cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparison of Preoperative Assessment of Patient's Metabolic Equivalents (METs) Estimated from History versus Measured by Exercise Cardiac Stress Testing.

Background. Preoperative anesthetic evaluations of patients before surgery traditionally involves assessment of a patient’s functional capacity to estimate perioperative risk of cardiovascular complications and need for further workup. This is typically done by inquiring about the patient’s physical activity, with the goal of providing an estimate of the metabolic equivalents (METs) that the patient can perform without signs of myocardial ischemia or cardiac failure. We sought to compare estimates of patients’ METs between preoperative assessment by medical history with quantified assessment of METs via the exercise cardiac stress test. Methods. A single-center retrospective chart review from 12/1/2005 to 5/31/2015 was performed on 492 patients who had preoperative evaluations with a cardiac stress test ordered by a perioperative anesthesiologist. Of those, a total of 170 charts were identified as having a preoperative evaluation note and an exercise cardiac stress test. The METs of the patient estimated by history and the METs quantified by the exercise cardiac stress test were compared using a Bland–Altman plot and Cohen’s kappa. Results. Exercise cardiac stress test quantified METs were on average 3.3 METS higher than the METs estimated by the preoperative evaluation history. Only 9% of patients had lower METs quantified by the cardiac stress test than by history. Conclusions. The METs of a patient estimated by preoperative history often underestimates the METs measured by exercise stress testing. This demonstrates that the preoperative assessments of patients’ METs are often conservative which errs on the side of patient safety as it lowers the threshold for deciding to order further cardiac stress testing for screening for ischemia or cardiac failure.
Development of a combined quantum monte carlo-effective fragment molecular orbital method

The development of a combined Quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) - Effective Fragment Molecular Orbital (EFMO) method is described. The combined QMC-EFMO method inherits the advantages of both methods: the ...
Heterozygous CX3CR1 Deficiency in Microglia Restores Neuronal β-Amyloid Clearance Pathways and Slows Progression of Alzheimer's Like-Disease in PS1-APP Mice.

CX3CR1 is a chemokine receptor expressed on microglia that binds Fractalkine (CX3CL1) and regulates microglial recruitment to sites of neuroinflammation. Full deletion of CX3CR1 in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease have opposing effects on amyloid-β and tau pathologies raising concerns about the benefits of targeting CX3CR1 for treatment of this disease. Since most therapies achieve only partial blockade of their targets, we investigated the effects of partial CX3CR1 deficiency on the development and progression of amyloid-β deposition in the PS1-APP Alzheimer’s mouse model. We generated PS1-APP mice heterozygous for CX3CR1 (PS1-APP-CX3CR1+/-) and analyzed these mice for Alzheimer’s-like pathology. We found that partial CX3CR1 deficiency was associated with a significant reduction in Aβ levels and in senile-like plaque load in the brain as compared with age-matched PS1-APP mice. Reduced Aβ level in the brain was associated with improved cognitive function. Levels of the neuronal-expressed Aβ-degrading enzymes insulysin and matrix metalloproteinase 9, which are reduced in the brains of regular PS1-APP mice, were significantly higher in PS1-APP-CX3CR1+/- mice. Our data indicate that lowering CX3CR1 levels or partially inhibiting its activity in the brain may be a therapeutic strategy to increase neuronal Aβ clearance, reduce Aβ levels and delay progression of Alzheimer’s-Like disease. Our findings also suggest a novel pathway where microglial CX3CR1 can regulates gene expression in neurons.
Sinusoidal: An Exploration of Mathematics and Movement

Mathematic theory often takes place in two-dimensional forms. Whether hand-drawn graphs, or three-dimensional models on a screen, the presentation of the subject often lacks the length, breadth, and depth it deserves. Through four phases of research, I explored how one can model mathematic concepts through movement and music, both demonstrably and abstractly. I began my research by basing small dance/movement phrases in simple trigonometric concepts and giving my dancers tasks exploring related subjects. I then examined how other choreographers, both past and present, employed mathematic approaches in their work. To accompany my choreographic work and complete my project, I created a musical score using only single-tone sine wave frequencies. Finally, I interviewed my dancers, as well as other dancers and engineers, to understand how the piece was perceived as both a work of art and an informative display. Through my research, I hope to further the embodied and aesthetic understanding of applied simple and complex mathematic concepts.
Research progress in the imbalance of Th1/Th2 and the specific immunotherapy of bronchiolitis

Bronchiolitis is a common infection of lower respiratory tract in infants, which is characterized by wheezing. The research on the immunological changes of bronchiolitis would contribute to a better understanding of the mechanism of the development from bronchiolitis to asthma. Th1/Th2 imbalance exists in children of bronchiolitis with immunological changes. Adjusting Th1/Th2 balance could be a new strategy for the treatment of bronchiolitis. Key words: Bronchiolitis; Th1 cell; Th2 cell; Cytokine; Immunotherapy
Long-Term Results of Pisiformectomy in a Cohort of 57 Patients

Background Excision of the pisiform is an infrequently used option for pisotriquetral joint dysfunction when nonoperative treatment is ineffective. This study reviews the patient-reported outcomes of patients treated with pisiformectomy, and furthermore focuses on the complications and the need for and time to revision procedure. Materials and Methods Medical records of 57 patients were manually reviewed and assessed for complications, rate of unplanned reoperations, and type of reoperations. Thirty-seven patients (65%) completed patient-rated outcomes surveys at a median of 10 years after their procedure. Results The complication rate was 13% (n = 7). Ulnar nerve symptoms were noted in three patients. No reoperations were performed after the pisiform excision. Out of the 16 patients who had preoperative symptoms of ulnar nerve compression at the wrist, 10 patients reported that their symptoms had completely resolved after the surgery. The median Quick Disability of Arm, Shoulder and Hand (QuickDASH) score after surgery was 4.5 (2.3–16), median score for pain 0 (interquartile range [IQR]: 0–2), and median score for overall satisfaction 10 (IQR: 8–10). Conclusions Pisiformectomy is a surgery used sparingly in cases with refractory pain associated with arthrosis of the pisotriquetral joint or enthesopathy of the flexor carpi ulnaris/pisiform interface. When utilized in this fashion, patients report limited disability on patient-rated outcome measures, low pain scores, and high satisfaction at mid- to late follow-up.
An Interleaved Boost and Dual Active Bridge Based Three Port Microinverter

In this paper, a new three port converter is proposed that interfaces two DC voltage sources of different magnitude and an output AC port. The proposed converter is primarily based on dual active bridge topology where, the secondary bridge is composed of four quadrant bidirectional switches, realized by placing regular MOSFETs in back to back fashion. In this configuration, the secondary side can be directly connected to an AC port. The primary bridge can also be used as an interleaved bidirectional boost converter by connecting two inductors across the transformer primary, which forms an additional input DC port. The power flow between the DC ports to the AC port is based on dual phase shift modulation where a phase shift is introduced between the two legs of the primary bridge switches and another phase shift between the primary and secondary bridge. This enables the standard sine pulse width modulation to be used for synthesizing AC output. A 200W prototype was built to experimentally verify the theoretical analysis of the proposed converter.
Illusory Planes in Fred Sandback’s Sculpture

A remarkable feature of artist Fred Sandback’s string constructions has often been noted: that the geometrical forms created with string have a strong planar feel. Phenomenologically, the spaces be...
Family Rank: A graphical domain knowledge informed feature ranking algorithm.

MOTIVATION When designing prediction models built with many features and relatively small sample sizes, feature selection methods often overfit training data, leading to selection of irrelevant features. One way to potentially mitigate overfitting is to incorporate domain knowledge during feature selection. Here, a feature ranking algorithm called 'Family Rank' is presented in which features are ranked based on a combination of graphical domain knowledge and feature scores computed from empirical data. RESULTS A simulated data set is used to demonstrate a scenario in which family rank outperforms other state-of-the-art graph based ranking algorithms, decreasing the sample size needed to detect true predictors by 2 to 3-fold. An example from oncology is then used to explore a real-world application of family rank. AVAILABILITY An implementation of Family Rank is freely available at https://cran.r-project.org/package=FamilyRank. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Causes and Consequences of COVID-19-Associated Bacterial Infections

The COVID-19 literature highlights that bacterial infections are more common in fatal cases than recovered cases. If bacterial infections drive mortality in COVID-19, this has clear implications for patient management. However, it is possible that the enrichment of bacterial infections in COVID-19 fatalities is simply a by-product of late-stage pathology, leading to different advice for patient management. To address this question, we review current knowledge on bacterial infections in COVID-19, assess information from past viral respiratory pandemics, and simulate alternate causal models of interactions between virus, bacteria, and mortality in COVID-19. From these models, we conclude that currently available data are not sufficient to discriminate between these alternate causal pathways, and we highlight what data are required to determine the relative contribution of bacterial infection to COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. We further summarize the potential long-term consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Heat Treating of Chert: Methods of Interpretation and Their Application

The practice of heating chert to facilitate its flaking has been documented for primitive cultures widely distributed in time and space. The basic procedure for interpreting evidence of prehistoric...
The Continuing Promise of Natural Products for Drug Development

The past century has been a time of enormous growth in drug discovery. Synthetic organic chemistry plays a big part in this effort, but perhaps more important has been discovery of new molecules from living sources, the natural products. Notable examples are the salicylates (aspirin), the statins, and Taxol. Natural products ( syn. secondary metabolites, biologically active small molecules) play a variety of roles in the organisms that produce them, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifeedant, UV protectant, and a host of other actions. Newman and Cragg (2004, 2007) have illuminated the vital role that natural products play in the development of drugs with antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, antihyperlipidemic, anticancer, and other activities. Natural products are used directly as drugs, are modified into drugs (semisynthesis), serve as models for drugs, or provide the mechanistic details for a particular drug target. New natural-product discovery is still an important approach, with growing focus on compound sources not explored previously. These include marine sources across all domains of life, endophytic and free-living fungi and bacteria, terrestrial invertebrates, and unstudied plant groups. Many laboratories around the world, my own included, have projects focused on the discovery of drug leads from new sources and locations. From the number …
Genetically Programmed Chloroplast Dedifferentiation as a Consequence of Plastome-Genome Incompatibility in Oenothera

Comparision of chloroplast from plants with one of four plastome types (I, II, III, IV) in the nuclear background of Oenothera elata strain Johansen addressed the effects of plastome-genome incompatibility with respect to leaf pigmentation, plastid ultrastructure, chlorophyll a/chlorophyll b ratio, and photosynthetic electron transport. Previous observations of plastomes I, II, and IV in this nuclear background have revealed no indications of incompatibility, but the studies reported here demonstrate that chloroplasts of plastome IV have subtle alterations in their photosynthetic abilities, in particular, deficiencies in photosystem II. The well-characterized “hybrid bleaching” of plants with the AA genotype and plastome III involves leaves that become bleached in the center while remaining green at the tips, edges, and veins. Electron transport assays performed on fractionated bleached and green tissue from the same plants show photosynthetic defects in both the green and bleached regions, although defects in the latter are more severe. Ultrastructural studies show that chloroplasts in the bleached areas enlarge, thylakoid membranes become swollen and vesiculated, and production of new thylakoids is blocked, with chloroplasts appearing to undergo a programmed senescence. A time course revealed that the senescence is actually a reversible dedifferentiation. Alterations in the composition of medium to which AA/III seedlings were transferred showed that the presence of auxin can prevent the development of the typical incompatibility response, with leaf tissue remaining green rather than bleaching. It is proposed that differences in concentrations of plant growth regulators may be responsible for the persistence of normal chloroplasts near the vascular tissue and leaf blade edges and that seasonal fluctuations in auxin levels could explain the periodic bleaching that occurs in older plants.
Implementation and faculty assessment of an oral examination in a therapeutics course in a distance synchronous education pharmacy programme.

Objectives To describe the process and implementation of an oral exam in a large class with distance synchronous education technology and to evaluate the faculty's perspective of the development, administration, and assessment of the oral exam. Methods The Department of Pharmacy Practice at Nova Southeastern University, USA, created two patient cases for the oral exam per course over two semesters within the Therapeutics and Pathophysiology course sequence to be distributed across three campus sites. The faculty's perspective was evaluated utilizing a questionnaire distributed via an online survey. Key findings The oral exam was administered simultaneously across three campuses to a total of 464 students over two semesters. A total of 42 faculty members assisted in the exam process. Four cases were developed for the two exams, with detailed answer keys to minimize subjectivity in grading. Twenty-eight faculty members (66%) completed the assessment questionnaire. Most faculty were in support of continuing to administer the oral exam in subsequent therapeutic courses. Conclusions Implementation of an oral exam in a large class with synchronous education via distance campuses is feasible. However, exam coordinators must take into account logistics such as time commitment from faculty, adequate facilities and detailed case and key development.
THE USE OF APL IN STATISTICS

This paper treats APL, a general purpose programming language which has been found useful in statistics [1,2,3]. It begins with a brief definition of the language and some illustrations of its application in statistics, and concludes with some comments on the relative advantages of special purpose and general purpose languages.
Distance Transformation and Shortest Path Planning

This chapter contains sections titled: General Concept Distance Transformation by Mathematical Morphology Approximation of Euclidean Distance Decomposition of Distance Structuring Element The 3D Euclidean Distance The Acquiring Approaches The Deriving Approaches The Shortest Path Planning Forward and Backward Chain Codes for Motion Planning A Few Examples References ]]>
Purification of Hageman factor (factor XII) on columns of popcorn- agarose

Purification of Hageman factor (HF, factor XII) from human plasma is a tedious procedure and the product is not always in the precursor form. Hojima has described a protein derived from corn kernels that inhibits the enzymatic properties of HF. This inhibitor binds to the precursor form of HF. Rapid purification of HF was achieved by using as the major purification step adsorption of this clotting factor to popcorn inhibitor bound to agarose. The product had a specific activity of 50.0 to 67.1 coagulant units of HF per milligram protein, and the yield was 33% to 40% of the HF content of the starting plasma. The purified protein displayed a single band upon unreduced or reduced sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and less than 0.1% was in an activated form, as measured in coagulant assays. The technique described is more rapid and reliable than methods described earlier.
Disaster Management at the 1904 New Market, Tennessee Train Wreck: Role of a Surgeon

Knowing the lessons of past disasters is necessary in disaster planning. Such knowledge paves the way for creating a plan that anticipates the patterns, as well as the impediments, of behavior and injuries encountered in most events. On September 4, 1904, a head-on "butting" collision of two Southern Railway passenger trains traveling at high speeds occurred near New Market, Tennessee, killing 56 passengers and crew and injuring 106. It was the worst civilian disaster of its kind in eastern Tennessee, according to one Knoxville newspaper. An historical analysis of the events of this mass casualty incident and the medical and community response may serve as a template for modern disaster management and the role of surgeons in that management. Language: en
Mining useful association rules from questionnaire data

Traditional association rule mining algorithms often have difficulty handling questions that are implicitly related, producing rules that are very accurate but are so obvious as to be completely useless to researchers. This problem is compounded by the fact that standard objective measures for interestingness often capture the wrong information and are maximized by these obvious rules. We propose an enhancement to standard association rule mining that uses clustering to identify related questions to pre-prune rules involving similar questions, which are less likely to be subjectively interesting. This enhancement reduces the search space of rules, improving the algorithm's efficiency. In addition, the resulting rule list has a higher concentration of diverse rules, more likely to be useful to researchers. We demonstrate this improvement relative to existing algorithms on two real-world, public health questionnaires.
Avoiding Sub-Optimal Behavior in Intellectual Asset Transactions: Economic and Organizational Perspectives on the Sale of Knowledge

Although some of the most important elements of a knowledge-based economy in the coming century will be intellectual asset transactions, the current marketplace for intellectual asset transactions is murky at best. With patent litigation costs skyrocketing, most organizations have only recently begun licensing and cross-licensing their intellectual asset portfolios. Because robust valuation metrics for intellectual assets have not been fully developed, most licensing negotiations are based on rules of thumb rather than quantitative methods, rules of thumb that can often be economically disadvantageous to either the licensee or the licensor. With only two percent of the millions of innovations created in this country utilized under license, billions of dollars worth of intellectual assets are underutilized. Economic theory might suggest that the information necessary for quantitative analysis is too costly to acquire (i.e., difficult to obtain or not available at all), resulting in a relatively small number of market transactions involving intellectual assets, with valuations generally covered by rules of thumb. Different organizational behavior theories would probably suggest that some forms of bounded rationality are responsible for the use of these rules of thumb. The true answer probably lies somewhere in the middle of the spectrum between those perspectives. This article explores the nature of intellectual assets and the dynamics of intellectual asset transactions. After examining various organizational behavior and economic perspectives in search of an explanation for the current state of the marketplace for intellectual asset transactions, the article concludes by proposing valuation metrics that might better inform the negotiations surrounding an intellectual asset transaction.
Clean two- and three-dimensional analytical solutions of Richards' equation for testing numerical solvers

[1] This technical note derives clean analytical solutions of Richards' equation for three-dimensional unsaturated groundwater flow. Clean means that the boundary conditions and steady state solutions are closed form expressions and the transient solutions have relatively simple additional Fourier series terms. Two-dimensional versions of these solutions are also given. The primary purpose for the solutions is to test linear and nonlinear solvers in finite difference/volume/element computer programs for accuracy and scalability using architectures ranging from PCs to parallel high-performance computers. This derivation starts from the quasi-linear assumption of relative hydraulic conductivity varying exponentially with pressure head and the separate approximation that relative hydraulic conductivity varies linearly with moisture content. This allows a transformation to be used to create a linear partial differential equation. Separation of variables and Fourier series are then used to obtain the final solution. Physically reasonable material properties are also used. A total of four solutions are given in this technical note (steady state and transient solutions for two different boundary conditions of the sample problem).
Computer simulation studies of biological membranes: progress, promise and pitfalls

Because of the complexity of biological membranes, computer simulations are useful adjuncts to experimental work in their study. Simulations of model membranes have provided new insights. Progress in simulating more biologically realistic membranes will require further development of statistical mechanical theory applied specifically to these systems, in conjunction with the use of powerful computers.
Dysplastic nodules and hepatocellular carcinoma: sensitivity of digital subtraction hepatic arteriography with whole liver explant correlation.

PURPOSE The purpose of this work was to determine the sensitivity of hepatic digital subtraction arteriography (DSA) for the detection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and dysplastic nodules (DNs) when compared with pathological findings from whole liver explants. METHOD Twenty-one patients 30-72 years old (mean 54 years) with cirrhosis and known or clinically suspected HCC (20 prior to chemoembolization) underwent hepatic DSA with subsequent transplantation within 80 days (mean 32 days). The prospective DSA report was compared with pathologic findings from explanted livers. RESULTS Overall, DSA detected 31 of 95 HCC lesions for a sensitivity of 33%. Of these 31 lesions, 28 were hypervascular and 3 were hypovascular. DSA detected all six HCCs measuring >5 cm, all six HCCs measuring 3-5 cm, and all five HCCs 2-3 cm, resulting in a sensitivity of 100% (17/17) for HCC >2 cm. DSA detected 7 of 18 HCCs measuring 1-2 cm (sensitivity 39%) and 7 of 60 HCCs < or =1 cm (sensitivity 12%). Overall sensitivity for DSA in detection of HCC < or =2 cm was 18% (14/78 lesions). None of 17 DNs (0.2-1.5 cm in size) was identified on DSA. CONCLUSION DSA is insensitive to small HCC (< or =2 cm), carcinomatosis arising within nodules, and DN.
Digital Fatigue: Imaging War in Recent American Film

Abstract The new wired combat in Iraq, alternating in American films between aerial surveillance and camcorder logs or cell-phone video, tends to displace the failed resolutions of plot onto an electronic mediation that not only turns virtual on the spot, but anticipates the post-traumatic flashback as digital playback.
The effects of riverine impoundment on genetic structure and gene flow in two stream fishes in the Mobile River basin

SUMMARY 1. Riverine impoundments (reservoirs) are thought to impede natural migration in small-streaminhabiting fishes, resulting in spatially and genetically fragmented populations. However, this hypothesis remains poorly tested, and the genetic consequences of riverine impoundment for stream fishes with differing dispersal capabilities are not well understood. 2. This study utilised a combination of microsatellite DNA loci from 479 individuals and the mitochondrial (mt) DNA cytochrome b gene (810–1140 bp) from 83 individuals from eight streams to compare genetic structure and diversity between reservoir-fragmented and non-fragmented groups of two species of stream fishes with differing dispersal capabilities in the Mobile River basin of the south-eastern United States. 3. For both species, analysis of microsatellite loci revealed genetic discontinuities between neighbouring tributaries that have been fragmented by reservoir construction. This finding was in stark contrast to the high degree of continuity for both species between reference tributaries in a natural river setting. Results from mtDNA revealed no significant genetic structure within reservoir-fragmented or non-fragmented groups, indicating a lack of historical genetic structure (i.e. prior to reservoir construction). Microsatellite-based estimates of genetic diversity and migration were differentially affected in the two species, indicating that stream fishes with relatively high dispersal abilities may be equally or more susceptible to reservoir fragmentation when compared to species with relatively low dispersal abilities. 4. Collectively, our data revealed that riverine impoundment and reservoir-induced habitat fragmentation adversely affect genetic characteristics in small-stream-inhabiting fishes. This is of particular interest in biodiversity hotspots such as the south-eastern United States where hydroelectric and recreational reservoirs restrict connectivity in aquatic systems.
Formation and structure of vacancy defects in silicon: Combined metropolis monte carlo, tight-binding molecular dynamics, and density functional theory calculations

We present the formation and structure of vacancy clusters $({V}_{n},\text{ }n\ensuremath{\le}48)$ in crystalline Si based on combined Metropolis Monte Carlo, tight-binding molecular dynamics, and density functional theory calculations. In this size regime, vacancy clusters are predicted to favor fourfold coordination by nullifying dangling bonds created by Si lattice-atom removal. Our results also highlight the identification of a stable high-symmetry ${V}_{32}$ configuration that exhibits a complex but ordered tetrahedral core/shell shape. When $ng25$, fourfold-coordinated (FC) clusters commonly show the core/shell figure while smaller FC clusters $(10lnl25)$ exhibit the trace of the high-symmetry ${V}_{12}$ structure that exhibits four identical voidlike structural units surrounding a tetragonal core. In addition, our study reveals that the formation of thermodynamically favored FC clusters can be kinetically facile.
Androgen receptor systems in the brain stem of the primate

The nuclear uptake and retention of [3H]dihydrotestosterone ([3H]DHT) or one of its metabolites was studied in the cerebellum and brain stem of the rhesus monkey. Three days before the injection of the tritiated hormone, we removed both ovaries and the right adrenal gland of 3 female rhesus monkeys under ketamine and halothane or fluothane anesthesia with aseptic surgical procedures. Two days later, we removed the left adrenal gland under similar conditions. Shortly after the second operation, each animal received 100 mg prednisolone sodium succinate. On the day of autopsy, we injected into a femoral vein of each animal 1 microgram of 5 alpha-dihydro[1,2,4,5,6,7-3H]-testosterone (107 Ci/mmol). One of these animals also received an i.v. injection of 100 micrograms/kg body weight of unlabeled DHT to serve as a control. One hour after injection, we rapidly exsanguinated each animal through a femoral venous catheter and perfused the vascular system with approximately 3 1 of Ringer's solution through a femoral arterial catheter. The cerebella and brain stems were removed and processed for autoradiography. Unlike in the rat, nuclear uptake and retention of [3H]DHT was found in both motor and sensory systems of these monkeys and in other areas less well defined. These data indicate that there are major species differences in the nuclear uptake and retention of androgen by the cerebellum and brain stem of rats and primates.
Separation of organic acids from water using ionic liquid assisted electrodialysis

Abstract In this study, we present a system capable of concentrating, acidifying, and removing organic salts from aqueous solution through the use of ionic liquids in an electrodialysis stack. This system used a bipolar electrodialysis stack operating in batch mode with ionic liquids in the concentrate stream and an aqueous solution containing organic salts in the diluate stream. Sodium butyrate was used as our model organic salt. The desired organic product was successfully transferred from an aqueous phase to an ionic liquid phase through electrodialysis and then recovered from the ionic liquid. Bipolar electrodialysis produced butyric acid which allowed separation through distillation. Since ionic liquids possess no measurable vapor pressure, this process was able to recover organic acid at a recovery rate of 99% and recycle the ionic liquid back into the electrodialysis stack. This system also reduced separation energy requirements by 60% when compared to distillation from aqueous solution. The research presented has the potential to significantly improve upon current organic acid purification techniques by eliminating costly dehydration steps following fermentations and other typical organic acid production methods. By combining the versatility of ionic liquids with the energy efficiency of electrodialysis, a simple low-cost organic acid purification method has been developed.
Applying the Critical Theory of Library Technology to Distance Library Services

The re-envisioning of libraries as information leaders in higher education requires an examination of the decisions made in the acquisition and adoption of library technology. The Critical Theory of Library Technology offers a framework for viewing technology decisions through a social, economic and political perspective. This paper uses the Critical Theory of Library Technology to open discourse on the varying levels of impact of distance library technology, suggesting that an application of the theory brings with it a set of questions that libraries may need to address.
Spreading of droplets on a solid surface.

We discuss a class of similarity solutions to the hydrodynamic equations that describe droplets spreading under capillarity. The spreading time scale of these solutions exhibits a subtle dependence on the microscopic length scale around the contact line. We show that such solutions are linearly stable to small perturbations away from the contact line, justifying the universality of experimental spreading laws. We discuss the transition between the two macroscopic spreading regimes. Our prediction for the transition time is consistent with experimental data.
Conversion symptoms in a general hospital

Abstract Analysis of 1,000 consecutive psychiatric consultations shows that the prevalence of conversion disorder (5%) in a general hospital remains significant. Conversion patients referred for psychiatric consultation were predominantly married young women of lower socioeconomic class and rural background. We observed rapid remissions of presenting symptoms in most cases upon treatment and found a significant proportion of somatization disorder (34%) or history of conversion disorder (38%). Other phenomenologic findings are discussed in regard to previous reports or hypotheses about conversion symptoms.
Large-time inversion of certain Laplace transforms in dissipative wave propagation

A large-time approximation for the inversion of Laplace transforms that commonly occur in dissipative wave propagation is obtained and discussed. This asymptotic approximation properly describes the bulk wave front and satisfies appropriate boundary conditions. The generality of the method is illustrated by means of examples from gas dynamics and viscoelasticity.
A response: Continuity and change in Hispanic identity:

In this essay I offer my insight regarding Latino/Hispanic1 identity. In doing so, I concede several items. The first concession is that I do not argue in favor of a definitive term of Latino/Hispanic identity. There are several issues that make this ethnic group problematic. At best, scholars can propose a working concept of identity. Secondly, my slant toward examining this topic is based upon my own scholarly work on immigration. For the last several years, I have been researching the former US-Mexico Bracero Program (1942-1964) (Lopez, 2009, 2010). The program was established to provide the United States with a temporary labor supply of Mexican men from Mexico (Calvetta, 1992; Driscoll, 1999; Galarza, 1964; Gamboa, 1990). However, after several renegotiations the agreement was renewed until the program was ended in 1964. The long-term effects include the generation of children and grandchildren of former braceros, now American citi zens. In short, ethnic identity is manifested through this 'new' set of Americans. Lastly, owing to constraints on the length of the essay, I will limit my examination, excluding other factors such as race, social class, age, education, political beliefs to name a few.
State and territory EHDI databases: what we do and don't know about the hearing or audiological data from identified children.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to define the information currently collected by state and territory Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) coordinators and to determine whether best...
Foaming and emulsifying properties of glycosylated beta-lactoglobulin

Abstract Solubility, foaming and emulsifying properties of glycosylated beta-lactoglobulin (βLG) were measured and correlated with chemical, structural and surface active properties. Maltose and beta-cyclodextrin were coupled to amino groups of βLG while glucosamine and glucosamineoctaose were coupled to carboxyl groups of βLG. Solubility of maltosyl-βLG was lower near its isoelectric point; however, the solubility of glucosaminyl-βLG was similar to βLG. Glycosylated βLG retained more water in the foam initially and after drainage and yielded a more stable foam than native βLG. Emulsifying activity and stability of glycosylated βLG improved slightly. Hence, decreased net charge and increased nonionic, hydrophilic characteristics of βLG corresponded to improved functional properties.
On the effective duration of a repeated word

Three experiments on immediate free recall are reported. Lists of words were read rapidly or slowly or at a variable rate; some items occurred only once while others were presented two or more times within a list, either in immediate succession or at widely separated locations. The results indicate that an item's frequency of recall depends not only on how often it is presented, and for how long, but also on the average duration of the items that surround it. When the rates at which items occur exceed the rate at which they can be processed for storage, S evidently attends fully to each in turn; while in the opposite case he evidently tries to distribute his attention as evenly as possible among all of them.
Basic Representation of the Affine SuperalgebraA(2)(0, 1)

Abstract Irreducible modules of the affine superalgebra A (2) (0, 1) are realized as the tensor product of symmetric and exterior algebras, on which A (2) (0, 1) acts by products of vertex operators and operators of Clifford type.
Inspection of functional free form geometry

Abstract Next Generation Shape Verification (NGSV) provides a means of comparing free form surfaces by evaluating the conformance of a physical part or die to its design intent. The design intent can be represented as a math/cad model or be obtained by scanning a “master” part using a high data density collection device such as a laser scanner.
Experimental studies of rare B- and D-meson decays at CLEO

Abstract A review is presented of recent results of experimental studies of rare B- and D-meson decays with the CLEO detector at the Cornell e+e− collider CESR. The results are based upon 107 fully analyzed and simulated B B pairs from ϒ(4S) decays. The review includes a brief theoretical introduction and discussion of the CLEO detector and datasets. The physics results concern the precision measurement of the masses of the B+ and B0 and their relative production rates from the ϒ(4S) resonance, the decay of B-mesons into two pseudo-scalar mesons and into a pseudo-scalar and a vector meson, polarization in the decay of B-mesons into two vector mesons, radiative B decays, and mixing in the B B and D D systems. Important new results were omitted due to time constraints. They include B decays to charmonium and to charmed baryons, and the search for CP-violation.
Chromatographic characterization of electrochemically generated technetium-HEDP skeletal imaging agents

Abstract Reduction of pertechnetate [ 99m TcO − 4 ] by controlled-potential coulometry in the presence of 1-hydroxy-1,1-ethanediphosphonate (HEDP) leads to the formation of 99m Tc complexes which are suitable for bone imaging. The complex radiopharmaceutical mixtures can be separated into their respective components by anion-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography. The distribution of the complexes in the mixtures is dependent on the cell potential, pH, technetium concentration, and presence or absence of air. A single component formed in high yield and isolated from the mixture by HPLC was investigated as a potential bone-imaging agent. This particular complex is produced only in low yields when prepared by chemical reduction of 99m TcO − 4 . Thus electrochemistry shows promise in aiding in the development of a more efficacious bone-imaging agent by allowing selective generation of individual 99m Tc-HEDP complexes.
Thomas Schmugge awarded 2006 Robert E. Horton medal

Thomas Schmugge was awarded the Robert E. Horton Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting honors ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes outstanding contributions to hydrology. For the past 30 years, Thomas Schmugge has been a truly peerless intellectual leader in improving both the theory and the application of microwave and infrared radiative transfer for the remote sensing of the land surface, especially soil moisture, surface temperature, and emissivity. Without exaggeration, he has been a trailblazer and is now unquestionably one of the few world experts on remote sensing in hydrology.
Bortezomib inhibits angiogenesis and reduces tumor burden in a murine model of neuroblastoma.

Background Bortezomib is a proteasome inhibitor with pleiotropic antitumor activity. Here we investigate the antiangiogenic and antitumor efficacy of bortezomib against neuroblastoma both in vitro and in a murine model of localized and disseminated disease. Methods In vitro activity of bortezomib was assessed by evaluating its effect on cell proliferation and cell cycle status. Localized tumor burden was followed with caliper measurements and total-body bioluminescence in mice with disseminated disease. The antiangiogenic activity was evaluated with immunohistochemistry and human vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay on tumor protein extracts. Results Bortezomib treatment resulted in dose and time-dependent decreases in cell proliferation and resulted in cell cycle arrest. In vivo, bortezomib restricted tumor growth in a model of localized disease and decreased bioluminescence in mice with disseminated disease. That decreased bioluminescence reflected decreased tumor burden was confirmed at necropsy by assessing disease in specific organs. In addition, treatment resulted in a decrease in intratumoral vessel counts and reduced tumor VEGF expression. Conclusion Bortezomib shows significant activity against neuroblastoma in vitro, and it inhibits tumor growth and angiogenesis in vivo. These results suggest that clinical studies of bortezomib are warranted for the treatment of this difficult disease.
A protective role for ELR+ chemokines during acute viral encephalomyelitis.

The functional role of ELR-positive CXC chemokines in host defense during acute viral-induced encephalomyelitis was determined. Inoculation of the neurotropic JHM strain of mouse hepatitis virus (JHMV) into the central nervous system (CNS) of mice resulted in the rapid mobilization of PMNs expressing the chemokine receptor CXCR2 into the blood. Migration of PMNs to the CNS coincided with increased expression of transcripts specific for the CXCR2 ELR-positive chemokine ligands CXCL1, CXCL2, and CXCL5 within the brain. Treatment of JHMV-infected mice with anti-CXCR2 blocking antibody reduced PMN trafficking into the CNS by >95%, dampened MMP-9 activity, and abrogated blood-brain-barrier (BBB) breakdown. Correspondingly, CXCR2 neutralization resulted in diminished infiltration of virus-specific T cells, an inability to control viral replication within the brain, and 100% mortality. Blocking CXCR2 signaling did not impair the generation of virus-specific T cells, indicating that CXCR2 is not required to tailor anti-JHMV T cell responses. Evaluation of mice in which CXCR2 is genetically silenced (CXCR2−/− mice) confirmed that PMNs neither expressed CXCR2 nor migrated in response to ligands CXCL1, CXCL2, or CXCL5 in an in vitro chemotaxis assay. Moreover, JHMV infection of CXCR2−/− mice resulted in an approximate 60% reduction of PMN migration into the CNS, yet these mice survived infection and controlled viral replication within the brain. Treatment of JHMV-infected CXCR2−/− mice with anti-CXCR2 antibody did not modulate PMN migration nor alter viral clearance or mortality, indicating the existence of compensatory mechanisms that facilitate sufficient migration of PMNs into the CNS in the absence of CXCR2. Collectively, these findings highlight a previously unappreciated role for ELR-positive chemokines in enhancing host defense during acute viral infections of the CNS.
Variants Near FOXE1 Are Associated with Hypothyroidism and Other Thyroid Conditions: Using Electronic Medical Records for Genome- and Phenome-wide Studies

We repurposed existing genotypes in DNA biobanks across the Electronic Medical Records and Genomics network to perform a genome-wide association study for primary hypothyroidism, the most common thyroid disease. Electronic selection algorithms incorporating billing codes, laboratory values, text queries, and medication records identified 1317 cases and 5053 controls of European ancestry within five electronic medical records (EMRs); the algorithms' positive predictive values were 92.4% and 98.5% for cases and controls, respectively. Four single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in linkage disequilibrium at 9q22 near FOXE1 were associated with hypothyroidism at genome-wide significance, the strongest being rs7850258 (odds ratio [OR] 0.74, p = 3.96 × 10−9). This association was replicated in a set of 263 cases and 1616 controls (OR = 0.60, p = 5.7 × 10−6). A phenome-wide association study (PheWAS) that was performed on this locus with 13,617 individuals and more than 200,000 patient-years of billing data identified associations with additional phenotypes: thyroiditis (OR = 0.58, p = 1.4 × 10−5), nodular (OR = 0.76, p = 3.1 × 10−5) and multinodular (OR = 0.69, p = 3.9 × 10−5) goiters, and thyrotoxicosis (OR = 0.76, p = 1.5 × 10−3), but not Graves disease (OR = 1.03, p = 0.82). Thyroid cancer, previously associated with this locus, was not significantly associated in the PheWAS (OR = 1.29, p = 0.09). The strongest association in the PheWAS was hypothyroidism (OR = 0.76, p = 2.7 × 10−13), which had an odds ratio that was nearly identical to that of the curated case-control population in the primary analysis, providing further validation of the PheWAS method. Our findings indicate that EMR-linked genomic data could allow discovery of genes associated with many diseases without additional genotyping cost.
Isolation, identification and synthesis of an endogenous arachidonic amide that inhibits calcium channel antagonist 1,4-dihydropyridine binding

Abstract This study was part of a broad search for endogenous regulators of L-type calcium channels. The screening for active fractions was done by measuring inhibition [ 3 H]1,4-dihydropyridine (DHP) binding to rat cardiac and cortex membranes. An inhibitory fraction, termed lyophilized brain hexane-extractable inhibitor (LBHI), was isolated from hexane extracts of lyophilized calf brain. The active substance was purified by a series of chromatographic steps. 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), 1 H coherence spectroscopy (COSY) NMR and fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectroscopy suggested that LBHI was N-arachidonic acid-2-hydroxyethylamide. Synthesis of this substance and subsequent high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and NMR analysis confirmed this structure. Synthetic LBHI (SLBHI) inhibited [ 3 H]DHP binding to rat cortex membranes with an IC 50 value of ⋍ 15 μM and a Hill coefficient of ⋍ 2. Saturation analysis in the presence of SLBHI showed a change in K D (equilibrium dissociation constant), but not maximal binding capacity (B max ). SLBHI produced an increased dissociation rate, which, along with the Hill slope of > 1, suggested a non-competitive interacton with the DHP binding site. The results suggest that arachidonic acid derivatives may be endogenous modifiers of the DHP calcium antagonist binding site.
Operators' attitudes toward sustainable tourism development concept in Ghana.

This paper examines the operators' attitudes towards sustainable tourism development concept in Ghana, using Butler's (1993) five constructs. The major finding is that Ghanaian tourism operators (private and public) have favorable attitudes toward sustainable tourism development concept. However, its implementation is constrained by a state of inertia such as cost and expertise. Therefore, a comprehensive training in development of tourism, human resources, and the marketing and promotion of the concept needs to be implemented by the government in order to bring about a better awareness and benefits of this concept.
Favorite sons of Illinois: The first and second Adlai E. Stevenson and their roles in American politics

Abstract Vice President Adlai E. Stevenson was the grandfather of Governor Adlai E. Stevenson II of Illinois. Both men experienced a rewarding but also disappointing career in American politics. They also served as transitional figures in the Democratic party. Although the two Stevensons shared certain traits in common, there were marked differences between the grandfather and the grandson. The first Stevenson founded a political dynasty and thrust his family onto the political stage while the second Stevenson left a legacy for his countrymen that exceeded that of most vanquished politicians.