cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ready to Go Home? Assessment of Shared Mental Models of the Patient and Discharging Team Regarding Readiness for Hospital Discharge.

BACKGROUND A critical task of the inpatient interprofessional team is readying patients for discharge. Assessment of shared mental model (SMM) convergence can determine how much team members agree about patient discharge readiness and how their mental models align with the patient's self-assessment. OBJECTIVE Determine the convergence of interprofessional team SMMs of hospital discharge readiness and identify factors associated with these assessments. DESIGN We surveyed interprofessional discharging teams and each team's patient at time of hospital discharge using validated tools to capture their SMMs. PARTICIPANTS Discharge events (N = 64) from a single hospital consisting of the patient and their team (nurse, coordinator, physician). MEASURES Clinician and patient versions of the validated Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scales/Short Form (RHDS/SF). We measured team convergence by comparing the individual clinicians' scores on the RHDS/SF, and we measured team-patient convergence as the absolute difference between the Patient-RHDS/SF score and the team average score on the Clinician-RHDS/SF. RESULTS Discharging teams assessed patients as having high readiness for hospital discharge (mean score, 8.5 out of 10; SD, 0.91). The majority of teams had convergent SMMs with high to very high interrater agreement on discharge readiness (mean r*wg(J), 0.90; SD, 0.10). However, team-patient SMM convergence was low: Teams overestimated the patient's self-assessment of readiness for discharge in 48.4% of events. We found that teams reporting higher-quality teamwork (P = .004) and bachelor's level-trained nurses (P < .001) had more convergent SMMs with the patient. CONCLUSION Measuring discharge teams' SMM of patient discharge readiness may represent an innovative assessment tool and potential lever to improve the quality of care transitions.
Surface processing and discharge-conditioning of high voltage electrodes for the Ra EDM experiment

Abstract The Ra EDM experiment uses a pair of high voltage electrodes to search for the atomic electric dipole moment of 225Ra. We use identical, plane–parallel electrodes with a primary high gradient surface of 200 mm 2 to generate reversible DC electric fields. Our statistical sensitivity is linearly proportional to the electric field strength in the electrode gap. We adapted surface decontamination and processing techniques from accelerator physics literature to chemical polish and clean a suite of newly fabricated large-grain niobium and grade-2 titanium electrodes. Three pairs of niobium electrodes and one pair of titanium electrodes were discharge-conditioned with a custom high voltage test station at electric field strengths as high as +52.5 kV/mm and − 51 . 5 kV/mm over electrode gap sizes ranging from 0.4 mm to 2.5 mm. One pair of large-grain niobium electrodes was discharge-conditioned and validated to operate at ± 20 kV/mm with steady-state leakage current ≤ 25 pA ( 1 σ ) and a polarity-averaged 98 ± 19 discharges per hour. These electrodes were installed in the Ra EDM experimental apparatus, replacing a copper electrode pair, and were revalidated to ± 20 kV/mm . The niobium electrodes perform at an electric field strength 3.1 times larger than the legacy copper electrodes and are ultimately limited by the maximum output of our 30 kV bipolar power supply.
UCP2 as a Potential Biomarker for Adjunctive Metabolic Therapies in Tumor Management

Glioblastoma (GBM) remains one of the most lethal primary brain tumors in both adult and pediatric patients. Targeting tumor metabolism has emerged as a promising-targeted therapeutic strategy for GBM and characteristically resistant GBM stem-like cells (GSCs). Neoplastic cells, especially those with high proliferative potential such as GSCs, have been shown to upregulate UCP2 as a cytoprotective mechanism in response to chronic increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) exposure. This upregulation plays a central role in the induction of the highly glycolytic phenotype associated with many tumors. In addition to shifting metabolism away from oxidative phosphorylation, UCP2 has also been implicated in increased mitochondrial Ca2+ sequestration, apoptotic evasion, dampened immune response, and chemotherapeutic resistance. A query of the CGGA RNA-seq and the TCGA GBMLGG database demonstrated that UCP2 expression increases with increased WHO tumor-grade and is associated with much poorer prognosis across a cohort of brain tumors. UCP2 expression could potentially serve as a biomarker to stratify patients for adjunctive anti-tumor metabolic therapies, such as glycolytic inhibition alongside current standard of care, particularly in adult and pediatric gliomas. Additionally, because UCP2 correlates with tumor grade, monitoring serum protein levels in the future may allow clinicians a relatively minimally invasive marker to correlate with disease progression. Further investigation of UCP2's role in metabolic reprogramming is warranted to fully appreciate its clinical translatability and utility.
Support for Broadening Participation though Humanitarian Free and Open Source Software

The necessity and benefits of broadening participation in computing and the roles that computing programs must play in addressing this challenge have been well documented. Elevating the social value of computing has been advocated as an approach to increasing the appeal of computing to both women and other underrepresented groups. This poster adds empirical support for that approach. It reports on the analysis of projects selected by students over four years of a two-semester senior capstone. In this capstone students select Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) communities with which to engage. The students learned about FOSS principles and processes and were introduced to humanitarian FOSS (HFOSS). They completed pre-semester surveys and engaged in a three-stage project selection process. The types of projects that students considered (FOSS or HFOSS) support the assertion that computing with social value is appealing to both females and students in underrepresented groups. Analysis of pre-semester attitude surveys adds additional insight and suggests further avenues for investigation.
Less common bacterial, fungal and viral infections: review of management in the pregnant patient

This review is a comprehensive summary of treatment options for pregnant patients with less common bacterial, fungal, and viral infections. It offers guidance to clinicians based on the most recently published evidence-based research and expert recommendations. A search of MEDLINE (inception to March 2021) and the CDC website was performed. Liposomal amphotericin B is the preferred therapy for cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis, oesophageal candidiasis, and coccidioidomycosis, especially during the first trimester due to teratogenic concerns with azole antifungals. For oral candidiasis, clotrimazole troches or miconazole mucoadhesive buccal tablets are recommended. A β-lactam antimicrobial is preferred over doxycycline for various manifestations of Lyme disease and the drug of choice for Pneumocystis pneumonia is trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. Acyclovir is the preferred antiviral for varicella zoster virus. Fluoroquinolones, macrolides, and aminoglycosides should be avoided if possible and there are alternate agents available for an effective treatment regimen. There is a scarcity of clinical data in pregnant patients with less common bacterial, fungal and viral infections. This population lacks definitive recommendations in many clinical practice guidelines. The key to optimizing therapy is a comprehensive review of the available evidence and a careful balance of risks and benefits before final treatment decisions.
Clinical Measures of Pelvic Tilt in Physical Therapy.

Pelvic tilt refers to the spatial position or motion of the pelvis about a frontal horizontal axis on the rest of the body in the sagittal plane. It is relevant for several musculoskeletal conditions commonly seen in physical therapist practice, particularly conditions affecting the hip and groin. Despite the relevance of pelvic tilt identified in biomechanical studies, and the historical precedence for assessing pelvic tilt, there is a lack of clarity regarding the utility of clinical measures that are practical in a rehabilitation setting. There are several options available to assess pelvic tilt which are discussed in detail in this commentary. All of these options come with potential benefits and considerable limitations. The purpose of this commentary is to provide an overview of the relevance of understanding pelvic tilt in the pathology and rehabilitation of conditions affecting the hip joint, with a focus applying evidence towards identifying clinical measures that may be useful in the rehabilitation setting and considerations that are needed with these measures. # Level of Evidence 5
Medical Students Learning to Take a Complete Military History.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Many United States military personnel are not full-time service members. Because of their part-time service, these veterans may not self-report their military service during medical visits. Consequently, past military service can be overlooked when taking a social history. We developed a case to provide preclinical medical students patient interview experience wherein the diagnosis relied on identifying past military service. Our objective was to determine if medical record write-ups included social history details about occupational information after this innovation. METHODS We conducted this case discussion in small groups during year 1 of medical school. We analyzed clinical skills examination write-ups before and after the case discussion to determine if the social history included occupational issues. RESULTS Initial results showed increased occupational issues as potential diagnoses or contributing factors. CONCLUSIONS This case methodology specifically raised awareness of health issues related to military service and generally increased students' likelihood of identifying occupational risk factors when conducting the social history. The template for this military case will allow us to develop additional cases focusing on different occupational health issues to complement other organ systems blocks.
9 – ONE-WAY ANOVA

This chapter focuses on the analysis of variance or ANOVA. It describes the method to test the hypothesis of equal means—the method that is called analysis of variance or ANOVA. In this method, homoscedasticity is assumed, meaning that all groups have a common variance. Some of the technical and conceptual details of the ANOVA F-test are important because they play a role in commonly used or recommended methods for summarizing how groups compare. It is also important to gain some sense of the strategy behind the ANOVA F-test so that its performance, relative to other methods that might be used. A graphical description of the strategy behind the ANOVA F-test is illustrated in the chapter. A situation can be considered where the null hypothesis is true. Because normality and equal variances are assumed, all three groups have identical distributions. Improvements on the ANOVA F-test have been phenomenal, particularly in recent years. These improvements deal with problems associated with sampling from nonnormal distributions and problems because of having unequal variances. Violating the equal variance assumption associated with the F-test can result in poor power and undesirable power properties, even when sampling from a normal distribution.
Failure of Abeta(1-40) amyloid fibrils under tensile loading

Amyloid fibrils and plaques are detected in the brain tissue of patients affected by Alzheimer’s disease, but have also been found as part of normal physiological processes such as bacterial adhesion. Due to their highly organized structures, amyloid proteins have also been used for the development of novel nanomaterials, for a variety of applications including biomaterials for tissue engineering, nanolectronics, or optical devices. Past research on amyloid fibrils resulted in advances in identifying their mechanical properties, revealing a remarkable stiffness. However, the failure mechanism under tensile loading has not been elucidated yet, despite its importance for the understanding of key mechanical properties of amyloid fibrils and plaques as well as the growth and aggregation of amyloids into long fibers and plaques. Here we report a molecular level analysis of failure of amyloids under uniaxial tensile loading. Our molecular modeling results demonstrate that amyloid fibrils are extremely stiff with a Young’s modulus in the range of 18-30 GPa, in good agreement with previous experimental and computational findings. The most important contribution of our study is our finding that amyloid fibrils fail at relatively small strains of 2.5% to 4%, and at stress levels in the range of 1.02 to 0.64 GPa, in good agreement with experimental findings. Notably, we find that the strength properties of amyloid fibrils are extremely length dependent, and that longer amyloid fibrils show drastically smaller failure strains and failure stresses. As a result, longer fibrils in excess of hundreds of nanometers to micrometers have a greatly enhanced propensity towards spontaneous fragmentation and failure. We use a combination of simulation results and simple theoretical models to define critical fibril lengths where distinct failure mechanisms dominate.
Characterization of Staphylococcus aureus in a pediatric burn unit.

Abstract A one-year study on an endemic strain of Staphylococcus aureus phage type 84/85 in a children's burn unit is described. The endemic strain rapidly colonized the burns and nares of acute patients after admission but was not isolated from a patient on admission. Nonendemic strains of S. aureus found on some new patients were mostly non-phage typable and did not prevail in burns. The endemic strain was rarely isolated from the nares and skin of reconstructive patients or from the nares of hospital personnel. The endemic strain did colonize the oral cavity, normal skin, and intestinal tract of some acute patients. Endemic and nonendemic strains of S. aureus from the burned children were compared in their biochemical activities and antibiotic sensitivities to two groups of S. aureus from one other local and one Danish burns unit. The latter groups of strains represented different combinations of staphylococcal phage group III strains. Each of the four groups of strains differed in production of hemolysins, Tween 80 hydrolysis, egg yolk reaction, and proteolysis of casein and gelatin. All of the strains were uniformly sensitive to gentamicin, oxacillin, and cephalothin. Only 4 of 162 strains tested were methicillin resistant. The endemic S. aureus strains of phage type 84/85 were uniformly resistant to eight other antibiotics including lincomycin and clindamycin. The endemic strain was not the known cause of a clinically documented infection in a group of 82 acute patients studied. The possible role of S. aureus strains of phage group III in burn grafting problems is discussed.
Human intestinal tract length and relationship with body height (916.4)

Despite its great importance in surgical approaches to intestinal resection, little definitive information is available on human gut tract length. Previous studies have correlated various measures ...
Spectral efficiency of massive MIMO systems with D2D underlay

This paper studies the interplay between massive MIMO and device-to-device (D2D) networking in a single cell setting, where cellular uplink resources are shared by D2D. The spatial positions of underlaid D2D transmitters are modeled by a Poisson point process. All the transmissions (both cellular and D2D) are SIMO (i.e., single-input multiple-output) with the base station (BS) having a very large antenna array. Assuming perfect channel state information at the receivers, we study cellular and D2D spectral efficiency. In the asymptotic regime where the number of BS antennas goes to infinity, we find that the received signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) of any cellular user increases unboundedly and the effects of noise, fast fading, and the interfering signals from the other co-channel cellular users and the infinite D2D transmitters vanish completely. In the non-asymptotic regime, we derive simple analytical lower bounds for both cellular and D2D spectral efficiency, which allow for efficient numerical evaluation.
Secure Information Flow and CPS

Security-typed languages enforce secrecy or integrity policies by type-checking. This paper investigates continuation-passing style as a means of proving that such languages enforce non-interference and as a first step towards understanding their compilation. We present a low-level, secure calculus with higher-order, imperative features. Our type system makes novel use of ordered linear continuations.
Adriamycin alone or in combination in 100 patients with carcinoma of the cervix or vagina

One hundred consecutive evaluable patients with advanced carcinoma of the cervix or vagina were treated with doxorubicin (Adriamycin) alone or in combination. The use of Adriamycin in conjunction with cyclophosphamide and 5-fluorouracil resulted in the highest response rate with all responders continuing to respond.
SolarCAST: using widely accessible environmental variables to forecast solar power

The study in renewable energy is one of great discussion, since we, as energy users, are being faced with the dilemma of running out of non-renewable energy sources. A popular alternative to non-renewable energy, especially for residential areas, is solar energy. This paper demonstrates that it is possible to derive a function using linear regression and least squares approximation techniques with information from an online weather source, such as www.accuweather.com, which can predict, with little error, the voltage and photovoltaic (PV) energy that can be expected for the day. We provide empirical results using a solar system.
Preparation of mesoporous silica templated metal nanowire films on foamed nickel substrates

A method has been developed for the formation of high surface area nanowire films on planar and three-dimensional metal electrodes. These nanowire films are formed via electrodeposition into a mesoporous silica film. The mesoporous silica films are formed by a sol-gel process using Pluronic tri-block copolymers to template mesopore formation on both planar and three-dimensional metal electrodes. Surface area increases of up to 120-fold have been observed in electrodes containing a templated film when compared to the same types of electrodes without the templated film.
Integrated user activity monitoring for regulatory services

Regulations such as FFIEC [5] and HIPAA [6] require activities of system administration to be captured and reviewed regularly. In IT service delivery environment, system maintenance activities are usually performed by the service provider whose system administrators access customer environment based on problem and change ticket being assigned.
Channel sensing order in multi-user cognitive radio networks

This paper investigates the sensing order problem for multi-user and multi-channel cognitive radio networks. While most of the literature studies focus on the sensing order for a single user, we consider the scenario in which multiple secondary users sequentially sense and access the channel according to their individual sensing orders. In multi-user case, channel access collisions among secondary users will lead to performance degradation. We propose a novel metric that comprehensively consider the channel availability, transmission rate and collision probability, and exploit an efficient dynamic programming algorithm to establish the sensing order based on the metric to improve the sensing efficiency and transmission throughput. Simulation results demonstrate that our algorithm can not only effectively reduce the collisions among secondary users, but also can achieve higher network throughput than other schemes studied. Furthermore, we also discuss how the network environment impacts the performances of different sensing orders.
The effect of age on the ability of oocytes to synthesize RNA and proteins during in vitro maturation

The effect of age on the ability of the oocyte to resume meiosis in vitro and to incorporate 3H-uridine and 3H-leucine into RNA and protein, respectively, was examined in the rat. In comparison with the mature control oocyte, the nucleolus of the aged oocyte tends to be retained although the rate of germinal vesicle breakdown is not altered. The incorporation of 3H-uridine is reduced, while 3H-leucine incorporation is not impaired. It is concluded that the inability of the aged oocyte to synthesize RNA may be responsible for its inability to complete meiotic maturation in vitro.
Systems design education: a gaming approach

One of the problems facing managers of computer installations is the problem of configuring the computer system to meet the demands made by the mix of jobs that the computer center must service, This paper presents a management game that allows the player to configure a computer system to meet a hypothetical job mix. The job mix is under the control of a game administrator and can be varied to simulate a variety of real-world situations (I/0 bound jobs, compute bound jobs, etc.). The player of the game receives a set of detailed reports on the cost of his choices and a simulated run of the center operating under his choices.
WATER SIMULATION OF SODIUM REACTORS

The thermal hydraulic simulation of a large sodium reactor by a scaled water model is examined. The Richardson Number, friction coefficient and the Peclet Number can be closely matched with the water system at full power and the similarity is retained for buoyancy driven flows. The simulation of thermal-hydraulic conditions in a reactor vessel provided by a scaled water experiment is better than that by a scaled sodium test. The results from a correctly scaled water test can be tentatively extrapolated to a full size sodium system.
Aldosterone response to prolonged ACTH infusion in juvenile hypertension.

Summary: The effects of a continuous 5-day ACTH infusion (40 units/24 hr) on plasma aldosterone (aldo) concentration and urinary excretion of aldosterone pH 1 conjugate, tetrahydroaldosterone and free aldo were investigated in 6 normotensive children, and 7 children with hypertension of unknown origin. In hoth groups, an initial rise of plasma aldo and all urinary aldo metaholites and a subsequent fall were observed during the ACTH test. The decline in plasma aldo correlated significantly with a decrease in plasma renin activity and serum K+. There was, however, evidence for another regulatory factor of aldo secretion during ACTH infusion because on a low salt diet, ACTH produced a similar aldo pattern which could not be attributed to the changes in plasma renin activity or serum K+. Urinary excretion of both free aldo and tetrahvdroaldosterone, a metabolite formed in the liver, showed a slower decrease during ACTH infusion than aldosterone pH 1 conjugate, which is of renal origin. The change in pattern of urinary aldo metabolites may be caused by a relative increase of the free, nonprotein bound plasma fraction of aldo and an enhanced metabolism of aldo in the liver during ACTH infusion. Neither in the baseline state nor during the ACTH test was there a difference between the normotensive and the hypertensive group in any of the aldo parameters. Speculation: ACTH stimulation produces a transient increase in plasma aldosterone secretion and a change in the pattern of urinary aldosterone metabolites. Thus, measurement of a single metabolite during stress or any high ACTH state may be misleading.
Moral Virtue and the Limits of the Political Community in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics

The recovery of Aristotle's view of the political community as guardian of the common good and moral educator has fueled a continuing debate about civic education and virtue. In focusing on the relation of virtue to the common good and that of the individual, however, this debate has obscured Aristotle's insight into virtue's status as an independent end. I argue that by taking account of this dimension of virtue, Aristotle's discussion of the particular moral virtues in the Nicomachean Ethics clarifies the nature and limits of civic education and shows that the full question of the human good emerges only with an investigation of the political community's highest and noblest pedagogic aims.
Reporting trends in a regional medication error data-sharing system

Inter-organizational systems for sharing data about medication errors have emerged as an important strategy for improving patient safety and are expected to encourage not only voluntary error reporting but also learning from errors. Yet, few studies have examined the hypothesized benefits of inter-organizational data sharing. The current study examined the developmental trends in information reported by hospitals participating in a regional reporting system for medication errors. A coalition of hospitals in southwestern Pennsylvania, under the auspices of the Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Initiative (PRHI), implemented a voluntary system for quarterly sharing of information about medication errors. Over a 12-month period, 25 hospitals shared information about 17,000 medication errors. Using latent growth curve analysis, we examined longitudinal trends in the quarterly number of errors and associated corrective actions reported by each hospital. Controlling for size, teaching status, and JCAHO accreditation score, for the hospitals as a group, error reporting increased at a statistically significant rate over the four quarters. Moreover, despite significant baseline differences among hospitals, error reporting increased at similar rates across hospitals over subsequent quarters. In contrast, the reporting of corrective actions remained unchanged. However, the baseline levels of corrective actions reporting were significantly different across hospitals. Although data sharing systems promote error reporting, it is unclear whether they encourage corrective actions. If data sharing is intended to promote not just error reporting but also root-cause-analysis and process improvement, then the design of the reporting system should emphasize data about these processes as well as errors.
Solvothermal route based in situ carbonization to Fe3O4@C as anode material for lithium ion battery

Abstract A high pressure and temperature based solvothermal route was developed for the synthesis of Fe 3 O 4 with carbon as a composite anode for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The carbon in products was a result of the in situ carbonization of organic components under high pressure (24.0 MPa) and temperature (350 °C). Composites with different amounts of carbon were prepared by annealing the solvothermal products at different temperatures. Taking advantage of the high theoretical capacity of Fe 3 O 4 and favorable characteristics of carbon, a capacity of ~610 mAh g −1 after 100 cycles was achieved for the composite with ~54.6% carbon. The carbon amount depended electrochemical performance was also investigated. The Fe 3 O 4 @C composite can be used as an alternative anode material and the introduced synthetic strategy may provide further insights into the preparation of inorganic oxides coupled with carbon via in situ carbonization of organic components.
Mood Management Intervention for College Smokers With Elevated Depressive Symptoms: A Pilot Study

Abstract Objective: This pilot study examined smoking reduction and cessation among college smokers with elevated depressive symptomatology participating in a group-based behavioral counseling, mood management, and motivational enhancement combined intervention (CBT). Participants and Methods: Fifty-eight smokers (smoked 6 days in the past 30) were randomized to 6 sessions of CBT (n = 29) or a nutrition-focused attention-matched control group (CG; n = 29). Results: Relative to CG participants, significantly more CBT participants reduced smoking intensity by 50% (χ2[1, N = 58] = 4.86, p = .028) at end of treatment. Although CBT participants maintained smoking reductions at 3- and 6-month follow-up, group differences were no longer significant. No group differences in cessation emerged. Finally, participants in both groups evidenced increased motivation to reduce smoking at end of treatment (F[1, 44] = 11.717, p = .001, ηp 2 = .207). Conclusions: Findings demonstrate the utility of this intervention for smo...
Hope against the cold: Individual differences in trait Hope and acute pain tolerance on the cold pressor task

Hope theory (see Snyder, 1994) is presented as a useful framework for understanding reactions to pain. In Study 1, persons scoring higher on the trait Hope Scale (Snyder, Harris et al., 1991) kept their hands in the freezing water (of a cold pressor task) for significantly longer. In Study 2, the higher-hope males, and not females, as measured by both trait and state hope (Snyder, Sympson et al., 1996), recognized the onset of the pain threshold significantly later. Moreover, in Study 2, results showed that individual differences measures of optimism, self-efficacy, depression, and positive and negative affects did not relate to the pain onset and tolerance variables. The implications of hope as related to the pain process and related research are discussed.
Chemistry of the Solar Nebula

The solar system is believed to have formed from a primordial gas and dust cloud, i.e., the primitive solar nebula (PSN). Constraints on the chemical composition and structure of the PSN are provided by ovserved densities and compositions of the planets, the asteroids and meteorites together with theoretical modelling. Many of these properties can be explained by equilibrium condensation from a solar composition gas. Other observations suggest that this model is too simple and additional processes, such as kinetic inhibition, heterogeneous accumulation, and volatile element transport must be considered.
Nonlinear effects in the convective instability of a binary mixture in a porous medium near threshold

Abstract An amplitude equation is derived near threshold for both the stationary and the oscillatory instabilities and an oscillatory behavior in time for the Nusselt and the Froude number is predicted for the oscillatory instability.
Next generation hairpin polyamides with (R)-3,4-diaminobutyric acid turn unit.

The characterization of a new class of pyrrole−imidazole hairpin polyamides with β-amino-γ-turn units for recognition of the DNA minor groove is reported. A library of eight hairpins containing (R)- and (S)-3,4-diaminobutyric acid (β-amino-γ-turn) has been synthesized, and the impact of the molecules on DNA-duplex stabilization was studied for comparison with the parent γ-aminobutyric acid (γ-turn) and standard (R)-2,4-diaminobutyric acid (α-amino-γ-turn)-linked eight-ring polyamides. For some, but not all, sequence compositions, melting temperature analyses have revealed that both enantiomeric forms of the β-amino-γ-turn increase the DNA-binding affinity of polyamides relative to the (R)-α-amino-γ-turn. The (R)-β-amine residue may be an attractive alternative for constructing hairpin polyamide conjugates. Biological assays have shown that (R)-β-amino-γ-turn hairpins are able to inhibit androgen receptor-mediated gene expression in cell culture similar to hairpins bearing the standard (R)-α-amino-γ-turn, ...
Quasioptics in Millimeterwave Systems

We give a review of certain aspects of quasioptical techniques applied to millimeter wavelength systems. We summarize the results of theory of Gaussian beam propagation, and describe in particular how dielectric materials can perform useful system functions, acting as directional couplers, hybrids, filters, and diplexers.
The Fontan Operation: The Pursuit of Associated Lesions and Cumulative Trauma

Our programmatic approach to the Fontan operation has evolved to include using an extracardiac conduit with aggressive presumptive treatment of associated lesions either in the catheterization laboratory or the operating room. Fenestration is used selectively based on hemodynamics, anatomy, and presence of associated lesions. We reviewed our experience to determine the effectiveness and outcome of this strategy and to assess the cumulative trauma to the patients. The records of 137 consecutive patients who underwent Fontan at Miami Children’s Hospital from 1995 to 2008 were reviewed. At mean follow up of 5.76 years, freedom from death or transplantation is 94.2% (129/137). Median age at operation was 4.6 years. Longer length of stay correlated with older operative age (P = 0.0056). Pacemakers were implanted in 11.7% (16/137). Additional (not pre-Glenn or pre-Fontan) interventional catheterizations were performed in 51.8% (71/137). Additional operations were done in 10.2% (14/137). No patient has required replacement or revision of the extracardiac conduit. Our current approach to the Fontan operation provides acceptable midterm results. The pursuit of residual lesions results in a significant number of additional interventional catheterizations and operative procedures but might have an important influence on long-term survival after the Fontan procedure.
Misdemeanor policing, physical disorder, and gun-related homicide: a spatial analytic test of "broken-windows" theory.

BACKGROUND: Homicide contributes substantially to the burden of death in the US and remains a key contributor to the gap in white-black life expectancy. It has been hypothesized that "broken-windows" policing is associated with lower homicide rates and that physical disorder may mediate this association. However, the empiric evidence is limited and conflicting. METHODS: We used pooled, cross-sectional time-series data for 74 New York City (NYC) Police Precincts between 1990 and 1999 to test the relation between neighborhood misdemeanor policing (an indicator of physical order) and homicide in NYC in the 1990s. We applied Bayesian hierarchical models, including a random effect of place, to account for serial correlations in homicide across adjacent neighborhoods. RESULTS: An increase of 5000 misdemeanor arrests in a precinct with 100,000 people was associated with a reduction of 3.5 homicides (95% credible interval = -5.00 to -1.00). However, increased misdemeanor arrests were associated with lower physical order (posterior median = -0.015 [-0.025 to -0.01]), and physical order was unrelated to homicide. CONCLUSIONS: Our study replicated prior findings suggesting that misdemeanor policing reduces homicide rates, but offered no support for the hypothesis that physical disorder is a mediator of the impact of such policing. Factors responsible for the dramatic decline in US homicides in the last decade remain unclear. Language: en
Atmospheric chemistry of isopropyl methyl methylphosphonate and dimethyl N,N-dimethylphosphoroamidate.

Rate constants for the reactions of OH radicals with isopropyl methyl methylphosphonate [(CH3)2CHOP(O)(CH3)OCH3; IMMP] and dimethyl N,N-dimethylphosphoroamidate [(CH3O)2P(O)N(CH3)2; DMDMPA] have be...
Cross-coupling of homoallylic alcohols with styrene

A cross-coupling reaction between a homoallylic alcohol and styrene is described to broaden the scope of the titanium alkoxide tether-mediated coupling reactions. Particularly noteworthy is exceptional 1,3-diastereoselectivity by o-vinylanisole in coupling with a Z-homoallylic alcohol.
Determination of grain density in space-filling geometries from measurable two-dimensional parameters

Abstract A procedure for determining grain density, Nv, in space-filling geometries from measurable two-dimensional parameters is presented. A variety of microstructure morphologies are considered and all tend to obey N v = (2.4150√ a − 1.4552 l ) −3 where ā = average grain area on a random two-dimensional section and l = the average intercept length of a random test line with grain surfaces. This relationship is verified by comparison with many computer-simulated microstructures and various regular space-filling geometries. Theoretical considerations are presented suggesting why this basic relationship is expected. A practical method for applying this relationship is described. An extension of this procedure to non-space-filling geometries is discussed.
Negotiating spaces: Gender, economy, and cultural politics in Post‐Sandinista Nicaragua

The 1990 elections in Nicaragua marked the loss of the Sandinistas to a coalition government that overturned many of the revolutionary changes of the last decade and introduced a series of neoliberal measures to return the country to a capitalist path. Despite the initial despair experienced by many Nicaraguans over that outcome and the economic crisis that followed, a number of political and cultural openings emerged to allow for independent social movements to grow in opposition to both the new government and to undemocratic practices on the left. Women have been central to these developments, as those most harshly affected by recent economic policies and as activists in newly organized movements. Based on research in Managua over a six‐year period, this essay considers these apparently contradictory tendencies and calls for an analysis that attends to both political economy and cultural politics.
From subjects to citizens: Japan's evolving consumer identity

One of the most puzzling features of the postwar Japanese consumer movement has been its tendency to support pro‐producer goals in its political campaigns. This can be attributed to a distinctive postwar consumer identity that is rooted in the values and beliefs of the broader political economy and that stresses compromise among contending interests. Employing the theoretical language of ‘framing’, I explore the historical evolution of that identity, its impact on the consumer movement's political preferences, and the appearance of more adversarial ‘consumers‐as‐citizens’ on the political landscape. Along the way, I show how the organized consumer movement is both a reflection and a harbinger of changing approaches to democratic participation in postwar Japan.
Scheduling and Coordination of Distributed Design Projects

Abstract In the era of time-based competition, companies are tending to distribute product design across regions to cut short design cycles and better penetrate local markets. This distributed design involves many uncertainties and risks, and generating good decentralized schedules and effectively coordinating distributed activities without intruding organizations' propriety information and decision-making authorities are important and challenging. This paper studies the scheduling and coordination of distributed design projects with uncertainties while managing design risks. A novel mathematical optimization model that balances modeling accuracy and computation complexity is presented, and a solution methodology that combines Lagrangian relaxation and stochastic dynamic programming is developed. Numerical results demonstrate that near optimal solutions are obtained, and uncertainties are effectively managed for problems of practical sizes.
Nondenaturing Size-Exclusion Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry to Measure Stress-Induced Aggregation in a Complex Mixture of Monoclonal Antibodies

During therapeutic candidate selection, diverse panels of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are routinely subjected to various stress conditions, and assayed for biophysical and biochemical stability. A novel high throughput method has been developed to differentiate candidate molecules in a mixture based on their propensity for forming aggregates when subjected to agitation (vortexing) stress. Protein monomers are separated from soluble and insoluble aggregates using size exclusion chromatography, under nondenaturing conditions, and the individual components in the mixture are identified by mass spectrometry and quantitated relative to an unstressed control. An internal standard was added to the mixture after stress, and used to correct for differences in ionization between samples. Treatment of the samples with the enzyme IdeS (FabRICATOR) significantly reduces sample complexity, and allows for a large number of candidate molecules to be assessed in a single analysis. Simple and robust, the method is well suited for measuring relative aggregation propensity (RAP) in conjunction with molecule selection and coformulation development.
Managing RFID Consumer Privacy and Implementation Barriers

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technologies have increasing visibility in the business processes: automating inventory management (supply chains), facilitating innovation, and increasing competitiveness. Since the potential applications of RFID systems are numerous, it is essential to address the industry and consumer perspective issues that have resulted in barriers to RFID implementation. This paper outlines critical barriers in implementing RFID technologies, specifically for authentication and privacy in an RFID tagged world, and provides organizational leaders with a set of initial responses, including a new scheme (Veri-RFID) for consumer privacy, that would assist in the process to overcome these challenges.
Experimental evaluation of synchronization and topology control for in-building sensor network applications

While multi-hop networks consisting of 100s or 1000s of inexpensive embedded sensors are emerging as a means of mining data from the environment, inadequate network lifetime remains a major impediment to real-world deployment. This paper describes several applications deployed throughout our building that monitor conference room occupancy and environmental statistics and provide access to room reservation status. Because it is often infeasible to locate sensors and display devices near power outlets, we designed two protocols that allow energy conservation in a large class of sensor network applications. The first protocol, Relay Organization (ReOrg), is a topology control protocol which systematically shifts the network's routing burden to energy-rich nodes, exploiting heterogeneity. The second protocol, Relay Synchronization (ReSync), is a MAC protocol that extends network lifetime by allowing nodes to sleep most of the time, yet wake to receive packets. When combined, ReOrg and ReSync lower the duty cycle of the nodes, extending network lifetime. To our knowledge, this paper presents the first experimental testbed evaluation of energy-aware topology control integrated with energy-saving synchronization. Using a 54-node testbed, we demonstrate an 82-92% reduction in energy consumption, depending on traffic load. By rotating the burden of routing, our protocols can extend network lifetime by 5-10 times. Finally, we demonstrate that a small number of wall-powered nodes can significantly improve the lifetime of a battery-powered network.
Aneuploidy in Drosophila, I. Genetic test systems in the female Drosophila melanogaster for the rapid detection of chemically induced chromosome gain and chromosome loss☆

Abstract An account is provided of two genetic schemes in the Drosophila melagonaster female designed as a rapid detectors of chemically induced aneuploidy, including both chromosomes gain and chromosome loss. One scheme is referred to as FIX, in which the female carried free (heterozygously) inverted X (chromosomes) and the other, ZESTE, where females do not carry inversions and the X-linked sexually dimorphic zeste mutation plays the key role in the detection of aneuploid offspring. The principle atttribute of the FIX system is that all euploid offspring are wild-type for body and eye color whereas aneuploid females have a yellow body and aneuploid males white eyes ; in the ZESTE system all euploid individuals are wild-type for eye color, aneuploid females possess zeste -colored eyes and aneuploid males white eyes. In addition induced polyploidies (2X:2A gametes) appear as yellow and zeste male intersexes in the FIX and ZESTE systems, respectively. In this way all aneuploids are recognized immediately. Consequently, detection of compounds with weak effects requiring large samples sizes may be made in a fraction of the time associated with more traditional schemes for aneuploidy detection in Drosophila.
Endogenous heparan sulfate and heparin modulate bone morphogenetic protein-4 signaling and activity

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) and their endogenous antagonists are important for brain and bone development and tumor initiation and progression. Heparan sulfate (HS) proteoglycans (HSPG) modulate the activities of BMPs and their antagonists. How glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) influence BMP activity in various malignancies and in inherited abnormalities of GAG metabolism, and the structural features of GAGs essential for modulation of BMP signaling, remain incompletely defined. We examined whether chemically modified soluble heparins, the endogenous HS in malignant cells and the HS accumulated in Hurler syndrome cells influence BMP-4 signaling and activity. We show that both exogenous (soluble) and endogenous GAGs modulate BMP-4 signaling and activity, and that this effect is dependent on specific sulfate residues of GAGs. Our studies suggest that endogenous sulfated GAGs promote the proliferation and impair differentiation of malignant human cells, providing the rationale for investigating whether pharmacological agents that inhibit GAG synthesis or function might reverse this effect. Our demonstration of impairment of BMP-4 signaling by GAGs in multipotent stem cells in human Hurler syndrome identifies a mechanism that might contribute to the progressive neurological and skeletal abnormalities in Hurler syndrome and related mucopolysaccharidoses.
Neurobiological similarities in depression and drug dependence : A self-medication hypothesis

Epidemiological and clinical data indicate high comorbidity between depression and drug dependence that may reflect an attempt to self-medicate with drugs of abuse. The present review examines whether these two psychiatric disorders are related by attempting to identify similarities in the neurobiology of depression and drug dependence. Emphasis is put on the neuromechanisms that may mediate specific core symptoms of both disorders that reflect alterations in reward and motivational processes. First, the epidemiological and clinical data on the comorbidity of the two disorders are reviewed briefly. Then, the neuroadaptations associated with psychomotor stimulant, opiate, ethanol, nicotine, and benzodiazepine dependence in animals are reviewed. Finally, the neurotransmitter systems whose function appears to be altered in depression (i.e., serotonin, norepinephrine, acetylcholine, dopamine, gamma-aminobutyric acid, corticotropin releasing factor, neuropeptide Y, and somatostatin), as revealed primarily by animal studies, are discussed. It is concluded that drug dependence and depression may be associated with alterations in some of the same neurotransmitter systems and, in particular, with alterations of neurotransmitter function in limbic-related brain structures. Thus, these two psychiatric disorders may be linked by some shared neurobiology. Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether drug abuse and depression are different symptomatic expressions of the same preexisting neurobiological abnormalities, or whether repeated drug abuse leads to the abnormalities mediating depression (i.e., drug-induced depressions). The hypothesis of self-medication of non-drug-and drug-induced depressions with drugs of abuse is also discussed as a potentially important explanatory concept in understanding the observed clinical comorbidity of these two psychiatric disorders.