried out on all-trans-retinol in acetonitrile solution at room temperature. As reported previously, the first laser pulse causes ionic photodissociation leading to the production of the all-trans-retinyl cation. The second pulse, tuned to the cation absorption, causes trans → cis photoisomerization, yielding a cis-retinyl cation. In the presence of aromatic electron donors with Eox < + 1.5 V (vs. saturated calomel electrode), excitation of the all-trans cation leads to electron transfer.
Predicting 9Be nuclear magnetic resonance chemical shielding tensors utilizing density functional theory.

The structures of a series of beryllium containing complexes have been optimized at the B3LYP/6-31G(d) level and their 9Be magnetic shielding values have been determined using B3LYP/6-311G+g(2d,p) and the gauge-including atomic orbital (GIAO) method. The calculated chemical shifts are in excellent agreement with experimental values. The performance of a variety of NMR methods (SGO, IGAIM, CSGT) were also examined but were found to be inferior to the GIAO method at the chosen level of theory employed. The theoretical method has been utilized to predict the beryllium chemical shifts of structurally characterized complexes for which no measured 9Be NMR spectrum exists, and to investigate a literature complex with an unusual 9Be NMR chemical shift. A new standard for beryllium NMR in nonaqueous solvents has been suggested.