cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Designing Labor Market Institutions in Emerging Market and Developing Economies: A Review of Evidence and IMF Policy Advice

This paper reviews the state of theory and evidence on the design of labor market institutions in emerging markets and developing economies. Compared with advanced economies, these economies tend to have larger market failures, which creates a strong case for government intervention. But they also face larger risks of policy failures due to informality and limited administrative capacity. We draw specific implications from this tension for the design unemployment insurance, job protection legislation, minimum wages and wage bargaining systems. We then use text mining techniques to identify and review a decade of IMF recommendations in these areas for 30 emerging market and developing economies.
Virtual Care Expansion in the Veterans Health Administration During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Clinical Services and Patient Characteristics Associated with Utilization.

Objectives To describe the shift from in-person to virtual care within Veterans Affairs (VA) during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify at-risk patient populations who require greater resources to overcome access barriers to virtual care. Materials and methods Outpatient encounters (N = 42 916 349) were categorized by care type (eg, primary, mental health, etc) and delivery method (eg, in-person, video). For 5 400 878 Veterans, we used generalized linear models to identify patient sociodemographic and clinical characteristics associated with: 1) use of virtual (phone or video) care versus no virtual care and 2) use of video care versus no video care between March 11, 2020 and June 6, 2020. Results By June, 58% of VA care was provided virtually compared to only 14% prior. Patients with lower income, higher disability, and more chronic conditions were more likely to receive virtual care during the pandemic. Yet, Veterans aged 45-64 and 65+ were less likely to use video care compared to those aged 18-44 (aRR 0.80 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.79, 0.82] and 0.50 [95% CI 0.48, 0.52], respectively). Rural and homeless Veterans were 12% and 11% less likely to use video care compared to urban (0.88 [95% CI 0.86, 0.90]) and nonhomeless Veterans (0.89 [95% CI 0.86, 0.92]). Discussion Veterans with high clinical or social need had higher likelihood of virtual service use early in the COVID-19 pandemic; however, older, homeless, and rural Veterans were less likely to have video visits, raising concerns for access barriers. Conclusions and relevance While virtual care may expand access, access barriers must be addressed to avoid exacerbating disparities.
Left ventricular systolic dysfunction identification using artificial intelligence-augmented electrocardiogram in cardiac intensive care unit patients.

Abstract Background An artificial intelligence-augmented electrocardiogram (AI-ECG) can identify left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD). We examined the accuracy of AI ECG for identification of LVSD (defined as LVEF ≤40% by transthoracic echocardiogram [TTE]) in cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) patients. Method We included unique Mayo Clinic CICU patients admitted from 2007 to 2018 who underwent AI-ECG and TTE within 7 days, at least one of which was during hospitalization. Discrimination of the AI-ECG for LVSD was determined using receiver-operator characteristic curve (AUC) values. Results We included 5680 patients with a mean age of 68 ± 15 years (37% females). Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) was present in 55%. LVSD was present in 34% of patients (mean LVEF 48 ± 16%). The AI-ECG had an AUC of 0.83 (95% confidence interval 0.82–0.84) for discrimination of LVSD. Using the optimal cut-off, the AI-ECG had 73%, specificity 78%, negative predictive value 85% and overall accuracy 76% for LVSD. AUC values were higher for patients aged Conclusions The AI-ECG algorithm had very good discrimination for LVSD in this critically-ill CICU cohort with a high prevalence of LVSD. Performance was better in younger male patients and those without ACS, highlighting those CICU patients in whom screening for LVSD using AI ECG may be more effective. The AI-ECG might potentially be useful for identification of LVSD in resource-limited settings when TTE is unavailable.
A global assessment of extreme wind speeds for wind energy applications

Cost-effective expansion of the wind energy industry benefits from robust estimates of wind resource and operating conditions. Extreme design loads contribute to wind turbine selection and cost, and are determined in part by the fifty year return period sustained wind speed (U50). Here we derive a global, homogenized and geospatially explicit digital atlas of U50 and associated confidence intervals based on ERA5 reanalysis output at wind turbine hub heights. U50 estimates derived using ERA5 output and four different methods are shown to lie within an average of 9–13% of those from point measurements. The reference wind speed (Uref) derived using five times the mean wind speed as specified in the wind turbine design standards is generally a conservative estimate of U50. Particularly after application of additional safety factors, this may result in over-engineering of wind turbines and excess capital expenditures. With the increasing growth in wind power installations, turbine deployment locations now include areas for which there is only limited data about wind speeds. Here, Pryor and Barthelmie present a global-scale investigation of extreme wind speeds, comparing different statistical approaches.
From writing tasks to a public service announcement: Experimentally assessing savoring as a means of increasing help-seeking for depression.

Abstract Rationale Prior studies that used positive emotion infusions (PEIs) to increase help-seeking for depression found initial support for the approach (Siegel & Thomson, 2016; Straszewski & Siegel, 2018, 2020). However, as people with depression experience negative biases that may be maximized when self-relevance is high (Clark et al., 1999), a potential way to maximize the effect of the PEI approach may be to reduce self-focus. Objective We used two preregistered studies (US; 2/19/19 to 9/25/19) to identify the strongest version of a savoring writing task for the current context (Study 1) and test it in the form of a savoring-public service announcement (Study 2; S-PSA). Methods Study 1 (N = 1308) compared five savoring writing tasks that varied in self-focus to a control writing task: vicarious, self-distanced, relational, combination, and personal savoring. Study 2 (N = 1238) compared a relational S-PSA to a comparison PSA and a basic control video on help-seeking attitudes, intentions, and behavior. Results In Study 1, relational savoring was associated with greater help-seeking intentions than the combination savoring condition among all participants and greater help-seeking intentions than the control among participants who self-reported paying full attention during the study. In Study 2, the S-PSA did not perform better than the comparison PSA or basic control video on the outcome measures. Conclusions The present research highlights three important takeaways. 1) Researchers should continue to explore relational savoring as an approach to increase help-seeking for depression. 2) Similar to findings of prior depression help-seeking studies, crowdsourcing platforms may be useful for testing informational videos but less appropriate for testing videos that require deep levels of thinking for people experiencing heightened depressive symptomatology. 3) From a theoretical and methodological standpoint, these studies underscore the value of conceptual replications using multiple methods.
Trends in Medicare Physician Reimbursement and Utilization for Proximal Humerus Fixation and Shoulder Arthroplasty

Abstract Background Fixation and arthroplasty remain the mainstays of surgical treatment of degenerative and traumatic shoulder pathology. They also constitute an appreciable sum of Medicare expenditure. With continued concern for declines in Medicare reimbursement across orthopedic surgery, it is important to understand how trends in reimbursement correlate with relative procedure volumes. Our aims were to describe temporal changes in procedure volumes, physician payment, and patient charges for proximal humerus open reduction internal fixation (ORIF) and shoulder arthroplasty. Methods Using Medicare's Physician Fee Schedules from 2012 to 2017, we examined procedure volumes, number of unique surgeons performing, actual submitted patient charges, and surgeon payments from 2012 to 2017 for six shoulder procedures: proximal humerus ORIF (CPT-23615), traumatic hemiarthroplasty (HEMI) (CPT-23616), degenerative HEMI (CPT-23470), primary total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) (CPT-23472), partial TSA revision (humeral or glenoid component, CPT-23473), and total TSA revision (CPT-23474). The reimbursement ratio was calculated by dividing surgeon payment by patient charges. Growth rates of charges and payment were adjusted for inflation using annual consumer price index inflation rates over the same time period. Results The total number of traumatic and degenerative HEMI cases fell over −60%. Similarly, the number of unique surgeons performing traumatic and degenerative HEMI fell over −53%. In contrast, the number of TSA procedures rose by +70%, whereas partial and total revision TSA rose by +62% and +88%, respectively. The number of unique surgeons rose +28% and over +73% for primary and revision TSA, respectively. There was a large gap (between 3.4 and 4.4 times) between submitted charges and surgeon payment for all years analyzed. After adjusting for inflation, Medicare payment to surgeons decreased for all types of surgery (−6% to −9%) other than ORIF, which increased +10%. Submitted patient charges during this period increased +14% and +9.7% for ORIF and revision TSA (total), respectively, but decreased by −6% for traumatic HEMI. The reimbursement ratio was ≤29% for all procedures analyzed across all years and fell the most for revision TSA (partial and total). Conclusion From 2012 to 2017, there was a sharp decline in the use of shoulder HEMI with a correspondingly high increase in TSA. After accounting for inflation, HEMI and TSA showed appreciable declines in surgeon payment over time, whereas ORIF was the only surgery with increased surgeon payment. Revision TSA saw the largest declines in the reimbursement rate. Physicians and health care policy makers must be aware of these trends to ensure both a sustainable payment infrastructure for surgeons as well as to maintain access to care for these procedures. Level of evidence Level III; Economic Study
A differential evolution based axle detector for robust vehicle classification

Video based vehicle classification is gaining huge grounds due to its low cost and satisfactory accuracy. This paper presents a robust vehicle classification system. The system in its essence, aims to classify a vehicle based on the number of circles (axles) in an image using Hough Transform which is a popular parameter based feature detection method. The system consists of four modules whereby the output of one module feeds the next in line. We test our system on single lane highway and street traffic. When the information about the problem at hand (changing weather conditions, camera calibration parameters etc.) is limited or is dynamic, determining the Hough Transform set-up parameters manually becomes time consuming, challenging, and may often lead to false detections. This calls for finding the appropriate parameter-set dynamically according to the situation, which inherently is a global optimization problem. Differential Evolution has emerged as a simple and efficient global optimizer, and we couple it with Hough Transform to improve the overall accuracy of the classification system. We test five different variants of DE on varied videos, and provide a performance profile of all the variants. Our results demonstrate that employing DE indeed improves the system's classification accuracy (at the expense of extra compute cycles) making the system more reliable and robust.
Toward a strategic sanitation approach : improving the sustainability of urban sanitation in developing countries

During the past several decades, effective strategies have been developed for delivering affordable sanitation services to people living in urban areas in developing countries. The unhealthy conditions of those lacking sanitation cannot be ignored because sanitation-related diseases and polluted water sources often have devastating social, economic, and environmental effects on all urban residents. Successful approaches include (i) paying attention to the preferences of users and providing users with the services that they want and for which they are willing to pay; (ii) unbundling sanitation services into discrete parts (such as household services and trunk services) and providing these components in the sequence that the users prefer; and (iii) involving the creative use of both non-formal institutions and formal institutions in co-producing services, with each institution providing that part of the service for which it has a comparative advantage.
The Importance of Selection Factors: Evaluating the Impact of Employment on Family Well-Being in Families Transitioning from Welfare to Work

Longitudinal ethnographic data of 49 families in the San Antonio site of the Three City Study illustrate the ways in which families that remain on welfare differ in important ways from families in which the mother is employed. Families that remain on welfare experience substantial health and emotional problems; have limited access to informal supports; and are headed by mothers with little education or prior work experience. These ethnographic findings have important implications for survey-based studies in which the selection problems can easily affect results when families on welfare are compared to wage-reliant families.
Relationship of Ordinal Position and Sex to Neuroticism in Adults

This study focused on the relationship between birth order, sex, and levels of adjustment of 120 male and 233 female adult college students (primarily graduate students). Subjects were approached i...
Synthesis and Migratory-Insertion Reactivity of CpMo(CO)3(CH3): Small-Scale Organometallic Preparations Utilizing Modern Glovebox Techniques

Experiments are described for the reliable small-scale glovebox preparation of CpMo(CO)3(CH3) and acetyl derivatives thereof through phosphine-induced migratory insertion. The robust syntheses introduce students to a variety of organometallic reaction mechanisms and glovebox techniques, and they are easily carried out during three laboratory meetings. Furthermore, the series of complexes offers several interesting case studies for symmetry analysis of IR and NMR spectra.
Short course single agent therapy with an LFA-3-IgG1 fusion protein prolongs primate cardiac allograft survival.

The interaction of T cell costimulatory molecules with their ligands is required for optimal T cell activation. Interference with such interactions can induce antigen unresponsiveness and delay xeno- and allograft rejection. We have previously shown that LFA3TIP, a soluble human lymphocyte function-associated antigen (LFA)-3 construct, binds CD2 and inhibits responses of human T cells in vitro. This study reports the first use of a human fusion protein, LFA3TIP, to significantly prolong primate cardiac allograft survival. Based on our observations that LFA3TIP inhibits baboon allogeneic mixed lymphocyte reactions, we gave baboon recipients of heterotopic cardiac allografts injections of LFA3TIP, 3 mg/kg i.v., for 12 consecutive days, starting 2 days before transplantation. This regimen delayed graft rejection from an average of 10.6 +/- 2.3 days for human IgG-treated controls (n = 5) to an average of 18.0 +/- 5.3 days for LFA3TIP-injected animals (n = 7; P < or = 0.01). Grafts from LFA3TIP-treated animals showed markedly diminished coronary endothelialitis as compared with control animals. LFA3TIP reached peak serum levels of approximately 100 micrograms/ml after 7-9 injections and persisted in the 10-micrograms/ml range for 1 to 2 weeks after the final injection. Despite these blood levels, circulating antibodies to LFA3TIP were not detected in the serum. No renal or hepatic toxicity was noted. The possible mechanism by which LFA3TIP acts to inhibit graft rejection is discussed; success in prolonging graft survival when LFA3TIP is used as a single-agent therapy suggests great potential for this novel therapeutic agent.
Latent Class Analysis of the Effects of Age, Gender, and Alcohol Consumption on Driver-Injury Severities

This study explores the differences in driver-injury severity between drivers impaired and not-alcohol-impaired, while taking into consideration the role of age and gender. Using data from single-vehicle crashes from Illinois' Cook County over an eight-year period from January 1, 2004 to December 31, 2011, separate alcohol-impaired and not-alcohol-impaired models of driver-injury severity (with possible outcomes of no injury, minor injury, and severe injury) were estimated for younger male, older male, younger female, and older female drivers (those younger than 31 years old were considered younger drivers, and those 31 years old and older were considered older drivers). In addition to considering driver age, alcohol condition, and gender, a wide range of variables potentially affecting crash severity was considered, including a number of variables relating to highway attributes, vehicle characteristics, and environmental conditions. Using a latent class multinomial logit modeling approach to capture unobserved heterogeneity, estimation results show that there were substantial differences across age/gender groups in the absence/presence of alcohol. In addition, among others, particularly complex relationships were uncovered with regard to the impact of alcohol consumption, safety-belt effectiveness, roadway type, distracted driving, vehicle occupancy, and the effects of airbag deployment on injury severity.
Cycles in nonlinear age-structured models I. Renewal equations

A variety of density-dependent population models can be described by nonlinear renewal equations. This paper develops analytical tools for such models to study the sustained population cycles which arise by bifurcation. The results obtained describe explicitly the direction of bifurcation, and the period, form, and dynamic stability of sustained cycles. The results are illustrated by application to a cohort-controlled model of human populations which has been proposed as a formalization of the Easterlin effect.
SEQUENCE OF THE MET-10+ LOCUS OF NEUROSPORA CRASSA : HOMOLOGY TO A SEQUENCE OF UNKNOWN FUNCTION IN SACCHAROMYCES CEREVISIAE CHROMOSOME 8

We have determined the sequence of the Neurospora crassa met-10+ gene and its flanking regions, and have isolated and analyzed cDNA clones for this region. We have identified two closely linked genes transcribed in the same orientation. The met-10+ gene is the downstream gene; an open reading frame (ORF) derived from five exons encodes a 475-amino-acid protein. The deduced protein lacks similarity to other characterized proteins. However, it exhibits a strong similarity to the product of an ORF of unknown function on Saccharomyces cerevisiae chromosome 8. This sequence similarity suggests functional equivalence and should facilitate identification of the function of met-10+ using gene disruptions in S. cerevisiae.
A coccidian infection of the kidney of the native littleneck clam, Protothaca staminea

Abstract During the summer of 1980, numerous exposed native littleneck clams ( Protothaca staminea ) were observed in Sequim Bay, Washington. The kidneys of these clams were found to be parasitized by a coccidian. Heavily parasitized kidney was characterized by massive epithelial destruction and an intense inflammatory response. In addition, large numbers of “brown cells” were present throughout the tissues of infected clams. Infected kidneys harbored several stages of the life history of the parasite. The present coccidian differs markedly in several respects from other coccidians in bivalves. First, the entire life history apparently occurs in the kidney of the clam, in contrast to the presumed involvement of an alternative host in other known coccidian parasites of bivalves. Second, a thick-walled spore is produced in addition to a thin-walled oocyst. The apparent presence of two types of dissemination stages is unknown in the Coccidia. Finally, the sporocysts are tetrazoic as opposed to dizoic or multiple sporocysts in previously described species. This parasite, therefore, appears to represent an undescribed genus and species of Coccidia.
Temporal Analysis of Hepatocyte Differentiation by Small Hepatocyte-Like Progenitor Cells during Liver Regeneration in Retrorsine-Exposed Rats

Liver regeneration after two-thirds surgical partial hepatectomy (PH) in rats treated with the pyrrolizidine alkaloid retrorsine is accomplished through the activation, expansion, and differentiation of a population of small hepatocyte-like progenitor cells (SHPCs). We have examined expression of the major liver-enriched transcription factors, cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, and other markers of hepatocytic differentiation in SHPCs during the protracted period of liver regeneration after PH in retrorsine-exposed rats. Early-appearing SHPCs (at 3–7 days after PH) express mRNAs for all of the major liver-enriched transcription factors at varying levels compared to fully differentiated hepatocytes. In addition, SHPCs lack (or have significantly reduced) expression of mRNA for hepatocyte markers tyrosine aminotransferase and α-1 antitrypsin, but their expression levels of mRNA and/or protein for WT1 and α-fetoprotein (AFP) are increased. With the exception of AFP expression, SHPCs resembled fully differentiated hepatocytes by 14 days after PH. Expression of AFP was maintained by most SHPCs through 14 days after PH, gradually declined through 23 days after PH, and was essentially absent from SHPC progeny by 30 days after PH. Furthermore, early appearing SHPCs lack (or have reduced expression) of hepatic CYP proteins known to be induced in rat livers after retrorsine exposure. The resistance of SHPCs to the mitoinhibitory effects of retrorsine may be directly related to a lack of CYP enzymes required to metabolize retrorsine to its toxic derivatives. These results suggest that SHPCs represent a unique parenchymal (less differentiated) progenitor cell population of adult rodent liver that is phenotypically distinct from fully differentiated hepatocytes, biliary epithelial cells, and (ductular) oval cells.
Breathing with your belly: abdominal exhalation, loco-ventilatory integration and size constraints on locomotion in small mammals.

Abstract In mammals, diaphragmatic contractions control inhalation while contraction of some thoracic hypaxial muscles and the transversus abdominis muscle contribute to exhalation. Additional thoracic hypaxial muscles are recruited as accessory ventilatory muscles to improve inhalation and exhalation during locomotion. However, the contribution of abdominal hypaxial muscles to resting and locomotor ventilation is little understood in mammals and loco-ventilatory integration has not been studied in small basal mammals. We show for the first time that all of the abdominal hypaxial muscles actively contribute to both resting and locomotory ventilation in mammals but in a size-dependent manner. In large opossums ( Didelphis ), hypaxial muscles exhibit uniform mild tonus during resting ventilation (pressurizing the gut to aid in exhalation) and shift to phasic bursts of activity during each exhalation during locomotion. Smaller opossums ( Monodelphis ) actively exhale by firing the abdominal hypaxial muscles at ∼10 Hz at both rest and at preferred locomotor speeds. Furthermore, the large opossums entrained ventilation to limb cycling as speed increased while the small opossums entrained limb cycling to the resting ventilation rate during locomotion. Differences in these species are related to size effects on the natural frequency of the ventilatory system and increasing resting ventilation rates at small size. Large mammals, with lower resting ventilation rates, can increase ventilatory rates during locomotion, while the high resting ventilation rates of small mammals limits their ability to increase ventilation rates during locomotion. We propose that increase in mammalian body size during the Cenozoic may have been an adaptation or exaptation to overcome size effects on ventilation frequency.
Diasporas in Modern Societies: Myths of Homeland and Return

In most scholarly discussions of ethnic communities, immigrants, and aliens, and in most treatments of relationships between minorities and majorities, little if any attention has been devoted to d...
Radiographic studies of reef coral exoskeletons: Rates and patterns of coral growth

Abstract X-radiographs were made of vertical slices through the centers of 47 hermatypic coral colonies collected at Eniwetok Atoll, Marshall Islands. The image thus obtained are useful for the study of colony geometry, development, and response to damage. Comparison of radioactive inclusions of known age with previously reported cyclic skeletal density variations normal to the axis of growth confirms the annual nature of the density banding. Growth rates based on density bands and radioactivity inclusions are calculated for all 47 specimens, and measurements of the individual ‘growth bands’ are presented for 25 of them. Bulk densities measured by X-ray transmission ranged from 1.0 to 2.2 g/cm 3 , with an average range of 1.3–1.6 g/cm 3 . Intra-specimen skeletal densities typically vary by 10–30%; the period of high density skeletal deposition appears to coincide with the season of higher rainfall and warmer surface water at Eniwetok. Pigment residues left by boring algae are more commonly found in low density portions of the skeletons, but this distribution is believed to result from rather than cause the variations in the density of the deposited aragonite. Linear growth rates for the same specimen vary by factors of two or more from year to year, but the 25 specimens studied did not show a common pattern in the linear growth rate. Other than showing some general trends in growth as a function of species and depth, linear growth rates do not appear to be a particularly informative parameter. The density and growth rate variations are important factors in the measurement of coral growth and metabolism, and to the study of environmental controls of coral growth.
Discontinuous Galerkin finite element simulations with polyhedral elements

The discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method was used to develop a frequency domain finite element method solver for electromagnetic simulations that supports arbitrary polyhedral mesh elements. Since the DG method allows an arbitrary basis within each mesh element, this method also supports arbitrary polynomial order basis. An attractive feature of this solver is its ability to model thin layers without using tetrahedra with a poor aspect ratio, as well as its ability to model FSS layers (e.g. hexagonal grids) with a minimal number of mesh elements.
The development of spectrophotometry: fortuitous inventions for steroid biochemistry

Several spectrophotometric instru- ments were important tools in the advance of steroid biochemistry ~. The original instruments were developed to meet the growing demands in industry and academia for more precise analyti- cal tools. The urgencies of World War II provided an extra and special stim- ulus. The introduction of these instru- ments not only met the needs of the time but also accelerated research with explorations in greater depth and breadth and into new areas. This report will describe the development of these instruments and their impact on my program in steroid biochemistry.
A neutron diffraction and modeling study of uniaxial deformation in polycrystalline beryllium

The deformation of polycrystalline beryllium to strains of ±0.8 pct in uniaxial tension and compression was studied by neutron diffraction and modeled using an elasto-plastic self-consistent (EPSC) model. The beryllium response is asymmetric with respect to tension and compression in both the macroscopic behavior, as displayed in the stress/strain curve, and the microscopic lattice response. The EPSC model qualitatively reproduces the lattice strain curves in tension and compression with the assumption of pyramidal slip being active, in addition to prism and basal slip and with the inclusion of thermal residual stresses developed during processing. Although it underpredicts the magnitude of the observed strains, it demonstrates that accounting for residual stresses of thermal origin is crucial for understanding the evolution of lattice strains during uniaxial loading.
Operon controlling motility and chemotaxis in E. coli

THERE has been extensive study of the genetic basis for flagellar formation1,2, motility3 and chemotaxis4,5 in Escherichia coli. But in order to understand the specific mechanisms involved in these processes it is necessary to identify the gene products. We recently showed how E. coli–λ hybrids could be used to identify flagella-related proteins6 and we have subsequently isolated two phages that carry the genes directly involved in flagellar functions. One phage (Fig. 1a,λ fla2) carries flal7 which regulates the synthesis of flagellar proteins and mot, which is necessary for flagellar rotation, λfla2 also seems to carry part of the cheA gene8, which is concerned with regulating flagellar rotation in response to chemotactic signals. It is thought to carry only part of the cheA gene because the phage does not show genetic complementation when it is introduced into cheA mutant strains. It does, however, produce wild-type recombinants with one cheA mutant (e14t1) but not with another (e14q1) (Fig. 1b). Furthermore, the hybrid-λ, phage that carries the adjacent segment of DNA (Fig. 1a, λfla3) also does not show complementation when it is introduced into cheA mutant strains. It gives wild-type recombinants with the cheA mutant e14ql but not with the strain that carries the allele e14tl (Fig. 1b). On the basis of these observations we concluded that the endonuclease (EcoRI) which was used to generate the DNA fragments that were cloned cleaved the cheA gene, and that λfla2 carries the promoter proximal part of the gene8 while λfla3 carries the distal part of the gene (Fig. 1a).
New studies on calcium oxalate monohydrate: A guide to the interpretation of thermogravimetric measurements

Abstract The pyrolysis of calcium oxalate monohydrate in air occupies a unique place in the literature of thermogravimetry. Not only was a thermogram for this reaction the first pyrolysis curve published by Duval and his collaborators, but Duval and others have suggested that it can be used as a reference substance for judging the performance of a thermobalance. However, the pyrolysis of calcium oxalate monohydrate under a variety of conditions gives rise to considerable differences in its thermograms. The effects of sample size, heating rate, atmosphere and container geometry are presented in a series of paired thermograms, and the differences are accounted for with the aid of additional evidence from differential thermal analysis and from combustion train experiments. Variations in atmosphere are particularly important, and the atmospheres studied are dry nitrogen, humidified nitrogen, dry air, humidified air, dry oxygen, dry carbon dioxide and dry carbon monoxide. Even subtle variations in the shape of a thermogram obtained on a reliable balance may reflect the complexity of the reactions that produce the more noticeable over-all weight changes. Results presented in this report thus delineate conditions for the use of calcium oxalate monohydrate as a thermogravimetric reference substance, and show that its behaviour under controlled conditions in a thermobalance can provide an unusually versatile guide to the interpretation of thermogravimetric measurements.
Effects of Drug Solubility, Drug Loading, and Polymer Molecular Weight on Drug Release from Polyox® Tablets

This study investigated the effects of polymer molecular weight, drug solubility, addition of a water-soluble excipient, and drug loading on zero-order release kinetics and elucidated the release m...
A FAST POTENTIAL AND SELF-GRAVITY SOLVER FOR NONAXISYMMETRIC DISKS

Disk self-gravity could play an important role in the dynamic evolution of interaction between disks and embedded protoplanets. We have developed a fast and accurate solver to calculate the disk potential and disk self-gravity forces for disk systems on a uniform polar grid. Our method closely follows the method given by Chan et al., in which a fast Fourier transform in the azimuthal direction is performed and a direct integral approach in the frequency domain in the radial direction is implemented on a uniform polar grid. This method can be very effective for disks with vertical structures that depend only on the disk radius, achieving the same computational efficiency as for zero-thickness disks. We describe how to parallelize the solver efficiently on distributed parallel computers. We propose a mode-cutoff procedure to reduce the parallel communication cost and achieve nearly linear scalability for a large number of processors. For comparison, we have also developed a particle-based fast tree code to calculate the self-gravity of the disk system with a vertical structure. The numerical results show that our direct integral method is at least two orders of magnitude faster than our optimized tree-code approach.
Burn injury decreased splanchnic PGI2 release is restored by treatment with lazaroid

This study examined the hypothesis that burn injury inhibits the release of splanchnic PGI2, a potent endogenous vasodilator of the splanchnic vascular bed. Male Hartley Guinea Pigs (350 grams) were anesthetized, shaved and subjected to a full thickness scald burn comprising 45% of the total body surface area (or sham burn). The animals were treated with intravenous or topical lazaroid, a 21-aminosteroid U75412E. After recovery for 24 hours, the animals were anesthetized, and the superior mesenteric artery was cannulated and removed with its intact intestine (SV+SI). The SV+SI was perfused in vitro with oxygenated Krebs buffer. The venous effluent was assayed for 6-keto-PGF1α, PGE2 and thromboxane B2 by enzyme immunoassay. Acute burn injury decreased SV+SI release of 6-keto-PGF1α by 57% but did not alter release of PGE2 or thromboxane B2. Treatment of the animals with topical lazaroid and not intravenous lazaroid restored SV+SI 6-keto-PGF1α release to control levels. These data showed that topical lazaroid therapy maintained endogenous splanchnic PGI2 release following acute burn injury. Maintaining endogenous splanchnic PGI2 release by topical lazaroid treatment may be one strategy to avoid splanchnic ischemia following acute thermal injury.
Harris functional and related methods for calculating total energies in density-functional theory

The simplified energy functional of Harris has given results of useful accuracy for systems well outside the limits of weakly interacting fragments for which the method was originally proposed. In the present study, we discuss the source of the frequent good agreement of the Harris energy with full Kohn-Sham self-consistent results. A procedure is described for extending the applicability of the scheme to more strongly interacting systems by going beyond the frozen-atom fragment approximation. A gradient-force expression is derived, based on the Harris functional, which accounts for errors in the fragment charge representation. Results are presented for some diatomic molecules, illustrating the points of this study.
In Vivo Effects of Femtosecond Laser–Assisted Keratoplasty

OBSERVATIONS Two patients underwent penetrating keratoplasty 3 months after inadequate visual rehabilitation following femtosecond laser–assisted sutureless anterior lamellar keratoplasty for the treatment of anterior stromal scars. In vivo confocal microscopy that was performed before penetrating keratoplasty demonstrated an acellular zone with a hyperintense signal consistent with a mild interface opacification. Light microscopy in one patient demonstrated scarring limited primarily to the posterior stroma; in the other patient, the interface was smooth with mild scarring of the anterior lamellae. When studied with electron microscopy, the cut surfaces revealed a smooth to very mild stuccolike appearance that was smoother than anticipated. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE After 3 months of in vivo healing, the lamellar interface produced by the femtosecond laser, as imaged by electron microscopy, appeared to be nearly smooth with minimal roughness to the cut surfaces. We attribute this to the effects of in vivo healing and remodeling.
Rapid detection and differentiation of Erysipelothrix spp. by a novel multiplex real-time PCR assay

Aim: The aim of this study was to develop a multiplex real-time PCR assay for the identification and discrimination of Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, tonsillarum and Erysipelothrix sp. strain 2 for direct detection of Erysipelothrix spp. from animal specimens. Methods and Results: A primer set and three species-specific probes with different end labelling were designed from the noncoding region downstream of the 5S rRNA coding region. The sensitivity, specificity and repeatability of the assay were validated by analysing 27 Erysipelothrix spp. reference serotype strains and ten septicemia-associated non-Erysipelothrix spp. bacterial isolates. Cross-reactivity with Erysipelothrix sp. strain 1 was not observed with any of the primer probe combinations. The detection limit was determined to be <10 colony forming units and as low as one genome equivalent per PCR . Further evaluation of the Erysipelothrix spp. multiplex PCR was performed by comparing an enrichment isolation culture method and a conventional differential PCR on 15 samples from pigs experimentally inoculated with Erysipelothrix spp. and 22 samples from pigs with suspected natural infection. Conclusion: The multiplex real-time PCR assay was found to be simple, rapid, reliable, specific and highly sensitive. Significance and Impact of the Study: The developed real-time multiplex PCR assay does not require cumbersome and lengthy cultivation steps prior to DNA extraction, obtained comparable results to enrichment isolation, and will be useful in diagnostic laboratories for rapid detection of Erysipelothrix spp.
Don't You See How Blessed I Am: Letisha's Story

(1999). Don't You See How Blessed I Am: Letisha's Story. Chaplaincy Today: Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 60-61.
A theoretical study of an expanding monomer and an oxirane Part 2: Oxirane and copolymer reactions

Abstract Quantum mechanical calculations were performed on copolymerization reactions for 1,5,7,11-tetraoxaspiro[5.5]undecane (TOSU) and bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (BADGE) to predict products formed. Proton affinities were compared to determine which monomer would most likely become activated. Semiempirical results for a new mechanism that forms 1,3-dioxan-2-one (cyclic carbonate) had preferred energetics to the presumed propagation of TOSU indicating it should be competitive. This was further supported by RHF and DFT calculations. The subsequent reincorporation of this by-product had comparable energetics to further propagation by either monomer according to AM1 calculations. Hydrolysis of BADGE was modeled and the effect of this product as well as a BADGE monomer on crosslinking was also investigated to explain product insolubility following extended dark cure time.
Genetic Basis of Packed Erythrocyte Volume in Japanese Quail

Abstract Packed erythrocyte volume (PCV) of reciprocal cross progeny from quail lines selected for 15-day PCV under two nutritional environments (iron-copper “adequate” diet and iron-copper deficient “stress” diet), was closer to the sire line than the dam line under both environments. This would indicate a paternal effect rather than sex linkage. The exchange of environment of the S4 lines indicates that genetic improvement for PCV achieved by selection under an adequate Fe-Cu environment was fully retained when the quail were raised under the stress environment. However, the genetic progress achieved by selection under the Fe-Cu stress environment was only partially retained when the birds were raised under an adequate environment. These results suggest that short-term genetic progress for PCV in quail is best achieved by selection under the environment which allows the full expression of the character under selection.
Evidence of hypothyroidism in the genetically epilepsy-prone rat

Abstract A number of neurochemical and behavioral similarities exist between the genetically epilepsy-prone (GEPR) rat and rats made hypothyroid at birth. These similarities include lower brain monoamine levels, audiogenic seizure susceptibility and lowered electroconvulsive shock seizure threshold. Given these similarities, thyroid hormone status was examined in GEPR rats. Serum samples were collected from GEPR-9 and non-epileptic control rats at 5, 9,13,16, 22, 31, 45, 60, 90, 150 and 350 days of age. Serum thyroxine (T4) levels were significantly lower in GEPR-9 rats compared to control until day 22 of age. GEPR-9 thyrotropin (TSH) levels were significantly elevated during the period of diminished serum T4. GEPR-9 triiodothyronine (T3) levels were lower than control throughout the first year of life. The data indicate that the GEPR-9 rat is hypothyroid from at least the second week of life up to 1 year of age. The critical impact of neonatal hypothyroidism on brain function coupled with the development of the audiogenic seizure susceptible trait by the GEPR-9 rat during the third week after birth suggests that neonatal hypothyroidism could be one etiological factor in the development of the seizure-prone state of GEPR-9 rats.
Settlement, substratum preference, and survival of red king crab Paralithodes camtschaticus (Tilesius, 1815) glaucothoe on natural substrata in the laboratory

Abstract Preferences of red king crab (RKC) Paralithodes camtschaticus glaucothoes for a variety of live substrata were tested in the laboratory. Recently molted glaucothoes settled immediately on all substrata except a bare control tank. Preferred substrata (in decreasing order) were hydroids, algae, other (airstones, tank bottom), sand and worms, and did not change much until after molting to stage C1 at day 30. Survival to stage C1 was highest (93%) in the control tank, least (18%) on sand and intermediate (53–60%) on other substrata. Red king crab glaucothoes demonstrate similar preferences for structurally complex biological substrata in the laboratory as they do in the wild. Settlement on sand occurs only as a last resort and results in higher mortality. These results indicate the importance to settling larvae of biogenic oases that may be easily disturbed by hard-on-bottom fishing activities, and underscore the importance of conserving such habitats. Furthermore, knowledge of settlement, habitat selection and substratum preference are essential prior to considering the potential of king crabs for stock enhancement or aquaculture.
Efficient continuous-flow chemical bath deposition of CdS films as buffer layers for chalcogenide-based solar cells

The highest power conversion efficiencies in copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) solar cells are achieved when a cadmium sulfide (CdS) buffer layer is deposited on the CIGS absorber through chemical bath deposition (CBD). These CdS buffer layers are also used in emerging kesterite solar cells such as those based on copper zinc tin sulfide/selenide. Herein, we describe a novel continuous-flow chemical bath deposition (CF-CBD) system for efficient utilization of chemicals during CdS film deposition. CdS films are grown on 10-cm-diameter molybdenum-coated silicon wafers to demonstrate the potential of the method to achieve uniform thin CdS films.
Band Gap Closure and Metallization of Molecular Solid Hydrogen

We present electronic-structure calculations for molecular solid hydrogen with emphasis on the study of the metallization via band overlap. Both orientationally ordered and randomly oriented molecules in h.c.p. arrangements are considered. It is found that orientational order favors a smaller band gap and thus metallization. This result is consistent with the observed discontinuity in the vibron frequency if it is assumed that an order-disorder transition occurs simultaneously with metallization.
Nonverbal Communication in Man with a Cooperative Conditioning Task

Summary The cooperative conditioning method for investigation of nonverbal sending and receiving ability has proven to be a useful tool for probing nonverbal signaling in the monkey. The present experiment was developed to adapt cooperative conditioning principles to study nonverbal signaling in man. Ss were 10 (eight male and two female) junior medical students; each S served as both a “stimulus” and a “responder” to all other Ss. Ss' facial expressions were videotaped while they attempted to solve a task involving a “slot machine.” The tapes were then shown to responders who utilized only expressive cues of the stimulus S to solve the slot machine task. Data reveal that this method is sensitive to differences in nonverbal abilities of Ss. Physiological responses obtained during the stimulus and responder phases of the experiment indicated that the responses were related to both expressiveness and ability to decode the expressions of others.
In utero exposure to an AR antagonist plus an inhibitor of fetal testosterone synthesis induces cumulative effects on F1 male rats

Risk assessments are typically conducted on a chemical-by-chemical basis; however, many regulatory bodies are developing frameworks for assessing the cumulative risk of chemical mixtures of chemicals. The current investigation examined how chemicals that disrupt rat sex differentiation via two diverse mechanisms disrupt F1 male rat reproductive development, when administered together orally on days 14–18 of gestation. Experiment 1 used a mixture of 50 mg/kg-d procymidone and 500 mg/kg-d dibutyl phthalate (DBP), whereas experiment 2 used 150 mg/kg-d procymidone and 1125 mg/kg-d DBP (top dose), or 0, 4.17, 8.33, 16.7, 33.3, 50, 66.7, and 83.3% of the top dose. When we compared the dose and response addition predictions to the observed effects we found that dose addition models were more accurate than response addition models, indicating that compounds that act by different mechanisms of toxicity produce cumulative dose-additive effects.
Calcium oxalate crystal formation is not essential for growth of Medicago truncatula

Abstract Plants invest a considerable amount of resources and energy into the formation of calcium oxalate crystals. A number of roles for crystal formation in plant growth and development have been assigned based on the prevalence of crystals, their spatial distribution, and the variety of crystal shapes. As a step toward determining whether crystal formation plays a critical role in plant growth and development, we characterized the growth, oxalate content, and mineral content of the c alcium o xalate d efective mutant, cod5. Examination of control plants, using light microscopy, revealed the accumulation of prismatic crystals along the vascular strands in all the different plant tissues with the exception of roots, in which no crystals were observed. In contrast, no prismatic crystals were detected in any of the different tissues of the cod5 mutant. Crystals of calcium oxalate were observed in the pods of cod5, but they were of a different morphology. Measurements of the oxalate content in the different tissues confirmed the cod5 crystal phenotype by exhibiting low oxalate levels compared to those of controls. The cod5 pods did contain measurable oxalate levels, but at levels several times lower than controls. Although compromised in its ability to accumulate crystals of calcium oxalate, cod5 exhibited growth, which was similar to that of controls. Moreover, cod5 and controls contained similar amounts of calcium, sodium, and potassium. Our findings suggest that calcium oxalate crystal formation is not essential for plant growth or development in the case of Medicago truncatula.