cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vaccination Against Middle‐ear Bacterial and Viral Pathogens

Considerable evidence suggests that otitis media (OM) can be prevented by systemic immunization. Building on the highly effective H. influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccine technology, pneumococcal conjugate vaccines are being developed to circumvent T-independence of these antigens and provide durable immunity at a very young age. Several pneumococcal conjugate vaccines are currently in clinical testing. Potential vaccine antigens of nontypable H. influenzae (NTHi) include OMP, HMW, pili, and fimbriae. Several OMPs show extensive homology among strains, but surface, determinants of others are highly variable so that antibodies to surface epitopes of one strain will not bind to surface epitopes of another. Several M. catarrhalis OMP and HMW antigens have vaccine potential, but no functional correlates of protection have been identified, and there is no clear evidence that antibody to M. catarrhalis is associated with OM protection. Attenuated viral vaccines also hold promise of preventing childhood OM. Two clinical trials with killed influenza vaccines have shown a significant reduction in OM among vaccine recipients compared to control children during periods of high influenza disease activity in the community. Passive immunoprophylaxis also has potential for preventing OM. Human bacterial polysaccharide immune globulin was protective for pneumococcal OM in children and in the chinchilla OM model. High-dose respiratory syncytial virus-enriched immunoglobulin reduced the incidence and severity of RSV lower respiratory tract infection in high-risk children. Passive immunoprophylaxis may also be effective in children with specific immune deficiencies, such as IgG2 deficiency, and patients who fail to respond to vaccines.
A Recent Development in Traffic Control

The large number of automobiles in use today has introduced new problems in the control of vehicular traffic. Timing devices with increased flexibility are required so that signals can be operated more nearly in accordance with varying conditions of traffic flow. A recently developed timing device, containing new features and having increased flexibility, offers a solution of the problems involved. The timer is described and its advantageous features are discussed.
Direct strain measurement in a 65 nm node strained silicon transistor by convergent-beam electron diffraction

Using the energy-filtered convergent-beam electron diffraction (CBED) technique in a transmission electron microscope, the authors report here a direct measurement of the lattice parameters of uniaxially strained silicon as close as 25nm below the gate in a 65nm node p-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor with SiGe source and drain. It is found that the dominant strain component (0.58%) is compressive along the source-drain direction. The compressive stress is 1.1GPa along this direction. These findings demonstrate that CBED can serve as a strain metrology technique for the development of strained silicon device technology.
Protein kinase A activity controls the regulation of T-type CAV3.2 channels by Gβγ dimers

Low voltage-activated (LVA), T-type, calcium channels mediate diverse biological functions and are inhibited by Gβγ dimers, yet the molecular events required for channel inhibition remain unknown. Here, we identify protein kinase A (PKA) as a molecular switch that allows Gβ2γx dimers to effect voltage-independent inhibition of Cav3.2 channels. Inhibition requires phosphorylation of Ser1107, a critical serine residue on the II-III loop of the channel pore protein. S1107A prevents inhibition of unitary currents by recombinant Gβ2γ2 dimers but does not disrupt dimer binding nor change its specificity. Gβγ dimers released upon receptor activation also require PKA activity for their inhibitory actions. Hence, dopamine inhibition of Cav3.2 whole cell current is precluded by Gβγ-scavenger proteins or a peptide that blocks PKA catalytic activity. Fittingly, when used alone at receptor-selective concentrations, D1 or D2 agonists do not elicit channel inhibition yet together synergize to inhibit Cav3.2 channel currents. We propose that a dual-receptor regulatory mechanism is used by dopamine to control Cav3.2 channel activity. This mechanism, for example, would be important in aldosterone producing adrenal glomerulosa cells where channel dysregulation would lead to overproduction of aldosterone and consequent cardiac, renal, and brain target organ damage.
The use and abuse of pollinators by fungi

Abstract Some fungi use flower-visiting insects to facilitate sexual reproduction or to disperse spores. These fungi have evolved elaborate techniques, such as floral mimicry and the invasion of extant flower parts, for attracting ‘pollinators’. Recent research shows that fungal exploitation of pollinators has the potential to affect floral evolution, pollination ecology, plant life history traits, as well as disease-transmission dynamics and fungal evolution.
Diet, intestinal morphology, and nitrogen assimilation efficiency in the damselfish, Stegastes lividus, in Guam

Analysis of stomach contents of Stegastes lividus revealed a shift from omnivory in juveniles to herbivory in adults. Red algae, primarily Polysiphonia spp., Gelidiopsis intricata and Ceramium spp., formed the bulk of the diet in all size classes. Foraminifera and small crustaceans were of particular importance in the diet of juveniles. Net nitrogen assimilation efficiency of field-fed S. lividus was approximately 61%, and did not vary with fish size. The net assimilation efficiencies of fish fed on Enteromorpha in the laboratory ranged from size-class means of 36–79% for nitrogen and from 29–72% for total organic material, and increased from juveniles to adults. Apparently, juveniles compensate for a lower efficiency in assimilating plant food by including a higher percentage of animal material in their natural diets. The ratios of intestine length to standard length (IL/SL) and to intestine diameter (IL/ID) increased rapidly in juveniles and leveled off in adults. The retention time for ingested food items may only be about one-half as long in juveniles as in adults. The combination of observed IL/ID ratios and estimated retention times proved most valuable in the interpretation of ontogenetic changes in feeding habits and assimilation efficiency.
Minimax methods for fault isolation in the directional residual approach

This work designs a robust fault isolation method applicable to the directional residual approach by using decision theory. The cost, the loss, and the risk of misclassification are analyzed. To achieve a balance between optimality and robustness, a minimax method is proposed which minimizes the maximum expected loss from misclassification. An isolation procedure is designed for the diagnostic residuals having normal distribution. A simulated distillation example is given to illustrate the implementation of this technique. The suggested approach is compared to the methods derived from the likelihood ratio tests and their relationship elucidated.
Improving correlated SERS measurements with scanning electron microscopy: an assessment of the problem arising from the deposition of amorphous carbon

For surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates with nonspherical symmetry, it is critical to correlate spectroscopy measurements with imaging by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). However, the deposition of carbon resulting from e-beam exposure during SEM imaging contaminates the surface of nanoparticles, potentially preventing their further functionalization with Raman probe molecules. In addition, the deposited carbon leads to unwanted background SERS signals. In this study, we systematically investigated the deposition of carbon during SEM imaging and examined how it affects the functionalization of nanoparticles with probe molecules and impacts the detection of SERS signals. Significantly, we found that the carbon could be removed or replaced from the surface of Ag nanoparticles through chemical or physical means, rendering the nanoparticles the capability for correlated SEM/SERS studies.
Development of constipation in nursing home residents

PURPOSE: Constipation is a common complaint among geriatric patients and may result in significant morbidity, especially among nursing home residents. The prevalence of constipation increases with advancing age and may be a result of the aging process, but the exact cause is unknown. The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of constipation and to determine risk factors for the development of constipation in a large population of nursing home residents. METHODS: The Minimum Data Set is an assessment instrument used in nearly all Medicare-certified and Medicaid-certified nursing facilities. Nursing home residents who were at least 65 years of age and who had assessments at baseline and at three months were included in the study (N = 21,012). Baseline risk factors were included in a multivariate logistic regression to determine their association with the development of constipation. To allow causal implications, nursing home residents with constipation at baseline were excluded. The variables examined included medications, mobility, comorbid illness, and nutrition. RESULTS: The mean age (± standard deviation) of nursing home residents was 83±8 years, and the population was 70 percent female and 83 percent white. At baseline, the prevalence of constipation was 12.5 percent (N=2,627). By the three-month assessment, 7 percent (N=1,291) of nursing home residents had developed constipation. The factors associated independently with the development of constipation were, in order of magnitude, race, decreased fluid intake, pneumonia, Parkinson's disease, and the presence of allergies. Congestive heart failure and the use of a feeding tube were two factors identified as having a protective effect. CONCLUSION: The variables associated with the development of constipation may be used to identify geriatric nursing home residents at risk and to prevent constipation and its potential complications. Further study is needed to demonstrate a causal relationship between the risk factors and the development of constipation.
Modeling bounds on migration overhead for a traveling thread architecture

Heterogeneous multicore architectures have gained widespread use in the general purpose and scientific computing communities, and architects continue to investigate techniques for easing the burden of parallelization from the programmer. This paper presents a new class of heterogeneous multicores that leverages past work in architectures supporting the execution of traveling threads. These traveling threads execute on simple cores distributed across the chip and can move up the hierarchy and between cores based on data locality. This new design offers the benefits of improved performance at lower energy and power density than centralized counterparts through intelligent data placement and cooperative caching policies. We employ a methodology consisting of mathematical modeling and simulation to estimate the upper bounds on migration overhead for various architectural organizations. Results illustrate that the new architecture can match the performance of a conventional processor with reasonable thread sizes. We have observed that between 0.04 and 7.09 instructions per migration (IPM) (1.88 IPM on average) are sufficient to match the performance of the conventional processor. These results confirm that this distributed architecture and corresponding execution model offer promising potential in overcoming the design challenges of centralized counterparts.
Adolescent binge drinking leads to changes in alcohol drinking, anxiety, and amygdalar corticotropin releasing factor cells in adulthood in male rats.

Heavy episodic drinking early in adolescence is associated with increased risk of addiction and other stress-related disorders later in life. This suggests that adolescent alcohol abuse is an early marker of innate vulnerability and/or binge exposure impacts the developing brain to increase vulnerability to these disorders in adulthood. Animal models are ideal for clarifying the relationship between adolescent and adult alcohol abuse, but we show that methods of involuntary alcohol exposure are not effective. We describe an operant model that uses multiple bouts of intermittent access to sweetened alcohol to elicit voluntary binge alcohol drinking early in adolescence (∼postnatal days 28–42) in genetically heterogeneous male Wistar rats. We next examined the effects of adolescent binge drinking on alcohol drinking and anxiety-like behavior in dependent and non-dependent adult rats, and counted corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) cell in the lateral portion of the central amygdala (CeA), a region that contributes to regulation of anxiety- and alcohol-related behaviors. Adolescent binge drinking did not alter alcohol drinking under baseline drinking conditions in adulthood. However, alcohol-dependent and non-dependent adult rats with a history of adolescent alcohol binge drinking did exhibit increased alcohol drinking when access to alcohol was intermittent. Adult rats that binged alcohol during adolescence exhibited increased exploration on the open arms of the elevated plus maze (possibly indicating either decreased anxiety or increased impulsivity), an effect that was reversed by a history of alcohol dependence during adulthood. Finally, CRF cell counts were reduced in the lateral CeA of rats with adolescent alcohol binge history, suggesting semi-permanent changes in the limbic stress peptide system with this treatment. These data suggest that voluntary binge drinking during early adolescence produces long-lasting neural and behavioral effects with implications for anxiety and alcohol use disorders.
THE CITY AND THE CONSTITUTION: A Historical Analysis of Institutional Evolution and Adaptation

: This article traces the application of the principles of separation of powers and checks and balances to municipal government. While the original thinking behind these Constitutional principles intended to contain individual power and create a mechanism for institutional balance, analysis of urban institutional history indicates that their application to the urban context contributed to accelerated growth of mayoral power at the expense of the local council. The movement toward executive-centered government culminated during the Progressive Era of municipal reform. The reform model of government that emerged early in this century set the basic structure of the modern municipality and redefined the fundamental issues of democratic governance that were originally articulated in the U.S. Constitution.
Neurofibrillary pathology in progressive supranuclear palsy.

We describe the fine structure of the subcortical neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) in 2 cases of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). In case 1 (69-year-old man) about one half of the NFT in the midbrain and pons examined were composed of 13–16 nm straight filaments and the others were made up of paired helical filaments (PHF) of Alzheimer type. The NFT in case 2 consisted of straight tubules with infrequent segments of unusual twisted fibril of unknown nature. The simultaneous occurrence of straight and PHF in one of these cases suggests that the NFT in PSP may be similar to those of Alzheimer type occurring in various conditions.
Automatic Segmentation of the Prostate and Rectum in 3D CT using Anatomical Constraints

CT using Anatomical Constraints Siqi Chen and Richard J. Radke Ping Wang and D. Michael Lovelock Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Troy, NY New York, NY Purpose/Objective Accurately segmenting the prostate and surrounding radiation-sensitive organs from a CT planning scan is critical for achieving high-quality IMRT plans. Robust automatic segmentation would both reduce the time spent contouring by the physician, and potentially reduce the variability that arises due to manual segmentation. However, edge-based segmentation algorithms without a shape-model component fail due to the lack of CT contrast between the prostate and adjacent prostate and rectal wall. The inhomogeneous, unpredictable CT number distribution due to gas and filling compound the difficulties of segmenting the rectum. Here, we evaluate the performance of a new segmentation model that uses anatomical constraints to improve rejection of unrealistic configurations of the prostate and rectum.
Stress and Adaptation in Medical Students: Who Is Most Vulnerable?

Abstract There is concensus that medical school years are stressful but there has been little systematic investigation of the relationship between these stresses and manifestations of distress in the students. This paper reports results from the first wave of data in a longitudinal study of the physical and psychological health concomitants of the stresses of medical school. Two entering classes were surveyed by questionnaire in the fall of 1980. The number of recent life changes, degree of perceived stress, habits of nervous tension, depression, anxiety, and number of physical symptoms were among the variables measured. There were no significant sex or minority status differences in number or amount of perceived stresses. Moderate positive correlations were observed between level of stress and both psychological and physical distress. Few sex or minority status differences appeared. This diverse population of medical students showed a marked similarity in levels of stresses brought to the training period although there was some variation in the source of the stresses.
Analysis of organic salts by laser ionization mass spectrometry. Sulfonates, sulfates and thiosulfates

Sodium and potassium salts of organic sulfonates (1-decyl, 1-dodecyl and 1-hexadecyl), sulfates (1-hexyl, 1-decyl and 1-octadecyl) and thiosulfates (1-octyl, 1-dodecyl, 1-tetradecyl, 1-hexadecyl, benzyl and β-phenylethyl) were ionized by laser irradiation and the positive ions were analyzed by time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The organic ions observed were always intense and due to the molecular species plus a cation or a dimer plus a cation. The spectra of the thioslufates and sulfates show an abundance of inorganic ions in contrast to the sulfonates. The thiosulfate spectra are characterized by intense [Na3SO3]+ or [K3SO3]+ ions and the sulfates by intense [Na3SO4]+ or [K3SO4]+ ions.
Evaluation of ALON for Cannon Window Application.

In the application of laser ignition to large caliber cannons, a critical element is the window into the cannon chamber to admit the laser energy. This window must repeatedly withstand a particularly harsh environment of highly reactive high temperature combustion products from the gun propeller at pressures up to 440 MPa. Failure of the window can be caused by either thermal gradients in the window or mechanical force, or a combustion. Previous successes with single-crystal sapphire have sometimes been limited by window deterioration modes suggestive of crystalline behavior. Samples of ALON have been fabricated in the same design as the standard sapphire windows and were qualified for gun testing. This process involves a series of experiments in a closed chamber where gun propellant is burned to generate an environment similar to that inside the gun. Windows mounted in two methods have been tested. One of these windows has survived the full pre-gun test series with no visible damage.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) Infection Among Hmong Immigrants in the San Joaquin Valley

Chronic hepatitis B infection (HBV) is the major cause of primary liver cancer worldwide and Asians are disproportionately affected. The prevalence of HBV among most Asian American groups has been well documented, except in Hmong immigrants in the United States. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of HBV among Hmong immigrants in the San Joaquin Valley of California. A convenient sample of 534 Hmong age ≥18 years was recruited at various locations throughout Fresno County. Blood samples from study participants were collected and tested for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) by enzyme-immunoassay. Two hundred and eighty-nine females and 245 males of Hmong descent (mean age, 43.93) were screened. Eighty-nine (41 males and 48 females) were positive for HBsAg, which accounts for a prevalence of 16.7% (95% C.I. 13.5–19.9). The majorities of HBsAg positive patients were ≥40 years (64.2%), married (66.7%), born in Laos (87.3%), and had lived in the United States ≥20 years (62.5%). Only 37.5% of the participants reported having a primary care physician. Our study revealed that approximately one out of every six Hmong immigrants screened was infected with HBV. Based on our findings, more than one-third of these infected patients have no primary care physician to provide further treatment, surveillance for liver cancer, or vaccination of their families. This supports the Institute of Medicine’s recent recommendations to the Center for Disease Control to engage in a national Hepatitis B surveillance system.
Evidence of Gonodotropic Effect of Farnesol in the Twospotted Spider Mite, Tetranychus urticae

Twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch, females treated topically with 200 ppm farnesol in 40% ethanol laid more eggs than females treated with only 40% ethanol. It is conceivable that the increase in the number of eggs laid by the farnesoltreated females is due to the gonadotropic effects of farnesol.
Impacts of Subsidized Security on Stability and Total Social Costs of Equilibrium Solutions in an N-Player Game with Errors

Investment in defense by all agents is a socially optimum equilibrium in many interdependent security scenarios. However, practically, some agents might still choose not to invest in security due to bounded rationality and errors, thus decreasing the total social welfare. Previous work shows that providing subsidies may help induce more agents to invest. Our study suggests that giving subsidies to agents prone to making an erroneous choice could increase the stability of the socially optimum equilibrium, as well as decrease the total social costs.
Mission of the National Institute on Aging

The National Institute on Aging (NIA), the newest of the eleven National Institutes of Health, is dedicated to improving the quality of life of the old in America through biomedical, social, and behavioral research. Aging is reviewed as more than just decline and deterioration; it is also a process of continued development and accumulated knowledge. The NIA will encourage innovative research, but will not support the delivery of health services, as that is the domain of other agencies. In areas of overlap, such as diseases common to the old, the NIA will collaborate with other Institutes. A good target area for collaboration is senile dementia. Other areas of interest to the NIA are: encouraging the incorporation of geriatric medicine as a subspecialty, developing retirement test patterns, and investigating drug-drug and drug-age interactions, personality and social processes, and immunocompetence.
Multiple Enhancer Elements Mediate Induction of c-fos in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells

Abstract Previous work from this and other laboratories has demonstrated that the vasoconstrictor peptide angiotensin II results in hypertrophy of rat aortic smooth muscle cells that is associated with an increase in transcription of the early growth response gene c- fos . To explore the molecular mechanism responsible for c- fos induction in rat aortic smooth muscle cells, we used a series of reporter constructs linked to the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase gene in transient transfection experiments in rat aortic smooth muscle cells. Constructs containing both the serum response element and cAMP response element exhibited a 20-fold increase in chloramphenicol acetyl transferase activity in response to either serum or angiotensin II, whereas no increase was seen in vehicle-treated cells. Mutations in either the serum response element or cAMP response element alone, which have been demonstrated to inactivate these elements in other cell types, had no effect on chloramphenicol acetyl transferase inducibility. In contrast, if both elements were mutated, inducibility was almost abolished. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays with oligonucleotides corresponding to either serum response element or cAMP response element demonstrated that these oligonucleotides are capable of forming specific complexes with proteins from rat aortic smooth muscle cell nuclear extracts. One of the proteins binding to the serum response element is the previously described serum response factor, since it was supershifted by a monospecific antibody. These studies demonstrate that c- fos induction in smooth muscle occurs by a dual mechanism that can activate transcription via the serum response element or cAMP response element. These elements appear to act equally and independently, involving a distinct set of transacting factors.
Last of the oligopithecids? A dwarf species from the youngest primate-bearing level of the Jebel Qatrani Formation, northern Egypt.

Abstract Oligopithecids are basal stem catarrhines that make their first definitive appearance in the fossil record in the latest Eocene of Egypt. Previously, the group was assumed to have gone locally extinct in northern Africa shortly after the Eocene–Oligocene boundary, with a last record at the ∼31.5 Ma Taqah locality in Oman. Here we describe a tiny oligopithecid from the youngest (∼29.5–30 Ma) primate-bearing horizon in the Jebel Qatrani Formation, based on a partial hemimandible with a largely complete first molar. This is the first record of an oligopithecid in the upper sequence of that Formation, occurring ∼160 m above the next-youngest oligopithecid-bearing locality (Quarry E), and provides a new last appearance datum for Oligopithecidae. The species is markedly smaller than its older oligopithecid relatives Catopithecus and Oligopithecus, and indeed is one of the smallest anthropoids known, suggesting that it represents a member of a dwarfed lineage. This material adds to the evidence provided by the co-occurring species Afrotarsius chatrathi and Qatrania fleaglei for a fairly diverse, but exceedingly rare, small primate fauna at a horizon that is otherwise dominated by much larger and more derived propliopithecids and parapithecids.
Strengthen nodal cooperation for data dissemination in mobile social networks

Data dissemination is a challenging issue in mobile social networks. It aims at increasing the overall delivery ratio and reducing the overall delivery delay. Most of the existing works assume all the users in a network are cooperative, i.e., the users are willing to carry the messages that they are not interested in while the nodes they meet maybe. In reality, the behaviors of each individual are naturally selfish, especially when the resources they have and they can access are limited. A data dissemination protocol cannot be pragmatic unless the selfishness is considered. This work proposes an incentive scheme to stimulate the users in a network to be more cooperative. Credits are the stimulus to encourage users to be more cooperative for data dissemination. We evaluate each node's ability to fetch messages of a specific kind of interest and every single user can rent other nodes to help with obtaining the interested messages by paying credits. Extensive simulations on real traces are carried out to evaluate the proposed incentive scheme.
The topology of coordination polyhedra and their rearrangements

Abstract The s, p, d and f atomic orbitals are classified by the numbers and orientations of their major lobes, which can be conveniently depicted as an orbital graph. Coordination polyhedra are formed from these s, p, d and f orbitals by adding or subtracting orbitals from the spherical four-orbital sp 3 and nine-orbital sp 3 d 5 manifolds. The five-coordinate trigonal bipyramid and square pyramid arise from adding the z 2 and x 2 − y 2 orbitals, respectively, to a spherical sp 3 manifold. Six-coordinate polyhedra are formed by adding pairs of d orbitals to the spherical sp 3 manifold with the pairs ( x 2 − y 2 , z 2 ), ( xz,z 2 ), ( xy,x 2 − y 2 ) and ( xy,xz ), giving the octahedron, bicapped tetrahedron, pentagonal pyramid and trigonal prism, respectively. Similarly, the eight-coordinate square antiprism and bisdisphenoid ( D 2 d dodecahedron) arise from subtracting the z 2 and x 2 − y 2 orbitals, respectively, from a spherial nine-orbital sp 3 d 5 manifold. The seven-coordinate pentagonal bipyramid, capped octahedron and capped trigonal prisms can arise from subtractions of various d orbital pairs from the spherical nine-orbital sp 3 d 5 manifold. The stereochemical non-rigidity of many five-coordinate ML 5 complexes and eight-coordinate ML 8 complexes can arise from continuous transformations of the d orbital added to the sp 3 manifold or subtracted from the sp 3 d 5 manifold, respectively, from the shape of a z 2 orbital to that of an z 2 − y 2 orbital. The seven-vertex hexagonal bipyramid and eight-vertex cube, hexagonal bipyramid and D 3 h 3,3-bicapped trigonal prism cannot be formed using hybrids of only s, p and d orbitals, but require an additional f orbital, which is an xyz orbital with eight major lobes in case of the cube, an x ( x 2 −3 y 2 ) orbital with six major lobes in the cases of the hexagonal pyramid and bipyramid with six co-planar atoms, and a z 3 orbital in the case of the 3,3-bicapped trigonal prism. The highly symmetrical 12-coordinate icosahedron and cuboctahedron can arise by addition of a triply degenerate set of cubic f e orbitals, namely the [ x ( z 2 − y 2 ), y ( z 2 − x 2 ), z ( x 2 − y 2 )] set, to the spherical nine-orbital sp 3 d 5 manifold.
‘Shooting at the Sun God Apollo’: The Apollonian-Dionysian Balance of the TimeSlips Storytelling Project

In The Birth of Tragedy, Friedrich Nietzsche celebrated the dueling forces of reason and emotion as personified by the ancient Greek gods Apollo and Dionysus. A subtle Apollonian-Dionysian balance can be observed in TimeSlips, a group-based creative storytelling activity developed in the 1990s and increasingly used in dementia care settings worldwide. This article explains how the Apollonion-Dionysian aspects of TimeSlips are beneficial not only for persons with dementia, but also for their carers. Narrative data from medical students at Penn State College of Medicine who participated in TimeSlips at a local retirement community are shared.
Field testing of intrusion detection technologies for high-speed rail crossings

High-speed passenger rail is becoming a more common form of mass transit. A concern when high-speed rail Systems are implemented is the provision of intrusion detection at rail crossings. High-speed rail equipment is lighter and faster than traditional rail equipment, and even small objects can damage or derail it. The goal of this project was to field-test two intrusion detection technologies-a video detection System and a microwave detection System-and determine whether they could effectively be used for intrusion detection at rail crossings. The tests used objects of varying size, color, and material composition to serve as intruders. The detection Systems used were chosen as a result of several previously performed laboratory studies that suggested that both Systems, though designed to detect automobiles and pedestrians, could meet the specified requirements. Field testing, however, showed that the performance level of both Systems was lower than expected. Therefore, the conclusion was drawn that the ...
Interspecific variation in plant responses to mycorrhizal colonization in tallgrass prairie

Symbiotic associations between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are ubiquitous and ecologically important in many grasslands. Differences in species responses to mycorrhizal colonization can have a significant influence on plant community structure. The growth responses of 36 species of warm- and cool-season tallgrass prairie grasses and 59 tallgrass prairie forbs to arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal colonization were assessed in greenhouse studies to examine the extent of interspecific variation in host-plant benefit from the symbiosis and patterns of mycorrhizal dependence among host plant life history (e.g., annual, perennial) and taxonomic (e.g., grass, forb, legume, nonlegume) groups and phenological guilds. There was a strong and significant relationship between phenology of prairie grasses and mycorrhizal responsiveness, however this relationship was less apparent in forbs. Perennial warm-season C(4) grasses and forbs generally benefited significantly from the mycorrhizal symbiosis, whereas biomass production of the cool-season C(3) grasses was not affected. The root systems of the cool-season grasses were also less highly colonized by the AM fungi, as compared to the warm-season grasses or forbs. Unlike the native perennials, annuals were generally not responsive to mycorrhizal colonization and were lower in percentage root colonization than the perennial species. Plant growth responsiveness and AM root colonization were positively correlated for the nonleguminous species, with this relationship being strongest for the cool-season grasses. In contrast, root colonization of prairie legumes showed a significant, but negative, relationship to mycorrhizal growth responsiveness.
Electric circuit models of partial differential equations

Electrical models of linear partial differential equations may serve several practical purposes: 1. If the networks are physically constructed, they actually may solve the equations within an accuracy of, say, one to five per cent, which is acceptable in many engineering applications. 2. If the networks are constructed only on paper, they supply a visualizable schedule of operations for the numerical solution of the equations or for the improvement of the results found by the network analyzer or by other methods. 3. The networks may serve to check the accuracy and self-consistency of results arrived at by other methods, approximate or exact. 4. In many problems where the fields have boundaries of unusual shape, or where both fields and circuits are present and mutually are influencing each other, it is next to impossible to formulate the problem mathematically. In such cases the electrical model representation offers a practical means for formulating and solving the problem.
From Margaret Mead's Field Notes: What Counted as “Sex” in Samoa?

Derek Freeman fonda sur deux principes sa critique δe l'affirmation de Margaret Mead selon laquelle les adolescentes de Samoa beneficiaient d'une liberte sexuelle. Le premier - le culte de la viriginite - a ete rejete par les chercheurs. Le second - qu'une faible incidence de la grossesse premaritale empechait la liberte sexuelle - n'a pas ete adequatement expose. La liberte sexuelle et une faible incidence de la grossesse ne sont pas mutuellement exclusives. La cle depend de ce qui est considere comme sexuel a Samoa
Carsharing: Review of Its Public Benefits and Level of Taxation

With the increase in carsharing (sharing of motor vehicles through memberships in non- and for-profit enterprises) has come extensive analysis of the environmental, economic, and social benefits that result from vehicle-sharing programs. Although the research suggests that the public benefits are significant, public policy has not always supported the sector’s growth, particularly in taxation. In this study a cross-section analysis of taxation rates in 82 U.S. cities was performed to foster understanding of the implications of taxation on the sector’s expansion. Findings showed that taxes on carsharing services generally exceeded local taxes on sales, as well as taxes on other forms of passenger transportation. Nationally, the average tax was 17.93% for 1-h reservations and 14.08% for 24-h reservations. By comparison, sales taxes in cities with carsharing services averaged just 8.06%. In seven of the 25 largest cities in the study’s sample, taxes on 1-h reservations exceeded 30%. Such taxation resulted in an estimated 11.7% reduction in carsharing use and a proportional drop in net social benefits. Such social losses can be avoided with policies that provide targeted tax waivers for neighborhood carsharing organizations that compile information (assembled and certified by a third party), which shows that the organizations provide services that meet clearly articulated criteria, and that the organizations generate significant benefits to the community at large. Several major cities, including Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; and Portland, Oregon, have created definitions for such organizations, which are used to exempt them from certain taxes.
THE EFFECTS OF MERCAPTOETHANOL AND OF PERITONEAL MACROPHAGES ON THE ANTIBODY-FORMING CAPACITY OF NONADHERENT MOUSE SPLEEN CELLS IN VITRO

Nonadherent mouse spleen cells exhibited poor viability and little or no capacity to form antibodies to sheep red cells in the Mishell-Dutton culture system. Viability and antibody-forming capacity could be restored by addition to these cultures of low concentrations of mercaptoethanol (10(-4)-10(-5)M), or by addition of appropriate numbers of mouse peritoneal macrophages. Macrophage concentrations lower than optimal resulted in lower lymphoid cell viability and correspondingly fewer plaque-forming cells, whereas excess macrophages resulted in marked inhibition of antibody formation despite good viability of the lymphocytes. Restoration of the nonadherent cells with mercaptoethanol was thus much simpler and more reproducible than it was with macrophages; furthermore, the number of plaque-forming cells developed in cultures restored with mercaptoethanol was approximately fourfold higher than it was in cultures restored with optimal numbers of macrophages. In the presence of mercaptoethanol, the plaque-forming capacity of the nonadherent spleen cells was not increased when small numbers of macrophages were added to the system, nor was it decreased when the few macrophages present in the nonadherent cells were further reduced or eliminated. Excess macrophages inhibited antibody formation in the cultures containing mercaptoethanol as they did in control cultures. Optimal restoration of plaque-forming capacity to the nonadherent spleen cells with mercaptoethanol required the reducing agent to be present throughout the 4 or 5 day culture period. Addition of mercaptoethanol 1 or more days after initiation of culture, or transfer of the cells to a medium free of mercaptoethanol before completion of the culture resulted in a reduction in the numbers of plaque-forming cells. The results suggest that mouse lymphoid cells do not require macrophages in order to form antibodies to sheep red cells in vitro, provided mercaptoethanol is present in the culture medium. The mechanism of action of mercaptoethanol under these conditions is not completely clear, but one of its effects is to promote the viability of lymphoid cells in the cultures.
Comparison of WISC and WISC-R Using a Sample of Highly Intelligent Children

A sample of 19 male and 19 female 5th graders from a private school were tested on the 1949 WISC and the 1974 revised edition (WISC-R). Tests were administered in a partially counterbalanced order. Correlation coefficients for Verbal, Performance and Full Scale IQs were all very high as expected. On average, students scored 9.6 points higher on the WISC Verbal Scale and 8.4 points higher on the Performance Scale. Results for this small sample suggest the need for more frequent restandardization.
Lara Croft: The Ultimate Young Adventure Girl or the unending media desire for models, sex, and fantasy

Lara Croft is a computer supermodel. The buxom, dark-haired, gun-totting, intelligent, and suave fantasy woman of the late 1990s helped earned her company more money than real-life supermodels—and in some cases, has gathered more attention. Lara Croft was digitally created as a computer game in 1996 and has “starred” in at least five Tomb Raider games, with more in development. Between 1996 and 2000, twenty-one million copies of Tomb Raider were sold. Sales of the game and related merchandising have reached $500 million. Her surface appearance seems to be the female equivalent of an Indiana Jones. Her fame and popularity reaches around the globe and she is treated at times as if real:
Reconstruction of mass spectra of components of unknown mixtures based on factor analysis

Abstract A method is described for the spectral resolution of combined gas chromatographic—mass spectrometric data. Factor analysis is applied to the identification of a second species in a single gas chromatographic peak. A plot can be constructed from the region of the non-negative values of spectral lines in the factor space. Feasible locations for the spectra of these constituents in the plot can be identified and give recognizable spectra of the separated constituents.
Rigid Aromatic Heterocyclic Polymers For Nonlinear Optics

The use of organic polymers for nonlinear optical (NLO) processes is gaining increased attention because of the ability to engineer molecular structures that have high laser damage thresholds, high values of both the first and second hyperpolarizabilities, and inherently fast response times. This general class of materials also provides synthesis and processing options that are not feasible with inorganic crystals, such as structural optimization through modification, fiber spinning, film casting and thermoplastic processes. This paper provides the synthesis method for a class of polymers commonly referred to as the PBZ polymers. One of these polymers, namely polyp-phenylene-2,6-benzobisthiazole) (PBT) has been shown to have a high value of the macroscopic third order optical nonlinear susceptibility, X (3)1. Development of the synthesis of these π -electron conjugated systems combined with their evaluation for nonlinear optical responses may be viewed to be the preliminary step in the engineering of optimized materials for use in optical signal processing devices of the future. By describing the process of preparing rigid rod and semi-rigid benzothiazole and benzoxazole polymers in polyphosphoric acid (PPA) at the appropriate concentration to achieve the advantages of highly ordered solution morphologies, we establish the foundation for the preparation of materials with optimized figures of merit for NLO applications.
The process of change in cognitive therapy: Schema change or acquisition of compensatory skills?

This article compares two competing models of the process of change in cognitive therapy: the schema changemodel and the compensatory skillsmodel. There are two key differences between the models: They differ in their predictions about the timingof schema change, and in their statements about the generalityof the lessons learned in cognitive therapy. Experiments that test these two differences between the models are suggested.
Leech therapy in penile replantation: a case of recurrent penile self-amputation

Penile amputation is a rare urologic trauma for which immediate surgical replantation is indicated. Microsurgical techniques can reduce skin and graft loss complications; nonetheless, such complications are still highly prevalent. We report a case of self-inflicted penile amputation and describe a nonmicrosurgical technique for replantation. To improve postoperative edema due to venous congestion, we applied medicinal leeches to the penis. The edema quickly resolved, but overlying skin loss occurred, which required superficial debridement. At follow-up the patient had glans re-epithelialization with normal voiding, sensation, and erections. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of nonmicrosurgical penile replantation with leech therapy.
Etoposide and Mitoxantrone as a Second Cycle of Consolidation Therapy Following High Dose Cytosine Arabinoside and Daunorubicin in Patients with Acute Non-Lymphocytic Leukemia in Remission: A Pilot Study

High dose cytosine arabinoside (ARA-C) has produced long term relapse free survival in 26% to 49% of patients when used as consolidation therapy of acute non-lymphocytic leukemia (ANLL) in first remission. However, the optimal consolidation regimen has not been defined. In this pilot study we attempted to confirm and extend our previous studies of high dose consolidation therapy by administering two cycles of consolidation chemotherapy to patients with ANLL in first remission. The first cycle was high dose ARA-C 3 gm/m2 over 1 hour every 12 hours for 12 doses followed by daunorubicin 45 mg/m2/day for three days. The second cycle was etoposide 75 mg/m2/day for 10 days and mitoxantrone 12 mg/m2/day for three days.Twenty-three patients received high dose consolidation chemotherapy, 13 of whom received the proposed two cycles. The major reason for not receiving the planned second consolidation cycle was life threatening toxicity, primarily fungal infection, during the first consolidation cycle. By actuarial e...
Coupled arrays of photonic crystal nanocavites and their applications

We present photonic crystal structures that exhibit small group velocity of light, which can be used as compact optical delay component. We experimentally measure the group velocity reduction to be less than 0.008c. By breaking the rotation symmetry of the structure we also use them to control the polarization of light. Finally, we demonstrate a new type of laser by fabricating array of coupled photonic crystal nanocavities in active medium, which improves differential quantum efficiency and laser output power. In our experiment, we observe a single mode lasing and measure the output powers that are two orders of magnitude higher than in single nanocavity lasers.
Percentage-differential transformer protection

Three-winding transformers present difficult problems for the protection engineer. Differential relays which operate on the phase difference between the currents in the different windings are particularly adapted to meet the requirements.
Repellent Odour in Aphids

WE have found that Myzus persicae aphids are repelled by the odour of droplets released from the cornicles and squashed aphids of the same species.
Sculpting genomes with a hammer and chisel.

With a flood of new tools for genome engineering, we can benefit from choosing the tool that best fits the job.