cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Structural insights into the molecular mechanism of mouse TRPA1 activation and inhibition.

Pain, though serving the beneficial function of provoking a response to dangerous situations, is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience. Transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) is a member of the transient receptor potential (TRP) cation channel family and is localized in “nociceptors,” where it plays a key role in the transduction of chemical, inflammatory, and neuropathic pain. TRPA1 is a Ca2+-permeable, nonselective cation channel that is activated by a large variety of structurally unrelated electrophilic and nonelectrophilic chemical compounds. Electrophilic ligands are able to activate TRPA1 channels by interacting with critical cysteine residues on the N terminus of the channels via covalent modification and/or disulfide bonds. Activation by electrophilic compounds is dependent on their thiol-reactive moieties, accounting for the structural diversity of the group. On the other hand, nonelectrophilic ligands do not interact with critical cysteines on the channel, so the structural diversity of this group is unexplained. Although near-atomic-resolution structures of TRPA1 were resolved recently by cryo-electron microscopy, in the presence of both agonists and antagonists, detailed mechanisms of channel activation and inhibition by these modulators could not be determined. Here, we investigate the effect of both electrophilic and nonelectrophilic ligands on TRPA1 channel conformational rearrangements with limited proteolysis and mass spectrometry. Collectively, our results reveal that channel modulation results in conformational rearrangements in the N-terminal ankyrin repeats, the pre-S1 helix, the TRP-like domain, and the linker regions of the channel.
MECHANISM OF NK CELL LYSIS

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the mechanism of natural killer (NK) cell lysis. Cell-mediated cytotoxicity can be affected by a variety of cells of the immune system, including cytotoxic T lymphocytes, natural killer cells, and mononuclear phagocytes. A model for the mechanism of lymphocyte-mediated cytolysis favored by many is the stimulus-secretion model in which appropriate binding of an effector cell to a target cell stimulates membrane changes, which lead to a vesicular secretory event resulting in lysis of the target cell. The best-understood paradigm of vesicular secretion is that of histamine release induced by antigen or anti-IgE antibodies from mast cells or basophils, an event which is complete within two minutes after appropriate stimulation. Such a model seems particularly relevant to NK cell lysis, because human and rat NK cells have been found to be associated with a large granular lymphocyte fraction. In studies on histamine release, the earliest definable event following appropriate stimulation is a protease-requiring step that can be blocked by inhibitors of both trypsin and chymotrypsin-like enzymes. The effects of Ca2+ in the histamine release pathway are probably ionic, whereas they may require calmodulin-dependent regulatory activity in the case of NK lysis.
Heterogenous Autoregressive Realized Volatility Model

Volatility estimation and prediction are important topics in financial research and practices. There were extensive volatility studies based on low-frequency data in the past three decades, and in the past several years intensive research activities were on the volatility estimation based on high-frequency financial data. One recent trend in the volatility research is to combine the strengths of both low-frequency and high-frequency methods. An empirical approach is to directly estimate volatilities based on high-frequency data and then fit the estimated volatilities to a low-frequency heterogeneous autoregressive volatility model. This chapter is to provide some theoretical justifications for the empirical approach by showing that realized volatility estimators approximately obey a heterogeneous autoregressive model for some appropriate underlying price and volatility processes.
Image-based modeling of normal tissue complication probability for radiation therapy.

Abstract We therefore conclude that NTCP models, at least in some cases, are definitely tools not toys. However, like any good tool, they can be abused and in fact could lead to injury with misuse. In particular, we have pointed out that it is risky indeed to apply NTCP models to dose distributions which are very dissimilar to the dose distributions for which the NTCP model has been validated. While this warning is somewhat fuzzy, it is clear that more research needs to be done in this area. We believe that ultimately for NTCP models to be used routinely in treatment planning in a safe and effective way, the actual application will need to be closely related to the characteristics of the data sets and the uncertainties of the treatment parameters in the models under consideration. Another sign that NTCP models are becoming tools rather than toys is that there is often good agreement as to what constitutes a correct direction of improving the reduced risk for that particular complication endpoint. Thus, for example, mean dose to normal lung almost always comes out as being the most predictive or nearly most predictive factor in the analysis of radiation pneumonitis.
The Effect of Hydrogen and Other Additives on the Electronic Properties of Amorphous Silicon

This tutorial discussion is a personal view on three types of additives that are of interest to the study of the electronic properties of amorphous silicon (a-Si). These additives are: 1) dangling and other weak bonds, 2) hydrogen and other bond terminators, and 3) n- and p-type dopants. Although dangling bonds are not generally thought of as additives, conceptually they can be viewed as extrinsic to a perfect continuous random network and therefore, as something added to that as yet unobtainable ideal. Either accidentally or by design, hydrogen, oxygen and more recently fluorine, have been used as bond terminators to passivate the extrinsic effects of dangling bonds. Quantitative analysis of H in electronically interesting amorphous silicon, namely a-Si:H, gives a typical concentration of order 10–20 atomic percent, a level indicative of a role for H that involves more than defect passivation. Substitutional dopants that are widely used in crystal silicon (x-Si), e.g. P and B, are now commonly added to a-Si:H to make n-and p-type amorphous semiconductors. The doped materials are employed in diodes, transistors and other configurations of device potential. The assumption is that at least the electrically active P and B are substitutionally incorporated into the host Si network and therefore donate and accept electrons in ways analogous to shallow donors and acceptors in x-Si.
Why Do Neurons Express Chemokine Receptors

Publisher Summary This chapter describes what is currently known about the ways in which neurons can respond to chemokines and how these effects may be important for the function of the nervous system under normal and pathophysiological circumstances. At this time there are officially 11 CC(β), 6 CXC(α), 1 CX3C and 1C types of chemokine receptors, as well as a number of related ‘orphan’ receptors. Many of these receptors have been detected in the nervous system, and some are expressed by neurons. The CXCR4 receptor is known to be a major receptor for T-tropic versions of the HIV-1 virus, and so its role in the pathogenesis of HIV-1 associated dementia has been intensively studied. The CXCR4 receptor has been shown to be expressed by microglia, Astrocytes and neurons in various parts of the brain, and so probably has a large number of different functions in the nervous system. Several types of receptors have been shown to be expressed by a variety of cultured neuronal cell lines and by primary neuronal cultures. Studies on brain tissues from various species under normal and pathophysiological circumstances have demonstrated the expression of CCR3 and CCR5 by neurons in addition to microglia. The regulation of fractalkine cleavage and release constitute an important control point in fractalkine signaling and an important therapeutic target. The CX3CR1 / fractalkine receptor has been reported to be expressed by cultured hippocampal pyramidal and DRG neurons. Several studies have indicated that chemokines can produce rapid effects on neuronal excitability and communication. There are also several reports that illustrate long-term effects of chemokines on neuronal survival. Effects of chemokines on other neuronal signaling pathways may be of importance when considering their effects on neuronal survival.
Measuring the Effect of Linguistic Resources on Prosody Modeling for Speech Synthesis

The generation of natural and expressive prosodic contours is an important component of a text-to-speech (TTS) system which, in most classical architectures, relies on the existence of a text-analysis processor that can extract prosody-predictive features and pass them to a statistical learning model. These features can range from basic properties of the input string to rich high-level features which may not be always available when developing a TTS system in a new language with sparse computational resources. In this work we investigate how the prosody model of a speech-synthesis system performs as a function of different predictive feature sets that assume access to a certain amount of rich resources. We investigate, using objective metrics, the effect of relaxing the assumptions on input representations for prosody prediction for 5 languages, and evaluate the perceptual implications for US English.
RUNX1-dependent mechanisms in biological control and dysregulation in cancer

The RUNX1 transcription factor has recently been shown to be obligatory for normal development. RUNX1 controls the expression of genes essential for proper development in many cell lineages and tissues including blood, bone, cartilage, hair follicles, and mammary glands. Compromised RUNX1 regulation is associated with many cancers. In this review, we highlight evidence for RUNX1 control in both invertebrate and mammalian development and recent novel findings of perturbed RUNX1 control in breast cancer that has implications for other solid tumors. As RUNX1 is essential for definitive hematopoiesis, RUNX1 mutations in hematopoietic lineage cells have been implicated in the etiology of several leukemias. Studies of solid tumors have revealed a context-dependent function for RUNX1 either as an oncogene or a tumor suppressor. These RUNX1 functions have been reported for breast, prostate, lung, and skin cancers that are related to cancer subtypes and different stages of tumor development. Growing evidence suggests that RUNX1 suppresses aggressiveness in most breast cancer subtypes particularly in the early stage of tumorigenesis. Several studies have identified RUNX1 suppression of the breast cancer epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Most recently, RUNX1 repression of cancer stem cells and tumorsphere formation was reported for breast cancer. It is anticipated that these new discoveries of the context-dependent diversity of RUNX1 functions will lead to innovative therapeutic strategies for the intervention of cancer and other abnormalities of normal tissues.
Vessel Wall MRI Added to MR Angiography in the Evaluation of Suspected Vasculopathies.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE We hypothesized that vessel wall MR imaging (VWI) with 3D-time-of-flight magnetic resonance imaging (3D-TOF-MRA) together increases the ability to detect abnormal intracranial vessel segments compared to 3D-TOF-MRA alone. METHODS Ninety-three consecutive subjects with a clinical history of suspected vasculopathy imaged with both VWI and 3D-TOF-MRAs were retrospectively reviewed. The 3D-TOF-MRAs were reviewed by two independent neuroradiologists classifying arterial segments as normal or abnormal based on caliber changes. Following a 2-week wash-out period, the 3D-TOF-MRAs with VWI together were re-evaluated for caliber changes and/or vessel wall enhancement. A third neuroradiologist served as consensus. Significance was assessed by McNemar's test. RESULTS Forty-two subjects with VWI and 3D-TOF-MRAs met the inclusion criteria. By 3D-TOF-MRA alone, 12.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 10.7-15.1) of the arterial segments were identified as abnormal compared to 20.8% (95% CI, 18.2-23.4) by VWI and 3D-TOF-MRA together (P < .0001). CONCLUSIONS 3D-TOF-MRA and VWI together identifies a higher number of abnormal vessel segments than 3D-TOF-MRA alone and may provide a more accurate assessment of disease burden.
Urbanization and elevated cholesterol in American Crows

Although urban areas can be sources of abundant food for wildlife, anthropogenic foods may be lower in quality than natural food sources, with possible consequences for birds. We examined how urbanization and anthropogenic food were linked to cholesterol levels, condition, and survival of American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). We collected cholesterol and landscape data from 140 crow nestlings along an urban-to-rural gradient in Davis, California, USA. We also ran a supplementation experiment with high-cholesterol fast food (McDonald's cheeseburgers) on 86 nestlings in a rural population in Clinton, New York, USA. Plasma cholesterol increased with percentage of impervious surface along the urban-to-rural gradient. Cholesterol levels were sensitive to anthropogenic foods: crows supplemented with fast food cheeseburgers had higher cholesterol levels than unsupplemented crows. Elevated cholesterol levels had no detectable effects on survival and were associated with higher indices of body condition, although urbanization itself was linked to lower survival. Elevated cholesterol levels could indicate access to high-calorie, high-fat anthropogenic foods, which might, in some contexts, improve body condition, potentially offsetting other negative effects of urbanization. Observations over a longer time scale, assessing additional indices of health and fitness, are needed to evaluate long-term costs or benefits of elevated cholesterol for urban crows.
NEMS Electrostatic Resonant Near-Zero Power Resistive Contact RF Wake-Up Switch with PT FIB Contact

This paper reports a NEMS electrostatic RF wake-up switch capable of detection sensitivity reaching −25 dBm off resonance with sub-pW passive power consumption at less than 1.5V DC operation. The switch utilizes a multielectrode design allowing for a mechanical contact gap to be held just outside thermal oscillations and RF input to physically close the switch. This allows for operation away from pull-in and improves RF sensitivity. A focused ion beam (FIB) patterned platinum-platinum contact point enables the low DC bias requirement and improves contact resistance and longevity. The potential for on-resonance operation provides a pathway forward for improved RF sensitivity in the future.
Variable Selection and Feature Screening

This chapter provides a selective review on feature screening methods for ultra-high dimensional data. The main idea of feature screening is reducing the ultra-high dimensionality of the feature space to a moderate size in a fast and efficient way and meanwhile retaining all the important features in the reduced feature space. This is referred to as the sure screening property. After feature screening, more sophisticated methods can be applied to reduced feature space for further analysis such as parameter estimation and statistical inference. This chapter only focuses on the feature screening stage. From the perspective of different types of data, we review feature screening methods for independent and identically distributed data, longitudinal data, and survival data. From the perspective of modeling, we review various models including linear model, generalized linear model, additive model, varying-coefficient model, Cox model, etc. We also cover some model-free feature screening procedures.
Additive manufacturing of shape memory NiTi thin films

Shape memory nickel-titanium (NiTi) thin films have demonstrated superior capabilities in microelectromechanical systems and biomedical implants due to its corrosion resistance, large work output per unit mass, radiation resistance, and biocompatibility. The goal of this project is to additively manufacture NiTi thin film devices with micrometer resolution. NiTi colloid inks for 3D printing applications were developed and characterized. NiTi thin films were then printed onto a ceramic substrate using an aerosol jet printer, subsequently, sintering and heat treatment procedures were developed. Damping capability and output power density of the printed NiTi thin films were eventually characterized.
Insertion of an Alu-like element in MLH1 intron 7 as a novel cause of Lynch syndrome.

BACKGROUND Lynch Syndrome (LS) is caused by germline mutations in the DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes with mutations in MLH1 accounting for ~40% of LS-related alterations. METHODS MSK-IMPACT analysis was performed on peripheral blood from a patient with early- onset colorectal cancer. Subsequently PCR and sequencing was performed to characterize the insertion. Immunohistochemistry for MMR genes and MLH1 promoter methylation were analyzed on patient's tumor. RESULTS MSK-IMPACT germline testing revealed an insertion into c.588+8_588+9 of MLH1 intron 7. The insertion was further characterized as an AluSx-like element with ~115 bp in length. Functional studies demonstrated that the AluSx-like element led to complete disruption of mRNA splicing and probably resulted in transcriptional termination at the poly (A) region of the AluSx-like insertion. CONCLUSIONS The insertion of a truncated AluSx like element into MLH1 intron 7 results in aberrant splicing and transcription, thereby causing Lynch syndrome. This study confirms that retrotransposon insertions may be an important mechanism for cancer predisposition.
Female Youth Convicted of Sex Offenses: Public Opinion on Public Notification:

Throughout the United States, sex offender registration laws in many states and the federal government have expanded to include juveniles. Once juveniles are registrants, they can potentially be su...
Photovoltaic Module Imaging for Hail Damage Assessment with Multi-year Follow Up

Outdoor-aged photovoltaic modules that have experienced golf-ball sized hail are characterized by flash testing and photoluminescence, electroluminescence, thermal, and ultraviolet fluorescence imaging. These measurements were performed immediately after the hailstorm and then again after another two years and four years in the field. The modules originally experienced different ranges of hail damage with some having cracks on approximately half of the cells and some having few to no cracked cells. Flash testing shows that the hail-damaged modules with the most cracked cells have 3 to 4% less power than those with the least damage. After four more years in the outdoor climate of Golden, Colorado since the hailstorm, all of the modules still exhibit similar relative power and amounts of cell cracking, suggesting that the hail damage has only initially reduced power but has not yet increased the degradation rate.
Vascular Polymer Encapsulation for Integrated Thermal Management and Packaging of Electronics

Two of the critical requirements for electronic systems are that they be protected from the environment and thermally regulated. Generally, these two tasks are accomplished separately, with a plastic or metal enclosure for protection and a separate cooling plate for thermal regulation. Vascular encapsulation of electronics is proposed here as a method developed for integrated packaging and thermal management of these systems. The proposed method allows for tighter system integration in applications where electronics with different power and temperature ratings are in proximity of each other or are adjacent to other heat sources such as power electronics converters and electric machine-drive circuitries. In vascular encapsulation, the delicate electronic systems are overmolded with a structural polymeric material containing an embedded network of small channels. The polymer provides physical protection while the channel network allows for thermal regulation by liquid cooling. Formation of the channels within the module utilizes a new method for sacrificial fabrication, Deflagration of Sacrificial Components (DeSC), wherein a specially designed sacrificial material is removed by combustion to convert the solid material to a gas without damaging the polymer or electronics. In this paper, the design and fabrication of a simple vascular encapsulated electronics module containing an array of eight thick film resistors is discussed. The cooling performance of the vascular system is then compared to that of a commercial liquid cooling plate. Results show that the vascular system’s cooling capability meets that of the commercial system with a significant reduction of system mass and volume of 80%.
Genome-wide identification of the regulatory targets of a transcription factor using biochemical characterization and computational genomic analysis

Background A major challenge in computational genomics is the development of methodologies that allow accurate genome-wide prediction of the regulatory targets of a transcription factor. We present a method for target identification that combines experimental characterization of binding requirements with computational genomic analysis.
Self-Organized Inference of Spatial Structure in Randomly Deployed Sensor Networks

Randomly deployed wireless sensor networks are becoming increasingly viable for many applications. Such networks can comprise anywhere from a few hundred to thousands of sensor nodes, and these sizes are likely to grow with advancing technology, making scalability a primary concern. Each node in these sensor networks is a small unit with limited resources and localized sensing and communication. Thus, all global tasks must be accomplished through self-organized distributed algorithms, which also leads to improved scalability, robustness and flexibility. In this paper, we examine the use of distributed algorithms to infer the spatial structure of an extended environment monitored by a self-organizing sensor network. Based on its sensing, the network segments the environment into regions with distinct characteristics, thereby inferring a cognitive map of the environment. This, in turn, can be used to answer global queries about the environment efficiently and accurately. The main challenge to the network arises from the necessarily irregular spatial sampling and the need for totally distributed computation. We consider distributed machine learning techniques for segmentation and study the variation of segmentation quality with reconstruction at different node densities and in environments of varying complexity.
Outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy with daptomycin: insights from a patient registry.

Aim To compare and contrast the characteristics and clinical outcomes of patients who have received daptomycin as outpatients and inpatients.
Endoscopic Management of Biliary Disorders: Diagnostic and Therapeutic

The use of peroral endoscopy in the diagnosis of and therapy for biliary disorders has evolved immensely since the introduction of flexible fiberoptic endoscopes more than 50 years ago. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography was introduced approximately a decade after flexible upper endoscopy and has evolved from a purely diagnostic procedure to almost exclusively a therapeutic procedure for managing biliary tract disorders. Endoscopic ultrasound, which continues to be a procedure of high diagnostic yield, is becoming a therapeutic modality for management of biliary diseases. This article discusses the diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and endoscopic ultrasound for evaluation and treatment of biliary diseases.
High-order method of moment method with point-based discretization

A high-order method of moment (HO-MoM) that is as efficient as a Nystrom solution method is introduced. In this scheme, both the testing and the basis functions are expanded into a set of smooth basis distributed over the scattering surface. However, through a simple transformation, the outer integration is eliminated resulting in a point-based form of the integral equation. Specifically, the integral equation is simply sampled at discrete quadrature abscissa points. It is demonstrated that this technique provides true high-order convergence for the current and RCS of canonical geometries.
Predicting melting points of quaternary ammonium ionic liquids

A melting point at or below ambient temperature is an essential property of ionic liquids being considered as non-volatile replacement solvents. Here we use the Quantitative Structure-Property Relationship (QSPR) method to correlate and predict the melting points of organic salts based on the quaternary ammonium cation. For a set of 75 tetraalkyl-ammonium bromides, a correlation with R2 = 0.790 is created, and for a set of 34 (n-hydroxyalkyl)-trialkyl-ammonium bromides, two correlations are created with R2 = 0.716 and R2 = 0.766. Descriptors used in the correlations are analyzed to determine structural features that lower melting point, and melting points are predicted for salts that incorporate these features.
Sexual Dimorphism in Newborn Vertebrae and its Potential Implications

Objective To examine whether the sex-related differences in vertebral cross-sectional area (CSA) found in children and at the timing of peak bone mass–a major determinant of osteoporosis and future fracture risk–are also present at birth. Study design Vertebral CSA, vertebral height, and intervertebral disc height were measured using magnetic resonance imaging in 70 healthy full-term newborns (35 males and 35 females). The length and CSA of the humerus, musculature, and adiposity were measured as well. Results Weight, body length, and head and waist circumferences did not differ significantly between males and females ( P ≥ .06 for all). Compared with newborn boys, girls had significantly smaller mean vertebral cross-sectional dimensions (1.47 ± 0.11 vs 1.31 ± 0.12; P P ≥ .11 for all). There were also no sex differences in the length or cross-sectional dimensions of the humerus or in measures of musculature and adiposity ( P ≥ .10 for all). Conclusion Factors related to sex influence fetal development of the axial skeleton. The smaller vertebral CSA in females is associated with greater flexibility of the spine, which could represent the human adaptation to fetal load. Unfortunately, it also imparts a mechanical disadvantage that increases stress within the vertebrae for all physical activities and increases the susceptibility to fragility fractures later in life.
Functional assessment after colectomy, mucosal proctectomy, and endorectal ileoanal pull-through.

Radiographic, manometric, and clinical techniques were used to assess the functional results after colectomy, mucosal proctectomy, and endorectal ileoanal pull-through (IAP). In 40 patients with ulcerative colitis, Gardner's syndrome, or familial polyposis, anorectal manometry was performed before IAP and 2 months and 1 year afterward. At 4 weeks after IAP, a standardized water contrast radiograph allowed an estimation of the dimensions of the ileal pouch and the integrity of the ileoanal anastomosis. Radiographically, the mean ± SE length, width, and depth of the ileal pouch were 10.9±0.6 cm, 4.5±0.6 cm, and 3.9±0.2 cm, respectively. No anastomotic leaks were identified; however, 2 patients were incontinent to the contrast material. The mean maximal anal sphincter resting pressure decreased from a mean ± SEM of 87.1±3.2 mmHg preoperatively to 68.1±3.1 mmHg 8 weeks after operation, but by 1 year resting pressure increased to 72.3 ±4.9 mmHg. The change in sphincter pressure with voluntary squeeze was greater 8 weeks after IAP than before the operation (114.0±8.2 mmHg versus 97.7±6.2 mmHg) and increased further by 1 year. No patient experienced major episodes of incontinence. Mean ± SEM stool frequency per 24 hours decreased from 7.5±0.5 at 1 month after ileostomy closure to 6.4±0.7 at 12 months. Ileal pouch capacity increased with time and was inversely related to stool frequency. It was concluded that endorectal pull-through of an ileal J pouch, by providing an adequate intestinal reservoir and preserving nearly normal anal sphincter function, results in anal continence and acceptable stool frequency.
Surgeon bias in sentinel lymph node dissection: Do tumor characteristics influence decision making?

Abstract Background Determining sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) in breast cancer staging involves subjective interpretation by the surgeon. We hypothesized patient and tumor characteristics influence number of SLNs harvested. Methods A single-institution, prospectively collected database was queried for breast cancer patients undergoing SLN surgery (2002–2013) and mean SLN counts were compared. Results There were 2394 SLN biopsies. Mean number of SLNs per patient for the entire cohort was 2.6. Mean number of SLNs removed was greater for patients ≤50 years (2.9 versus 2.6; p p = 0.002). Patients with grades 2 or 3 tumors had more SLNs removed than grade 1 (2.6 versus 2.5; p = 0.03). Receipt of neoadjuvant therapy was associated with more SLNs removed (3.0 versus 2.6; p = 0.005). Conclusion Number of SLNs removed varies based on risk factors for SLN metastasis or false-negative SLN biopsy.
Heating in a stream of oxidizing or reducing gas for the qualitative analysis of inorganic substances

Observation of the phenomena resulting from heating a substance first in air and then in hydrogen is recommended for the preliminary examination of small specimens of inorganic matter. It may permit immediate identification of simple compounds of the heavy metals. Reduction by heating in hydrogen is also recommended for the investigation of acid insoluble residues.
Model-based cone-beam CT reconstruction for image-guided minimally invasive treatment of hip osteolysis

Purpose: Accurate assessment of the size and location of osteolytic regions is essential in minimally invasive hip revision surgery. Moreover, image-guided robotic intervention for osteolysis treatment requires precise localization of implant components. However, high density metallic implants in proximity to the hip make assessment by either 2D or 3D x-ray imaging difficult. This paper details the initial implementation and evaluation of an advanced model-based conebeam CT (CBCT) reconstruction algorithm to improve guidance and assessment of hip osteolysis treatment. Method: A model-based reconstruction approach called Known Component Reconstruction (KCR) was employed to obtain high-quality reconstruction of regions neighboring metallic implants. KCR incorporates knowledge about the implant shape and material to precisely reconstruct surrounding anatomy while simultaneously estimating implant position. A simulation study involving a phantom generated from a CBCT scan of a cadaveric hip was performed. Registration accuracy in KCR iterations was evaluated as translational and rotational error from the true registration. Improvement in image quality was evaluated using normalized cross correlation (NCC) in two regions of interest (ROIs) about the femoral and acetabular components. Result: The study showed significant improvement in image quality over conventional filtered backprojection (FBP) and penalized-likelihood (PL) reconstruction. The NCC in the two ROIs improved from 0.74 and 0.81 (FBP) to 0.98 and 0.86 (PL) and >0.99 for KCR. The registration error was 0.01 mm in translation (0.02° in rotation) for the acetabular component and 0.01 mm (0.01° rotation) for the femoral component. Conclusions: Application of KCR to imaging hip osteolysis in the presence of the implant offers a promising step toward quantitative assessment in minimally invasive image-guided osteolysis treatment. The method improves image quality (metal artifact reduction), yields a precise registration estimate of the implant, and offers a means for reducing radiation dose in intraoperative CBCT.
Metallic stripe in two dimensions: stability and spin-charge separation

The problems of charge stripe formation, spin-charge separation, and stability of the antiphase domain wall (ADW) associated with a stripe are addressed using an analytical approach to the t -J{sub z} model. We show that a metallic stripe together with its ADW is the ground state of the problem in the low doping regime. The stripe is described as a system of spinons and magnetically confined holons strongly coupled to the two dimensional spin environment with holon-spin-polaron elementary excitations filling a one-dimensional band. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society.
Memory and attention in children's double-alternation learning

Abstract The influence of mnemonic and attentional aids on children's double-alternation (DA) learning was assessed using a binary choice apparatus with red and green event lights. The amount of mnemonic information was varied by exhibiting either the most recent two or the most recent 10–20 events of the DA sequence. Attention was manipulated by requiring onehalf of the Ss to verbalize the colors of the pegs. Ss were 40 nursery school and 48 kindergarten children. Only the older Ss with the 10-event mnemonic asymptoted above 75% correct. The nursery school Ss using the 10-event mnemonic and verbalizing the peg colors performed significantly better than other younger groups in the last three trial blocks.
Prolonged Treatment of Ultra-Low Dose Chondroitinase ABC Improves Matrix Production in Engineered Cartilage

Articular cartilage is the load bearing soft tissue of diarthrodial joints, and mechanical loading maintains the integrity of the tissue. The predominant extracellular matrix constituents, proteoglycans and collagen, allow cartilage to support the high compressive and tensile loads experienced in diurnal loading. Our laboratory has been successful in cultivating engineered cartilage constructs with a compressive equilibrium modulus and glycosaminglycan (GAG) content near native values [1, 2]. Many approaches to cultivating engineered cartilage have been limited by low collagen production in vitro, an impediment for attaining native functional load-bearing properties [3].© 2013 ASME
Local proliferation of fibroblast-like synoviocytes contributes to synovial hyperplasia. Results of proliferating cell nuclear antigen/cyclin, c-myc, and nucleolar organizer region staining.

Objective. To test the hypothesis that local proliferation contributes significantly to the hyperplasia of rheumatoid synovium. Methods. Immunohistologic and chemical staining was used to identify 3 markers of cell proliferation: proliferating cell nuclear antigen, c-myc proto-oncogene, and nucleolar organizer regions. Synovium from 21 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, 34 with degenerative joint disease, and 7 with joint trauma was examined. Results. All 3 markers indicated substantial, active proliferation of synovial lining cells in synovium with hyperplasia. Proliferating cells showed type I procollagen immunoreactivity but were negative for CD68, a monocyte/macrophage marker. Proliferation was greater in rheumatoid arthritis than in the other conditions evaluated. Conclusion. In situ proliferation of fibroblast-like synoviocytes in the synovium lining contributes considerably to the increase in cell numbers in rheumatoid synovium.
Interval predictor models with a formal characterization of uncertainty and reliability

This paper develops techniques for constructing empirical predictor models based on observations. By contrast to standard models, which yield a single predicted output at each value of the model's inputs, Interval Predictors Models (IPM) yield an interval into which the unobserved output is predicted to fall. The IPMs proposed prescribe the output as an interval valued function of the model's inputs, render a formal description of both the uncertainty in the model's parameters and of the spread in the predicted output. Uncertainty is prescribed as a hyper-rectangular set in the space of model's parameters. The propagation of this set through the empirical model yields a range of outputs of minimal spread containing all (or, depending on the formulation, most) of the observations. Optimization-based strategies for calculating IPMs and eliminating the effects of outliers are proposed. Outliers are identified by evaluating the extent by which they degrade the tightness of the prediction. This evaluation can be carried out while the IPM is calculated. When the data satisfies mild stochastic assumptions, and the optimization program used for calculating the IPM is convex (or, when its solution coincides with the solution to an auxiliary convex program), the model's reliability (that is, the probability that a future observation would be within the predicted range of outputs) can be bounded rigorously by a non-asymptotic formula.
Quantum information processing with cavity QED

Strongly coupled cavity QED systems show great promise for coherent processing of quantum information in the contexts of quantum computing, communication and cryptography. We present here current progress in experiments for which single atoms are strongly coupled to the mode of a high finesse optical resonator.
Identifying Handwritten Text in Mixed Documents

In this paper we present a system for classification of machine printed and handwritten text in mixed documents. The classification is performed at the word level. We propose a feature extraction algorithm for each word image based on Gabor filters followed by classification using an expectation maximization (EM) based probabilistic neural network that reduces overfitting of training data. An overall precision of 94.62% was obtained for the Arabic script using the modified neural network. The accuracies obtained using a simple backpropagation neural network and an SVM were 83.33% and 90.26% respectively
Framework for airfield pavements management—an approach based on cost-effectiveness analysis

Purpose and research question The agencies responsible to operate and maintain airfields in developing countries manage the airfield pavements on need to do/ reactive basis instead of resorting to performance based preventive maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R) activity profiles. Extracting due cognizance from literature on internationally recognized airfield pavements management systems, this research article presents a framework of the step-wise procedure for airfield pavement management system.
Lutherans in Need of Self‐Discipline: Japanese Shugyō and the Art of Sanctification

: Lutherans have a reputation for not attending well to the life of sanctification. Whether or not this is deserved, it is clear that all believers should make greater efforts to live in conformity with the will of God. Distinctly lacking in the Lutheran heritage, however, are disciplines of self-cultivation. Such methods could play a larger role in the spiritual lives of believers, not for the sake of one's own salvation, but for the benefit of others. With that in mind, this article considers the practice of shugyō in Japanese Buddhism. This concept of self-cultivation can form a model for how we in the West might seek to attend to our own maturing in the Christian life, attending to a greater stewardship of our bodies and minds.
Late oligocene and miocene faulting and sedimentation, and evolution of the southern Rio Grande rift, New Mexico, USA

Abstract The distribution of nonmarine lithofacies, paleocurrents, and provenance data are used to define the evolution of late Oligocene and Miocene basins and complementary uplifts in the southern Rio Grande rift in the vicinity of Hatch, New Mexico, USA. The late Oligocene-middle Miocene Hayner Ranch Formation, which consists of a maximum of 1000 m of alluvial-fan, alluvial-flat, and lacustrine-carbonate lithofacies, was deposited in a narrow (12 km), northwest-trending, northeast-tilted half graben, whose footwall was the Caballo Mountains block. Stratigraphic separation on the border faults of the Caballo Mountains block was approximately 1615 m. An additional 854 m of stratigraphic separation along the Caballo Mountains border faults occurred during deposition of the middle-late Miocene Rincon Valley Formation, which is composed of up to 610 m of alluvial-fan, alluvial-flat, braided-fluvial, and gypsiferous playa lithofacies. Two new, north-trending fault blocks (Sierra de las Uvas and Dona Ana Mountains) and complementary west-northwest-tilted half graben also developed during Rincon Valley time, with approximately 549 m of stratigraphic separation along the border fault of the Sierra de las Uvas block. In latest Miocene and early Pliocene time, following deposition of the Rincon Valley Formation, movement continued along the border faults of the Caballo Mountains, Dona Ana Mountains, and Sierra de las Uvas blocks, and large parts of the Hayner Ranch and Rincon Valley basins were segmented into smaller fault blocks and basins by movement along new, largely north-trending faults. Analysis of the Hayner Ranch and Rincon Valley Formations, along with previous studies of the early Oligocene Bell Top Formation and late Pliocene-early Pleistocene Camp Rice Formation, indicate that the traditional two-stage model for development of the southern Rio Grande rift should be abandoned in favor of at least four episodes of block faulting beginning 35 Ma ago. With the exception of two northwest-trending border faults of the Caballo Mountains block that may be reactivated along Eocene compressional structures, the majority of border faults and complementary basins throughout the history of the southern Rio Grande rift were north-trending, which challenges the conventional idea of a clockwise change in stress through time.
A DEMONSTRATION OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS' FIRST IMPRESSIONS AND THEIR RATINGS OF PATHOLOGY'

Szrmmary.-An interacrive team exercise based in the dual topic areas of social and abnormal psychology is described that employs videotaped case studies to sensitize students to the processes by which they form first impressions of other people, and to various issues regarding assessments of mental disorders. Each of three case studies is presented in nvo parts: Part 1 simulares a "first impression" condition-involving students' ratings of perceived pathology-by briefly showing only a patient (no soundtrack present), and Part 2 consutules a "turrher disclosure" condition by giving more exposure-involving therapists' diagnoses and assessments--of the same patient with both s~ght and soundtrack presented. Data are reported from 12 introductory psychology classes in which studenrs (N=367) rated [he three patients on psychopachology J, perceived severity of disorder as compared to the actual assessments (also contained on the videotapes) made by clinical psychologists and psychiatrists. The demonstration is useful in eliciting consistent and predictable first impressions from students, in stimulating classroom discussion about the value and accuracy of person perceptions and first impressions, and in alerting students ro problems related to the identification of mental disorders. In this article is described a classroom exercise in which highly predictable first impressions may be eliciced from college students and In which a clinical scenario or format is used as the basis for the examinat~on of psychological processes by which students perceive other people. Typically, I employ the exercise when teaching the introductory psychology course and attempt to schedule it (as a "bridge" activity) between coverage of material in the abnormaVpsychopathology ("mental disorders") and social psychology ("impression formation, person perception, and social cognitionJ') chapters of the textbook. Thus, the present interactive, nonexperimental demonstration is an approach suggcsted for classroom use to highlight various psychological issues and pr~nc~ples both in the mental health field (e.g., "What are the problems and criteria involved in the assessment of mental disorders?") and in the area of social perception (e.g., "What are the strengths and limitations of interpersonal impression formation, especially, the first impressions that individuals make of other people?").
Use of the Tumescent Technique for Scalp Surgery, Dermabrasion, and Soft Tissue Reconstruction

Application of the tumescent anesthetic technique in scalp surgery, dermabrasion, and soft tissue reconstruction is discussed. Vasoconstriction achieved by using tumescent anesthesia reduces bleeding even with dilute (1:320,000) epinephrine. Tumescent anesthesia also offers the advantages of decreased absorption at the site of infiltration, increased anesthetic infiltration, delayed absorption and lower peak blood plasma levels, and a longer lasting anesthetic effect.
Bessel functions for GL 2

In classical analytic number theory there are several trace formulas or summation formulas for modular forms that involve integral transformations of test functions against classical Bessel functions. Two prominent such are the Kuznetsov trace formula and the Voronoi summation formula. With the paradigm shift from classical automorphic forms to automorphic representations, one is led to ask whether the Bessel functions that arise in the classical summation formulas have a representation theoretic interpretation. We introduce Bessel functions for representations of GL 2 over a finite field first to develop their formal properties and introduce the idea that the γ-factor that appears in local functional equations for L-functions should be the Mellin transform of a Bessel function. We then proceed to Bessel functions for representations of GL 2(ℝ) and explain their occurrence in the Voronoi summation formula from this point of view. We briefly discuss Bessel functions for GL 2 over a p-adic field and the relation between γ-factors and Bessel functions in that context. We conclude with a brief discussion of Bessel functions for other groups and their application to the question of stability of γ-factors under highly ramified twists.
Wear and lysis is the problem in modular TKA in the young OA patient at 10 years.

Background Most long-term followup studies of younger patients who underwent TKA include a relatively high percentage of rheumatoid patients, whose function and implant durability may differ from those with osteoarthritis (OA).
The use of empathy in forensic examinations.

(1993). The Use of Empathy in Forensic Examinations. Ethics & Behavior: Vol. 3, No. 3-4, pp. 289-302.
On the Appropriate Social Responsibilities of Successful Entrepreneurs

This article offers proposed guidelines intended to protect the public interest in relationship to the advocated social responsibilities of successful entrepreneurs. The author argues that the most...
Beyond backup toward storage management

The IBM Tivoli Storage Manager, a client/server product providing backup, archive, and space management functions in heterogeneous distributed environments, performs extensive storage management after client data have reached the server. Beyond minimizing the amount of data that a client needs to send on successive backup operations, Tivoli Storage Manager optimizes data placement for disaster recovery, for restore operations, and for fault tolerant access. It also adapts to changes in device technology. The original design points of the product in research have been expanded to provide a comprehensive set of functions that not only facilitate backup but also support content managers and deep storage applications. The design points and functions are described in this paper.
Turbulence-induced scintillation on Gaussian-beam waves: theoretical predictions and observations from a laser-illuminated satellite

Expressions for the variance and the power spectral density of turbulence-induced log-amplitude fluctuations are derived for Gaussian-beam waves in the regime of weak scattering. This formulation includes effects that are due to turbulence strength variations along the propagation path, offset of the observation point from the beam axis, and sensitivity to focus and beam diameter. Comparison of theoretical results with observed scintillation during experiments with a laser-illuminated satellite reveals good agreement.