cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Workshop on Instructional Skills in the Clinical Setting

This article describes a workshop offered annually by the radiation and imaging programs at Bellevue College, Bellevue, WA. The workshop provides an educator perspective to those who teach students in the college's clinical internships. An outline of the workshop is given in this article, as are the reasons for its ongoing success.
DISCUSSION OF ANALYSIS OF EMBANKMENT STRESSES AND DEFORMATIONS

REFERENCES: RAY W. CLOUGH, RICHARD J. WOODWARD, III, JOURNAL OF THE SOIL MECHANICS AND FOUNDATIONS DIVISION, PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS, PROC. PAPER 5329, JULY 1967.
Post's Problem, Absoluteness and Recursion in Finite Types

The unresolved character of the power set operation stymies the solution of elementary problems arising in Kleene's theory of recursion in objects of finite type. E.g. Post's problem for 3 E has a positive solution if V=L (NORMANN, 1975), and a negative if AD holds. Let δ be the class of all sets R ⊆ 2ω such that R is recursive in 3 E, b for some real b . A forcing construction shows δ is not recursively enumerable in 3 E when there is a recursively regular well-ordering of 2″ recursive in 3 E. It follows that the concepts of Σ * , and weak Σ * , definability differ. With the aid of the notions of indexicality and ordinal recursiveness, an absolute version of Post's problem for 3 E is devised, and studied when certain recursively enumerable projecta are equal.
Optimization of a Fuzzy Adaptive Network for Control Applications

In this paper, we describe the use of certain optimization techniques, principally dynamic programming and high level computational methods, to enhance the capabilities of a fuzzy adaptive neural network controller which we had developed for on-line control and adaption of complex nonlinear processes. Potential applications to an array of processes from diverse fields are discussed.
Glioblastoma Multiforme of the Conus Medullaris—Management Strategies and Complications

Primary spinal glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) of the conus medullaris is a rare and devastating pathologic entity. The presenting symptoms commonly include progressive neurologic deficits in the lower extremities, bowel and bladder dysfunction, and low back pain. Histologically, these tumors have high-grade features similar to their intracranial counterparts. However, recent advancements in the field of molecular oncology have been beginning to elucidate a unique molecular blueprint for these spinal gliomas. Given the lack of standardized treatment strategies, we have presented our institutional experience in treating a small series of patients with conus medullaris GBM and have reviewed the reported data on the relevant molecular markers, management strategies, and complication avoidance for this malignant pathologic entity.
Aging of mouse intervertebral disc and association with back pain

With the increased burden of low back pain (LBP) in our globally aging population there is a need to develop preclinical models of LBP that capture clinically relevant features of physiological aging, degeneration, and disability. Here we assess the validity of using a mouse model system for age-related LBP by characterizing aging mice for features of intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration, molecular markers of peripheral sensitization, and behavioral signs of pain. Compared to three-month-old and one-year-old mice, two-year-old mice show features typical of IVD degeneration including loss of disc height, bulging, innervation and vascularization in the caudal lumbar IVDs. Aging is also associated with the loss of whole-body bone mineral density in both male and female mice, but not associated with percent lean mass or body fat. Additionally, two-year-old mice have an accumulation of TRPA1 channels and sodium channels NaV1.8 and NaV1.9 in the L4 and L5 lumbar dorsal root ganglia consistent with changes in nociceptive signaling. Lastly, the effect of age, sex, and weight on mobility, axial stretching and radiating pain measures was assessed in male and female mice ranging from two months to two years in a general linear model. The model revealed that regardless of sex or weight, increased age was a predictor of greater reluctance to perform axial stretching and sensitivity to cold, but not heat in mice.
Magnetoelectric bistability of molecular ferroic solids

Organic multiferroics showing electrical and magnetic bistability on a molecular scale are essential as the foundation for miniaturized logic gates and memory devices. However, low Curie temperature in organic multiferroics limited their practical applications in molecular electronics. Here we suggest a different magnetoelectric coupling approach through organic multiferroic composites. We show that molecular ferroic solids exhibit switchable electrical, dipole and magnetic bistability around room temperature. Switchable magnetoelectricity is seen under laser shock impact, as well as magnetic anomalies around ferroelectric Curie temperature. The coupling between charge, dipole and spin order parameters enables tailoring of the magnetoelectricity and conductivity in molecular ferroic solids.
Short-term load forecasting of urban gas using a hybrid model based on improved fruit fly optimization algorithm and support vector machine

Abstract The accurate forecasting of short-term load for urban gas is the premise of gas supply sales, pipe network planning, and energy optimization scheduling. This paper adopts a hybrid model that integrates the fruit fly optimization algorithm (FFOA), simulated annealing algorithm (SA), cross factor (CF) and support vector machine (SVM) to forecast the short-term gas load of urban gas. In the model, SA and CF are used to optimize the FFOA algorithm. This paper takes the urban gas system in Kunming, China as a case study and uses the CF-SA-FFOA-SVM algorithm to predict the gas consumption and compares the results with the other four forecasting methods such as back-propagation neural network (BPNN) and autoregressive integrated moving average model (ARIMA). Besides, this paper analyzes the influence of temperature types (daily maximum temperature and daily mean temperature) in models on forecasting results, and the applicability of the algorithm for forecasting weekly and monthly gas load is analyzed. Moreover, the impact of grouping raw data by the feature on forecasting result is discussed. The following conclusions are drawn: (1) compared with other forecasting models, CF-SA-FFOA-SVM model has higher gas load forecasting accuracy. (2) for Kunming city, if the daily maximum temperature is used as the input variable in the gas load forecasting model, the forecasting accuracy is higher. (3) grouping raw data according to holiday attributes or gas types can effectively improve the accuracy of load forecasting.
Cost-Effectiveness and Challenges of Implementing Intensive Blood Pressure Goals and Team-Based Care.

Review the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and implementation challenges of intensive blood pressure (BP) control and team-based care initiatives. Intensive BP control is an effective and cost-effective intervention; yet, implementation in routine clinical practice is challenging. Several models of team-based care for hypertension management have been shown to be more effective than usual care to control BP. Additional research is needed to determine the cost-effectiveness of team-based care models relative to one another and as they relate to implementing intensive BP goals. As a focus of healthcare shifts to value (i.e., cost, effectiveness, and patient preferences), formal cost-effectiveness analyses will inform which team-based initiatives hold the highest value in different healthcare settings with different populations and needs. Several challenges, including clinical inertia, financial investment, and billing restrictions for pharmacist-delivered services, will need to be addressed in order to improve public health through intensive BP control and team-based care.
Adversarial False Data Injection Attack Against Nonlinear AC State Estimation with ANN in Smart Grid

Artificial neural network (ANN) provides superior accuracy for nonlinear alternating current (AC) state estimation (SE) in smart grid over traditional methods. However, research has discovered that ANN could be easily fooled by adversarial examples. In this paper, we initiate a new study of adversarial false data injection (FDI) attack against AC SE with ANN: by injecting a deliberate attack vector into measurements, the attacker can degrade the accuracy of ANN SE while remaining undetected. We propose a population-based algorithm and a gradient-based algorithm to generate attack vectors. The performance of these algorithms are evaluated through simulations on IEEE 9-bus, 14-bus and 30-bus systems under various attack scenarios. Simulation results show that DE is more effective than SLSQP on all simulation cases. The attack examples generated by DE algorithm successfully degrade the ANN SE accuracy with high probability.
Endothelial cell crosstalk improves browning but hinders white adipocyte maturation in 3D engineered adipose tissue

Central to the development of adipose tissue (AT) engineered models is the supporting vasculature. It is a key part of AT function and long-term maintenance, but the crosstalk between adipocytes and endothelial cells is not well understood. Here, we directly co-culture the two cell types at varying ratios in a 3D Type I collagen gel. Constructs were evaluated for adipocyte maturation and function and vascular network organization. Further, these constructs were treated with forskolin, a beta-adrenergic agonist, to stimulate lipolysis and browning. Adipocytes in co-cultures were found to be less mature than an adipocyte-only control, shown by smaller lipid droplets and downregulation of key adipocyte-related genes. The most extensive vascular network formation was found in the 1:1 co-culture, supported by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) upregulation. After forskolin treatment, the presence of endothelial cells was shown to upregulate PPAR coactivator 1 alpha (PGC-1α) and leptin, but not uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), suggesting a specific crosstalk that enhances early stages of browning.
Quantifying Human Norovirus Virus-like Particles Binding to Commensal Bacteria Using Flow Cytometry

Commensal bacteria are well established to impact infection of eukaryotic viruses. Direct binding between the pathogen and the host microbiome is responsible for altering infection for many of these viruses. Thus, characterizing the nature of virus-bacteria binding is a foundational step needed for elucidating the mechanism(s) by which bacteria alter viral infection. For human norovirus, commensal bacteria enhance B cell infection. The virus directly binds to these bacteria, indicating that this direct interaction is involved in the mechanism of infection enhancement. A variety of techniques can be used to quantify interactions between bacteria and viruses including scintillation counting of radiolabeled viruses and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Both methods require the use of live virus, which may need to be generated in the laboratory. Currently, none of the established in vitro culture systems available for human norovirus are robust enough to allow for generation of highly concentrated viral stocks. In lieu of live virus, virus-like particles (VLPs) have been used to characterize the interactions between norovirus and bacteria. Herein a flow cytometry method is described with uses virus specific antibodies to quantify VLP binding to gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Inclusion of both bacteria only and isotype controls allowed for optimization of the assay to reduce background antibody binding and accurate quantification of VLP attachment to the bacteria tested. High VLP:bacterium ratios result in VLPs binding to large percentages of the bacterial population. However, when VLP quantities are decreased, the percent of bacteria bound also decreases. Ultimately, this method can be employed in future experiments elucidating the specific conditions and structural components that regulate norovirus:bacterial interactions.
Chapter V – Circular Duct

Publisher Summary After parallel plates, the circular tube is the simplest cylindrical geometry mathematically. It is the geometry most commonly used in fluid flow and heat transfer devices. Circular tube laminar fully developed and developing flows have been analyzed in great detail for various boundary conditions, including the effect of thermal energy sources, viscous dissipation, fluid axial heat conduction, and momentum diffusion. The results are outlined below.
Investigating Mental Health Implications for Drug Court Participants

Drug Court Treatment (DCT) Programs seek to integrate substance abuse treatment into the criminal justice system by providing a structured environment for offenders who engage in treatment in lieu of incarceration. DCT has shown successes in reducing drug/alcohol use, recidivism, and cost, but the impact of DCT on non-substance-related mental health outcomes is less clear. This study evaluated mental health correlates within a DCT sample through analyses of participants' pre-entry and pre-graduation Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Second Edition (MMPI-2) profiles. When diagnostic information was available, mood disorders had the highest comorbidity with alcohol/substance use diagnoses. Comparisons across administrations of the MMPI-2 indicated significant differences among mean scores on 6 Clinical scales, and mean profile elevation scores significantly decreased. Results suggest a significant presence of mental health comorbidities in DCT programs, and significant mental health improvements were seen for graduates, suggesting the utility of DCT for treating mental health problems in addition to substance use.
The Globular Cluster System of the Spiral Galaxy NGC7814

We present the results of a wide-field photometric study of the globular cluster (GC) system of the edge-on Sab spiral NGC7814. This is the first spiral to be fully analyzed from our survey of the GC systems of a large sample of galaxies beyond the Local Group. NGC7814 is of particular interest because a previous study estimated that it has 500-1000 GCs, giving it the largest specific frequency (S_N) known for a spiral. Understanding this galaxy's GC system is important in terms of our understanding of the GC populations of spirals in general and has implications for the formation of massive galaxies. We observed the galaxy in BVR filters with the WIYN 3.5-m telescope, and used image classification and three-color photometry to select GC candidates. We also analyzed archival HST WFPC2 images of NGC7814, both to help quantify the contamination level of the WIYN GC candidate list and to detect GCs in the inner part of the galaxy halo. Combining HST data with high-quality ground-based images allows us to trace the entire radial extent of this galaxy's GC system and determine the total number of GCs directly through observation. We find that rather than being an especially high-S_N spiral, NGC7814 has <200 GCs and S_N ~ 1, making it comparable to the two most well-studied spirals, the Milky Way and M31. We explore the implications of these results for models of the formation of galaxies and their GC systems. The initial results from our survey suggest that the GC systems of typical ellipticals can be accounted for by the merger of two or more spirals, but that for highly-luminous ellipticals, additional physical processes may be needed.
Incidence, Predictors, and Implications of Permanent Pacemaker Requirement After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

Abstract Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is a safe and feasible alternative to surgery in patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis regardless of the surgical risk. Conduction abnormalities requiring permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation remain a common finding after TAVR due to the close proximity of the atrioventricular conduction system to the aortic root. High-grade atrioventricular block and new onset left bundle branch block (LBBB) are the most commonly reported conduction abnormalities after TAVR. The overall rate of PPM implantation after TAVR varies and is related to pre-procedural and intraprocedural factors. The available literature regarding the impact of conduction abnormalities and PPM requirement on morbidity and mortality is still conflicting. Pre-procedural conduction abnormalities such as right bundle branch block and LBBB have been linked with increased PPM implantation and mortality after TAVR. When screening patients for TAVR, heart teams should be aware of various anatomical and pathophysiological conditions that make patients more susceptible to increased risk of conduction abnormalities and PPM requirement after the procedure. This is particularly important as TAVR has been recently approved for patients with low surgical risk. The purpose of this review is to discuss the incidence, predictors, impact, and management of the various conduction abnormalities requiring PPM implantation in patients undergoing TAVR.
Identifying functional metabolic shifts in heart failure with the integration of omics data and a heart-specific, genome-scale model.

Summary In diseased states, the heart can shift to use different carbon substrates, measured through changes in uptake of metabolites by imaging methods or blood metabolomics. However, it is not known whether these measured changes are a result of transcriptional changes or external factors. Here, we explore transcriptional changes in late-stage heart failure using publicly available data integrated with a model of heart metabolism. First, we present a heart-specific genome-scale metabolic network reconstruction (GENRE), iCardio. Next, we demonstrate the utility of iCardio in interpreting heart failure gene expression data by identifying tasks inferred from differential expression (TIDEs), which represent metabolic functions associated with changes in gene expression. We identify decreased gene expression for nitric oxide (NO) and N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) synthesis as common metabolic markers of heart failure. The methods presented here for constructing a tissue-specific model and identifying TIDEs can be extended to multiple tissues and diseases of interest.
Social practices of nurse care coordination using sensor technologies – Challenges with an alert system adoption in assisted living communities for older adults

Abstract Objectives From the view of everyday practices and the socio-technical coordination lens, this study aimed to analyz the gap between creators’ intention and the users’ implementation (mainly nursing staff and social workers) of an alert system in assisted living communities. Methods Qualitative methods were employed by way of five user interviews and focus groups with six system developers. Modeling instruments were applied for data collection to analyze the different clinical workflows versus the expectations of the system development team. Results Results indicate that the clinical workflow changed over time, which led to a mismatch of nurse care coordination, social practices, and technology use. The results show different mental models of the socio-technical practice. Applying the coordination theory, the following recommendations could be developed to overcome the mismatch. First, it is recommended that nursing staff set goals together. Second, a communication rhythm with the nursing staff and developer teams should be established, with guided questions to facilitate the conversation, to shed light on the different workflows and the difference in social practices when using sensor technologies or alert systems. Third, a checklist for new employees should be created so they know how and on which devices to use the alert system. Fourth, the user experience with the alert system should be improved (e.g., an improved user interface). Conclusions This work indicates recommendations to close the mental model gap to overcome the mismatch between optimal use of the alert system and how the nursing staff is actually using it.
Larval Diet Abundance Influences Size and Composition of the Midgut Microbiota of Aedes aegypti Mosquitoes

The midgut microbiota of the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti impacts pathogen susceptibility and transmission by this important vector species. However, factors influencing the composition and size of the microbiome in mosquitoes are poorly understood. We investigated the impact of larval diet abundance during development on the composition and size of the larval and adult microbiota by rearing Aedes aegypti under four larval food regimens, ranging from nutrient deprivation to nutrient excess. We assessed the persistent impacts of larval diet availability on the microbiota of the larval breeding water, larval mosquitoes, and adult mosquitoes under sugar and blood fed conditions using qPCR and high-throughput 16S amplicon sequencing to determine bacterial load and microbiota composition. Bacterial loads in breeding water increased with increasing larval diet. Larvae reared with the lowest diet abundance had significantly fewer bacteria than larvae from two higher diet treatments, but not from the highest diet abundance. Adults from the lowest diet abundance treatment had significantly fewer bacteria in their midguts compared to all higher diet abundance treatments. Larval diet amount also had a significant impact on microbiota composition, primarily within larval breeding water and larvae. Increasing diet correlated with increased relative levels of Enterobacteriaceae and Flavobacteriaceae and decreased relative levels of Sphingomonadaceae. Multiple individual OTUs were significantly impacted by diet including one mapping to the genus Cedecea, which increased with higher diet amounts. This was consistent across all sample types, including sugar fed and blood fed adults. Taken together, these data suggest that availability of diet during development can cause lasting shifts in the size and composition of the microbiota in the disease vector Aedes aegypti.
Surgical resection for patients with pulmonary aspergillosis in the national inpatient sample

Background The role of lung resection in patients with pulmonary aspergillosis is generally reserved for those with localized disease who fail medical management. We used a national database to investigate the influence of preoperative patient comorbidities on inpatient mortality and need for surgery. Methods Patients admitted with pulmonary aspergillosis between 2007 to 2015 were identified in the National Inpatient Sample dataset. Inpatient mortality rates were compared between patients treated medically and surgically. Predictors of mortality, surgical intervention, and non-elective admission were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression. Results Among a population estimate of 112,998 patients with pulmonary aspergillosis, 107,606 (95.2%) underwent medical management alone and 5,392 (4.8%) underwent surgical resection. Positive predictors for surgery included hemoptysis, and history of lung cancer or chronic pulmonary diseases. Surgically treated patients had a lower inpatient mortality when compared to those treated medically (11.5% vs. 15.1%, P Conclusions In this generalizable study, medical and surgical management of pulmonary aspergillosis were comparable in terms of inpatient mortality. However, non-elective admission and patients with select comorbidities have significantly worse outcomes after surgical intervention.
Seizure recurrence after prolonged seizure control: Patterns and risk factors.

Abstract Objective To identify the patterns and possible predictors of seizure recurrence after durable seizure freedom during maintenance of anti-seizure medication (ASM) treatment. Methods We conducted a retrospective longitudinal study that identified all adult individuals with epilepsy (IWE) at the George Washington University outpatient epilepsy clinic between 1/1/2014 and 12/31/2016 who had been seizure free for at least 2 years. We followed up the patients until 5/30/2020 for seizure recurrence. The data were analyzed using survival analysis, univariate analysis, and multivariate regression with Cox proportional hazard model. Outcomes were dichotomized into seizure relapse and seizure freedom. The total number of relapses and triggers of the initial relapse for individual patient were also analyzed. Results This single-center cohort consisted of 220 IWE (age 21–80) of whom 99 patients had been seizure free for 2–3 years and 121 patients had been seizure free for more than 3 years. In this cohort, 48 patients (22%) experienced at least one seizure relapse during the span of the study. Of the relapsing patients, 25 (52%) had a single seizure relapse, and 8 (15%) had frequent seizure relapses (n ≥ 5) and developed pharmacoresistance. Half of the initial seizure relapses occurred without a trigger. Among those with at least one year of follow-up after relapsing (n = 33), 29 (86%) regained seizure freedom for at least 1 year. Among 26 patients with at least 2 years of follow-up, only 14 (55%) regained at least 2 years of seizure freedom. Previous longer duration of seizure freedom and ASM monotherapy predicted less chances of seizure relapse and fewer seizure numbers after relapse. No difference in prognosis was noted among relapsing patients between those with or without triggers. Significance Patients with well-controlled epilepsy may have seizure relapses with or without identifiable triggers. Most patients regained at least 1-year seizure freedom after the initial relapse, whereas about half patients reachieved 2-year seizure remission. About 15% of the relapsing patients may subsequently develop pharmacoresistance. Prognostic factors of seizure recurrences include duration of initial seizure remission and the number of ASMs used during remission. The presence of identifiable triggers for the initial seizure relapse does not predict future outcome.
CRISPR meets caspase.

Diverse CRISPR–Cas systems protect prokaryotes against invasive genetic elements like phages. A new study finds that evolution has fused a multi-subunit CRISPR complex into a single protein that cuts RNA and interacts with an ancillary caspase-like peptidase, which may trigger cell suicide.
Eros and Polis: Desire and Community in Greek Political Theory

Eros and Polis examines how and why Greek theorists treated political passions as erotic. Because of the tiny size of ancient Greek cities, contemporary theory and ideology could conceive of entire communities based on desire. A recurrent aspiration was to transform the polity into one great household that would bind the citizens together through ties of mutual affection. In this study, Paul Ludwig evaluates sexuality, love and civic friendship as sources of political attachment and as bonds of political association. Studying the ancient view of eros recovers a way of looking at political phenomena that provides a bridge, missing in modern thought, between the private and public spheres, between erotic love and civic commitment. Ludwig's study thus has important implications for the theoretical foundations of community.
Trypanosoma congolense: surface glycoproteins of two early bloodstream variants. III. Immunochemical characterization.

Abstract A radioimmunoassay (RIA) for the variant-specific glycoproteins (VSG-1 and VSG-2) of two sequentially appearing variants of Trypanosoma congolense has been devised. When the isoelectrically focused VSG-1 components (VSG-1a, VSG-1b, and VSG-1c) are used as inhibitors of the VSG-1-anti-VSG-1 interaction, the RIA inhibition curves resemble each other, although minor differences in the high-affinity region of the curves can be detected. The heterologous antigen (VSG-2) does not inhibit the VSG-1-anti-VSG-1 interaction except at very high concentrations, indicating there is little cross-reactivity between highly purified VSG-1 and VSG-2. Nevertheless, heterologous antiserum, directed against VSG-2, will inhibit the VSG-1 -anti-VSG-1 interaction, and this property is shared to a significant degree by rabbit antiserum directed against an unrelated antigen. We have interpreted these findings as suggesting that: (1) there may be a constant region common to both VSG proteins, and (2) the constant region of the immunoglobulin molecule may also bind VSG proteins. Preliminary experiments show that the VSG-1 molecule augments binding of the Clq component of complement to the Fc region of immunoglobulin G.
Intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy: an evolving paradigm for the treatment of peritoneal surface malignancies

Unfortunately, advanced colorectal cancer is often present at the time the disease is diagnosed. Many intra-abdominal malignancies spread throughout the peritoneal cavity, which is known as carcinomatosis. Peritoneal carcinomatosis is uniformly a terminal disease with a median survival of 6 months. Systemic chemotherapy is palliative and generally provides limited improvement in survival. Conventional surgery has typically been limited to ileostomy, colostomy or intestinal bypass procedures. Cytoreductive surgery alone has long been used to treat macroscopic disease, with limited success. However, cytoreductive surgery combined with intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy (IPHC) has evolved into a novel approach for peritoneal surface malignancy. IPHC was initially described in a canine model by Spratt. Although the first clinical series of peritoneal perfusion were small, Japanese trials, which utilized IPHC for prophylaxis in patients with gastric adenocarcinoma, Fujimoto was the first to report an im...
Filtration model for polydisperse aerosols in gas-solid flow using granule-resolved direct numerical simulation

An analytical framework for calculating the filtration efficiency of polydisperse aerosols in a granular bed is developed for cases where inertial impaction and interception are the principal filtration mechanisms. This framework is used to develop a model for the polydisperse single-collector efficiency from monodisperse single-collector efficiency correlations. Conceptually, the polydisperse model is developed by transforming the probability density of particle radius into a probability density of particle Stokes number that is then used to weight the monodisperse single-collector efficiency at a given Stokes number. An extension of this polydisperse filtration concept results in an analytical solution for the axial variation of polydisperse particle flux in a random three-dimensional granule configuration. In order to verify the analytical results for polydisperse particle filtration, a granule-resolved direct numerical simulation approach is coupled with Lagrangian particle tracking to simulate filtration of polydisperse aerosols in a granular bed. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 3594–3606, 2015
A Historical Introduction to the Search for Extraterrestrial Life

The possibility that life, primitive or advanced, might exist in other places of the Universe has occupied the thoughts of scientists and laymen for thousands of years. It is only in the last 25 years, however, that we have entered the experimental phase of the search for extraterrestrial life, where considerable progress has already been made.
Automatic two-fingered grip selection

Grip determination is essential to any task level planning process and to situations in which the pose of the part to be grasped is not known a priori. This paper presents the complete force/moment equations for grasping via a rigid two-fingered gripper. Surface contact is modeled as a linear pressure variation. The quality measure of a grip is taken to be the coefficient of friction needed to keep it from slipping under applied forces and moments, the lower the coefficient of friction, the better the grip. The incorporation of this evaluation into a general grip selection strategy is discussed and several examples given.
The movement of oil under non-breaking waves

The combined effects of wave kinematics, turbulent diffusion, and buoyancy on the transport of oil droplets at sea were investigated in this work using random walk techniques in a Monte Carlo framework. Six hundred oil particles were placed at the water surface and tracked for 500 wave periods. A dimensionless formulation was presented that allowed reporting distances in terms of the wave length and times in terms of the wave period. Stokes' drift was, expectedly, the major mechanism for horizontal transport. It was also found that plumes that have large terminal rise velocities move faster forward but spread less than those that have small terminal rise velocities. The increase in wave slope (or wave steepness) caused an increase in transport and spreading of the plume. Our results supported treating the oil as completely mixed vertically in a layer near the surface. In the horizontal direction, buoyant plumes had spreading coefficients that are essentially constant after about 200 wave periods. But neutrally buoyant plumes had horizontal spreading coefficients that increased with time (for the simulation time of 500 wave periods). Techniques for generalizing the results for a wide range of wave parameters were presented.
Recommendations for endodontic referral among practitioners in a dental HMO

This study assessed the effect of patients' presenting conditions on general practitioners' (GPs') self-reported endodontic referral patterns, and compared GPs' perceived indications for referral with those of endodontists. The study was based on a self-administered, confidential survey distributed to 79 GPs and 7 endodontists who provide care to members of one Dental HMO in the Pacific Northwest. GPs were most likely to recommend referral for teeth they felt needed surgical retreatment, but GPs and endodontists did not always agree on indications for referral. Compared with GPs, endodontists were more likely to recommend referral for patients with complex problems, but not necessarily technically difficult teeth. Compared with those with less experience, GPs with more than 10 yr both in dentistry and at this HMO were more likely to recommend (a) referring difficult cases rather than performing endodontic therapy themselves and (b) extracting perforated or root-fractured teeth prior to obturation rather than continuing treatment. Indications for referral that maximize favorable dental outcomes need to be identified.
Men's Multiple Sexual Partnerships in 15 Sub-Saharan African Countries: Sociodemographic Patterns and Implications

Men's multiple sexual partnerships contribute to the spread of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa, but the social determinants of these relationships remain poorly understood. Prevailing wisdom suggests that men's institutionalized authority over women and their control of economic resources are key facilitators of multiple partnerships in this region. Men's exposure to or freedom from social control mechanisms embedded in family and village life may also play a role. This article provides insight into these issues by examining sociodemographic correlates of men's multiple sexual partnerships using data from recent Demographic and Health Surveys in 15 sub-Saharan African countries. The prevalence of self-reported multiple partnerships varies widely among countries. Sociodemographic patterns of such partnerships confirm the importance of men's control of economic resources and suggest that men's freedom from social control mechanisms may be more important than their authority over their wives.
Time-resolved wavelength modulation spectroscopy measurements of HO 2 kinetics.

High-frequency wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) has been applied to the detection of the hydroperoxyl radical (HO2) in a laser photolysis and long-path absorption pump-probe kinetics reactor with a near-infrared distributed feedback diode laser. The HO2 is formed by the 355-nm photolysis of Cl2 in the presence of CH3OH and O2 and monitored by a phase-sensitive detection of the second-harmonic (2f) signal in the 2ν1 band with a 1.5-µm diode laser directly modulated at 5 MHz. The measured 2f WMS signal is calibrated by direct absorption and converted to an absolute number density with the known absorption line strength of the HO2 line at 6625.80cm-1. The utility of time-resolved WMS as a second-order kinetics probe is demonstrated through the measurement of the HO2 self-reaction rate constant at 295 K.
Getting Acquainted With Alfonso Hernández-Catá

(1955). Getting Acquainted With Alfonso Hernandez-Cata. Kentucky Foreign Language Quarterly: Vol. 2, No. 4, pp. 195-202.
Tolerance to effects of cocaine on schedule-controlled behavior: effects of fixed-interval schedule parameter.

Tolerance to the effects of cocaine on key pecking by pigeons, maintained by differently valued fixed-interval schedules of food presentation, was studied. Key pecking was established on a multiple fixed-interval 5-sec fixed-interval 30-sec fixed-interval 120-sec schedule. Cocaine (1.0-10.0 mg/kg) was administered acutely and then chronically (i.e., before each session) in 5.6 mg/kg doses. Acute cocaine administration produced dose-related decreases in response rates under all three schedules. When cocaine was administered chronically, response rates either recovered fully, or increased to the extent that no reinforcers were missed during the sessions. The development of tolerance was not systematically related to the schedule value. Considered in relation to previous research, these results indicate that different control rates of reinforcement, within the schedules and parameters studied, do not contribute to tolerance to cocaine's behavioral effects.
Peripheral Nerve Entrapments of the Lower Leg, Ankle, and Foot

Peripheral nerve entrapments are a relatively rare and heterogeneous group of nerve disorders encompassing a wide variety of etiologies and clinical presentations. These conditions can present significant diagnostic challenges, owing to both the variety of symptoms these patients display, along with the anatomic variation that exists between individuals. Precise knowledge of the anatomic course, the common motor and sensory distributions of each of the peripheral nerves, and judicious use of imaging or electrodiagnostic testing can greatly assist in arriving at a correct diagnosis. In this article, we discuss in detail the anatomy, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment options for peripheral nerve entrapments of the lower extremity involving the sural, saphenous and common, superficial, and deep peroneal nerves.
Construction and characterization of double mutants in nitrogenase of Klebsiella pneumoniae

Two mutants in nitrogenase ofKlebsiella pneumoniae are constructed by site-directed mutagenesis and gene replacement procedure, which express the nitrogenases with Lysine and Glutamine substituting for α-Glutamine 190 and α-Histidine 194 respectively (Kp-Q α190 K and Kp-H α194 Q). The above two substitutions are respectively introduced into anifV mutant (expressing a citrate-containing nitrogenase) and sequentially two double mutants are obtained (Kp-Q α190 K-nifV − and Kp-H α194 Q-nifV −). All four mutants exhibit strict Nif-phenotype under the N2-fixation condition and fail to grow diazotrophically. Altered nitrogneases are effectively depressed and the C2H2 reduction analysis shows that the double substitutions in Kp-Q α190 K-nifV abolish cell C2H2 reduction activity, but Kp-H α194 Q-nifV − cells maintain a C2H2 reduction activity at 10% of that of wild type. Whole cell C2D2 reduction by all four mutants in comparison to the wild type andnifV mutant is also detected. The results show that only single α-Gln194 substitution does not perturb the stereospecificity of protonation of C2D2. These results indicate that the α-Glutamine 190 and its combination with homocitrate are essential to the catalytic activity of nitrogenase and it is proposed that α-Glutamine 190 and its combination with homocitrate are involved in the proton and/or electron transfer to FeMoco. The nitrogenases from these double mutants will be useful in further analysis of the entry of the proton and/or electron to FeMoco and the substrate binding sites.
Scalable Parallel Interface for Terabit LAN

We propose a scalable parallel interface that provides an ideal aggregated bandwidth link for an application. The scalable parallel interface uses time information to align packets and allows dynamic lane and/or path change, a large difference in transmission delays among lanes, and so on. The basic performance of the scalable parallel interface in 10Gb/s x 2 lanes is verified using an estimation board that is newly developed to evaluate the basic functions used in a Terabit LAN. The evaluation shows that the scalable parallel interface achieves a very low delay variation that is almost the same as that under back-to-back conditions. The difference in the delay variation between the scalable parallel interface and the back-to-back condition is approximately 10ns when the transmission delay time varies from 10 μs to 1 s.
Salt-dependent DNA-DNA spacings in intact bacteriophage λ reflect relative importance of DNA self-repulsion and bending energies.

Using solution synchrotron x-ray scattering, we measure the variation of DNA-DNA $d$ spacings in bacteriophage $\ensuremath{\lambda}$ with mono-, di-, and polyvalent salt concentrations, for wild-type [$48.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{3}$ base pairs (bp)] and short-genome-mutant (37.8 kbp) strains. From the decrease in $d$ spacings with increasing salt, we deduce the relative contributions of DNA self-repulsion and bending to the energetics of packaged phage genomes. We quantify the DNA-DNA interaction energies within the intact phage by combining the measured $d$ spacings in the capsid with measurements of osmotic pressure in DNA assemblies under the same salt conditions in bulk solution. In the commonly used Tris-Mg buffer, the DNA-DNA interaction energies inside the phage capsids are shown to be about $1kT/\mathrm{bp}$, an order of magnitude larger than the bending energies.
Critical fluid shear stress analysis for cell–polymer adhesion

A simple methodology to assess cell adhesion on materials was developed. We demonstrated that the cell adhesion strength could be quantified. Using this method, we were able to compare the NIH/3T3 Swiss mouse fibroblasts adhesion strength to poly(methyl methacrylate) and polycarbonate. A controlled fluid shear stress was applied to cells using a parallel plate rotational system. Cells detached from the surface in the radial direction. Results showed that there was a critical radius where the shear stress experienced by the cells equaled the cell adhesion strength. The cells outside this radius were removed while those inside maintained initial confluency. The quantitative evaluation of cell adhesion is beneficial for development of biomaterials.
Postacquisition turnover among U.S. top management teams: an analysis of the effects of foreign vs. domestic acquisitions of U.S. targets

An analysis of postacquisition top management turnover among 168 cross-border and 102 purely domestic acquisitions, and a control group of 120 nonacquired U.S. firms, revealed that turnover rates in firms acquired by non-U.S. acquirers were significantly higher than in firms acquired by other U.S. firms or the control group. Further, the timing of postacquisition turnover differed in the foreign vs. domestic acquisitions. Finally, the nationality of the foreign acquirer was found to be an important predictor of turnover in certain acquisition categories. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. ? 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Paleoclimate of the past 4000 years at Lake Turkana, Kenya, based on the isotopic composition of authigenic calcite

Abstract Authigenic calcite was analyzed for δ 13 C and δ 18 O in a 12 m long core from Lake Turkana that spans the last 4200 yr. The δ 18 O record is interpreted to reflect lake level history, and indicates high stands prior to 4000 yr B.P., from 1800 to 2000 yr B.P., and within the last century. This coincides better with the history of lake level change reported for other lakes in africa than did the previous lake level curve for Lake Turkana based on 14 C dates of exposed shoreline deposits. The δ 13 C curve roughly parallels the δ 18 O curve, and may reflect the influence of the Omo River plume. Both of the isotope records are strongly cyclic, with periodicites common to both at 80, 120, 150 and 225 yr. Other, somewhat longer periodicites are nearly equal in the two records, and there is close agreement with previously published cycles based on carbonate and lamination thickness analyses in the same Turkana core.
Introduction to AEI’s Special Issue on Special Education Teacher Evaluations

The purpose of this introductory article is to provide an overview to the special issue on special education teacher evaluation. This special issue features five articles that collectively present a comprehensive review of the current state of understanding about the issues concerning devising and implementing special education teacher evaluation systems. Within this special issue are articles that provide a discussion of some of the primary challenges associated with evaluating special education teachers; an overview of the issues associated with using observation tools to measure special education teachers; and three studies that each feature a unique approach to special education teacher evaluation via opportunities to learn (My Instructional Learning Opportunities Guidance System; Classroom Observations of Student-Teacher Interactions–Mathematics) and evidence-based instructional practices (Recognizing Effective Special Education Teachers). Because of the current gap in special education teacher evalu...
A minimum-exposure, minimum-elevation military aircraft heuristic route selection model

Abstract An heuristic route selection model is presented for developing military aircraft routes through hostile terrain. The capability of modern air defence systems has forced military aircraft to utilize low level flight to avoid detection and increase survivability. By identifying the high and low elevation points within an area, the model determines their exposure values, which are used with their height and internode distance to calculate a penalty for flying to a point from the current position. In developing a route, the model utilizes basic information concerning air defence deployment, initial and destination points, and terrain data, to specify a minimum-exposure, minimum-elevation route. The results include the development of eight routes for 10 by 10 km areas, and six larger terrain areas varying in size from 20 by 20 km to 35 by 35 km. Validation shows the heuristic to be extremely competitive with visual procedures, and to require considerably less time.
The density changes on cooling and heating of selected Pb–Sn alloys during the precipitation and dissolution of the β-Sn phase

Abstract The effect of ramp cooling and ramp heating on the density of Pb–Sn alloys containing 4, 8, 15, and 20 at.% Sn was measured in the temperature range between 190°C and ambient. It was found that the precipitation and dissolution of β-Sn and the ramp rate had a significant effect on the density of the alloys as a function of temperature.