cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Incidents of discrimination and risk for delinquency: A longitudinal test of strain theory with an African American sample

This article examines the relationship between racial discrimination and delinquency. Using longitudinal data collected on approximately 700 African American children, we begin by establishing an association between exposure to discrimination and delinquent behavior. Next, we use structural equation modeling to test various hypotheses regarding the emotional and cognitive factors that mediate this association. For boys, the association between discrimination and delinquency is mediated by feelings of anger and depression and by the belief that aggression is a necessary interpersonal tactic. The results are somewhat different for girls. Although anger and depression mediate part of the effect of discrimination on delinquency, discrimination continues to display a small but significant direct effect. The implications of these findings for criminological theory are discussed.
Assistance to expand agricultural production

Abstract Bilateral and multilateral development assistance agencies have devoted major resources to programs to support more rapid growth of agricultural production in developing countries. In this paper I review the effectiveness of assistance activities in land and water development, agricultural research and extension, the reform of land tenure arrangement, and the development of agricultural credit institutions. Investments in several of these activities, particularly land and water resource development and agricultural research, have had relatively high rate of return. Yet in almost all areas there has been a continuous cycling of program priorities and thrusts. There has been a persistent failure to learn from failure—or from success. In the future, more attention needs to be given to the generation of socialscience knowledge for the design and reform of the institutional infrastructure needed to sustain agricultural development.
Quantitative computerized analysis of diffuse lung disease in high-resolution computed tomography

An automated computerized scheme has been developed for the detection and characterization of diffuse lung diseases on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) images. Our database consisted of 315 HRCT images selected from 105 patients, which included normal and abnormal slices related to six different patterns, i.e., ground-glass opacities, reticular and linear opacities, nodular opacities, honeycombing, emphysematous change, and consolidation. The areas that included specific diffuse patterns in 315 HRCT images were marked by three radiologists independently on the CRT monitor in the same manner as they commonly describe in their radiologic reports. The areas with a specific pattern, which three radiologists marked independently and consistently as the same patterns, were used as "gold standard" for specific abnormal opacities in this study. The lungs were first segmented from the background in each slice by use of a morphological filter and a thresholding technique, and then divided into many contiguous regions of interest (ROIs) with a 32x32 matrix. Six physical measures which were determined in each ROI included the mean and the standard deviation of the CT value, air density components, nodular components, line components, and multilocular components. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) were employed for distinguishing between seven different patterns which included normals and six patterns associated with diffuse lung disease. The sensitivity of this computerized method for a detection of the six abnormal patterns in each ROI was 99.2% (122/123) for ground-glass opacities, 100% (15/15) for reticular and linear opacities, 88.0% (132/150) for nodular opacities, 100% (98/98) for honeycombing, 95.8% (369/385) for emphysematous change, and 100% (43/43) for consolidation. The specificity in detecting a normal ROI was 88.1% (940/1067). This computerized method may be useful in assisting radiologists in their assessment of diffuse lung disease in HRCT images.
The Writers' War Board: U.S. Domesitic Propaganda in World War II

(1997). The Writers' War Board: U.S. Domesitic Propaganda in World War II. The Historian: Vol. 59, No. 4, pp. 795-813.
Breakdown in high-speed edge dislocation motion

Abstract Recent work of Earmme and Weiner (1973, 1974) has shown that the regular dislocation motion in a one-dimensional atomistic crystal model breaks down when a critical dislocation velocity, termed the breakdown velocity, is reached and that this critical velocity is less than the speed of sound in the linear chain. In this paper, computer simulation results are presented for the motion of an edge dislocation in an idealized two-dimensional crystal model which indicate that breakdown occurs in this case also when the dislocation velocity approaches the speed of long longitudinal waves.
A single case propensity theory of explanation

Levi contends that these two desiderata cannot be simultaneously satisfied and that, as a result, the function of covering laws in Hempel's explication had better be envisioned as fulfilled by material rules of inference.2 The force of Levi's argument, of course, rests upon his contention that there is no acceptable interpretation of statistical probability which succeeds in converting statistical hypotheses into covering laws.3 Levi admits that he is unable to provide an impossibility theorem here but claims that "a review of the more obvious candidates ought, at a very minimum, to place the onus of proof very squarely on the shoulders of those who believe such statements can be constructed".4 The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that Levi's argument is not well-founded and that, contrary to his claim, the propensity interpretation succeeds in fulfilling this goal. Implications of adopting this analysis as the standard account of statistical probability are explored, including (a) the unified theory it provides of the character of lawfulness for both universal and statistical laws and (b) the criterion it supports for the adequacy of explanations invoking laws of either kind. From this point of view, the conclusion emerges that all explanations in empirical science are es sentially theoretical in character. i
Cross-Species Analysis of Kinesin-14s: Human HSET Functions in Fission Yeast to Regulate Spindle Bipolarity

The discovery of Kinesin-like proteins in 1990, five years after conventional Kinesin, has blossomed into the identification of hundreds of Klps that are classified into fourteen families and one orphan family. Not all Klp families are conserved between eukaryotes, however the Kinesin-14 Klps are ubiquitous and key regulators of bipolar spindle assembly and microtubule dynamics and organization. Kinesin-14 Klps associate with microtubules through ATP-dependent binding of their motor domains, but an additional ATP-independent microtubule binding site in the stalk domain is proposed to allow bundling of microtubules. Kinesin-14 members represent some of the most extensively studied Klps, however limited analysis has been done to examine conserved domains or mechanisms. Kinesin-14s share a domain structure in the stalk that consists of an N-terminal region followed by a region of coiled coil. They can vary drastically in size and share minimal sequence similarities. Features of a second microtubule-binding domain are unknown as well as regulatory elements. Most recently this lab has determined that Kinesin-14/γ-tubulin interactions at the γ-TuSC MTOC can regulate bipolarity. Other genetic and biochemical analysis indicates that Kinesin-14 interactions with other MTOC proteins also occur. We are using deletion analysis, site-directed mutagenesis and chimeric Kinesin-14 proteins with human HSET and Drosophila Ncd to relate structural and sequence domains in Kinesin-14s to their functional importance. Twenty-five Kinesin-14 constructs have been generated and are helping to define the minimal Kinesin-14 and to separate domains for bipolar spindle assembly versus later mitotic roles. Length requirements of the coiled-coil domain are also being examined as a critical component in models that emphasize microtubule cross-linking by Kinesin-14s. This work provides insights into Kinesin-14 functional needs and unique tools for assessing Kinesin-14 interactions with tubulin and non-tubulin proteins in conserved molecular mechanisms.
Selective attention dysfunctions in adult rats neonatally treated with 6-hydroxydopamine ☆

Adult rats treated intracisternally with 6-hydroxydopamine during the perinatal period were trained on a black-white discrimination. Alterations in cue shape and cue location failed to selectively distinguish differences in response patterns for the treated animals. However, when irrelevant stimuli were added to the discriminative array, the 6-hydroxydopamine group evidenced marked impairment of performance throughout the period of distraction.
Diamonds in stone meteorites

Abstract A search for diamonds in the chondrites Richardton, Forest City, Holbrook. Warrenton, Indarch, Cold Bokaveld and Cape Girardeau and in the Goalpara achondrite has been made. Diamonds were found in Goalpara only.
Decision support modeling for net-zero water buildings

Net-zero buildings emphasize balance between the consumption and production of resources, resulting in structures that are not only more efficient, but potentially restorative. While historically applied to energy use, the net-zero framework is also relevant to water management. Both the building energy and water sectors consist of demand loads that must be met by available sources. Variations in load design, source allocation, and human interaction result in numerous arrangements that require evaluation to meet efficiency goals. Decision support systems aimed at building energy are abundant, whereas building water tools are limited. The dynamic nature of the building water cycle necessitates flexible modeling tools that can predict and assess future water consumption and production trends at varying resolutions and under fluctuating conditions. This paper presents opportunities for simulation modeling to support net-zero water achievement and introduces an integrated building water management (IBWM) model for on-site water balance decision support.
Daily Mood Variability: Form of Diurnal Patterns and Determinants of Diurnal Patterns

Mood and affect are often assessed in psychological research without regard for the potential influence of time of day or other environmental factors. This study examined the determinants of daily mood variability. Ninety-four subjects completed a diary every 15 min for 1 day, and subjects' moods, activities, and locations were assessed. Diurnal cycles were found for several moods (e.g., happy, tired), activities (e.g., discourse, thinking), and locations (e.g., home, work). Diurnal cycles in most moods were strongly associated with activities and location, yet diurnal cycles of some moods (rushed, sad, and tired) were not dependent on these factors. These findings have implications for mood assessment: Mood assessment performed only at particular times of day, or those relying on point assessment, may be influenced by time of day and by the activities and location of the subject.
Development of a sleeve gastrectomy risk calculator

Abstract Background Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) is rapidly gaining popularity. Estimating the risk of postoperative adverse events can improve surgical decision-making and informed patient consent. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a risk prediction model for early postoperative morbidity and mortality after LSG. Methods Cases of primary LSG in the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) data set at year 2012 (n = 5871) and 2011 (n = 3130) were identified to develop and examine the validity of model. The composite primary outcome was defined as presence of any of 14 serious adverse events within the 30-days after LSG. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed and a risk calculator was created to predict the primary outcome. Results Thirty-day postoperative mortality and composite adverse events rates of 5871 LSG cases were .05% and 2.4%, respectively. Of the 52 examined baseline variables, the final model contained history of congestive heart failure (odds ratio [OR] 6.23; 95% CI 1.25–31.07), chronic steroid use (OR 5.00; 95% CI 2.06–12.15), male sex (OR 1.68; 95% CI 1.03–2.72), diabetes (OR 1.62; 95% CI 1.07–2.48), preoperative serum total bilirubin level (OR 1.57; 95% CI 1.11–2.22), body mass index (OR 1.03; 95% CI 1.01–1.05), and preoperative hematocrit level (OR .95; 95% CI .89–1.00). The risk model was then validated with the 2011 data set and was used to create an online risk calculator with a relatively good accuracy (c-statistic .682). Conclusions This risk assessment scoring system, which specifically estimates serious adverse events after LSG, can contribute to surgical decision-making, informed patient consent, and prediction of surgical risk for patients and referring physicians.
Layered peer-to-peer streaming

In this paper, we propose a peer-to-peer streaming solution to address the on-demand media distribution problem. We identify two issues, namely the asynchrony of user requests and heterogeneity of peer network bandwidth. Our key techniques to address these two issues are cache-and-relay and layer-encoded streaming. A unique challenge of layered peer-to-peer streaming is that the bandwidth and data availability (number of layers received) of each receiving peer are constrained and heterogeneous, which further limits the bandwidth and data availability of its downstream node when it acts as the supplying peer. This challenge distinguishes our work from existing studies on layered multicast. Our experiments show that our solution is efficient at utilizing bandwidth resource of supplying peers, scalable at saving server bandwidth consumption, and optimal at maximizing streaming qualities of all peers.
An Efficient Routing Approach over Mobile Wireless Ad-Hoc Sensor Networks

In this paper, we efficiently adapt the prominent Ad Hoc On-Demand Distance Vector (AODV) routing protocol with a reactive Local Link Repair, AODV-LR, for effective deployment in restricted power-budget and bandwidth mobile ad hoc sensor networks (MASNET). We introduce a better replacement mechanism to the local repair phase of the AODV. Our new approach is a preemptive, self-repairing AODV (called AODV-PSR) scheme that is able to find an alternative link to a failing link. The new preemptive protocol achieves better performance than the ADOV-LR, due to its avoidance of packet buffering delay and excess use of control messages during link repair. Experimental results show a much lower obtained packet delay, a higher packet delivery ratio, and lower control message overhead. Hence, our mechanism is amenable to deployment in areas of restricted power-budget and bandwidth, such as a MASNET domain.
A new genus and three new species of decapodiform cephalopods (Mollusca: Cephalopoda)

We describe here two new species of oegopsid squids. The first is an Asperoteuthis (Chiroteuthidae), and it is based on 18 specimens. This new species has sucker dentition and a funnel–mantle locking apparatus that are unique within the genus. The second new species is a Promachoteuthis (Promachoteuthidae), and is based on a unique specimen. This new species has tentacle ornamentation which is unique within the genus. We also describe a new genus and a new species of sepioid squid in the subfamily Heteroteuthinae (Sepiolidae) and it is based on four specimens. This new genus and species exhibits unique modifications of the arms in males.
Arthroscopic Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction A Metaanalysis Comparing Patellar Tendon and Hamstring Tendon Autografts

BackgroundThe best choice of graft tissue for use in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction has been the subject of debate. Hypothesis: Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with patellar tendon autograft leads to greater knee stability than reconstruction with hamstring tendon autograft.Study DesignMetaanalysis.MethodsA Medline search identified articles published from January 1966 to May 2000 describing arthroscopic anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with either patellar tendon or hamstring tendon autograft and with a minimum patient follow-up of 24 months.ResultsThere were 1348 patients in the patellar tendon group (21 studies) and 628 patients in the hamstring tendon group (13 studies). The rate of graft failure in the patellar tendon group was significantly lower (1.9% versus 4.9%) and a significantly higher proportion of patients in the patellar tendon group had a side-to-side difference of less than 3 mm on KT-1000 arthrometer testing than in the hamstring tendon group (79% versus 73....
The amplitude and time course of the myoplasmic free [Ca2+] transient in fast-twitch fibers of mouse muscle.

Bundles of 10-100 fibers were dissected from the extensor digitorum longus muscle of mouse, mounted in an apparatus for optical recording, and stretched to long sarcomere length (> or = 3.6 microns). One fiber within the bundle was microinjected with furaptra, a fluorescent indicator that responds rapidly to changes in myoplasmic free [Ca2+] (delta [Ca2+]). Twitches and brief tetani were initiated by external stimulation. At myoplasmic furaptra concentrations of approximately 0.1 mM, the indicator9s fluorescence signal during fiber activity (delta F/F) was well resolved. delta F/F was converted to delta [Ca2+] under the assumption that furaptra9s myoplasmic dissociation constant for Ca2+ is 98 microM at 16 degrees C and 109 microM at 28 degrees C. At 16 degrees C, the peak amplitude of delta [Ca2+] during a twitch was 17.8 +/- 0.4 microM (+/-SEM; n = 8) and the half-width of delta [Ca2+] was 4.6 +/- 0.3 ms. At 28 degrees C, the peak and half-width values were 22.1 +/- 1.8 microM and 2.0 +/- 0.1 ms, respectively (n = 4). During a brief high-frequency tetanus, individual peaks of delta [Ca2+] were also well resolved and reached approximately the same amplitude that resulted from a single shock; the initial decays of delta [Ca2+] from peak slowed substantially during the tetanus. For a single twitch at 16 degrees C, the amplitude of delta [Ca2+] in fast-twitch fibers of mouse is not significantly different from that recently measured in fast-twitch fibers of frog (16.5 +/- 0.9 microM; Zhao, M., S. Hollingworth, and S.M. Baylor. 1996. Biophys. J. 70:896-916); in contrast, the half-width of delta [Ca2+] is surprisingly brief in mouse fibers, only about half that measured in frog (9.6 +/- 0.6 ms). The estimated peak rate at which Ca2+ is released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum in response to an action potential is also similar in mouse and frog, 140-150 microM/ms (16 degrees C).
Top-down fabricated polysilicon nanoribbon biosensor chips for cancer diagnosis

Nanobiosensors have drawn significant research interest in recent years owing to the advantages of label-free, electrical detection. However, nanobiosensors fabricated by bottom-up process are limited in terms of yield and device uniformity due to the challenges in assembly. Nanobiosensors fabricated by top-down process, on the other hand, exhibit better uniformity but require time and costly processes and materials to achieve the critical dimensions required for high sensitivity. In this report, we introduce a top-down nanobiosensor based on polysilicon nanoribbon. The polysilicon nanoribbon devices can be fabricated by conventional photolithography with only materials and equipments used in the standard CMOS process, thus resulting in great time and cost efficiency, as well as scalability. The devices show great response to pH changes with a wide dynamic range and high sensitivity. Biomarker detection is also demonstrated with clinically relevant sensitivity. Such results suggest that polysilicon nanoribbon devices exhibit great potential toward a highly efficient, reliable and sensitive biosensing platform.
Successful Negotiations with Audit-Clients: Does Client Experience Matter?

We examine whether audit-clients’ experience level affects their reactions when auditors use different negotiation tactics to help resolve a material audit issue. Using business owners as experienced clients and accounting students as naive clients, we find that experienced clients react significantly when auditors compromise on an issue (i.e., split the difference), but naive clients do not. These results are driven by large negative reactions by experienced clients when auditors do NOT compromise .We attribute this effect to differences in expectations regarding negotiation outcomes. Experienced clients expect auditors to compromise, and are disappointed when they don’t. Since naive clients have no expectations, they don’t react significantly either way. We also find that both experienced and naive clients react positively when auditors use immaterial items to create integrative solutions (i.e., cost cutting, non-specific compensation) in resolving a material audit issue, but only when NOT used simultaneously with compromise. We interpret this as indicating that client reactions to integrative tactics are not related to expectations, but are instead likely to be interpreted as signals of auditor empathy or concern for the client’s position. Compromise appears to interfere with these signals.
Analysis of anionic impurities in ammonium dinitramide (ADN), Part II: Capillary ion electrophoresis

Abstract A method has been developed to analyze ammonium dinitrimide (ADN), a new energetic material, as well as other anionic impurities in it. This method employs capillary ion electrophoresis with UV detection. Analysis of ADN samples could be done in under 5.5 minutes employing this method. Analysis of pure samples as well as aged samples was accomplished.
Communist Ideology and Power: From Unity to Diversity

FROM 1917 TO 1945 THE USSR was the only state which claimed that it was actively engaged in building socialism on the basis of Marxist-Leninist doctrine. From about the late twenties to about 1956, the USSR subscribed to a pattern of practices and principles which had become known as "Stalinism" and which combined ideology and power in one total system for the building of socialism. It was this system embracing both norms and means that guided the social and political transformation of the East European countries which had more recently undertaken the task of such "socialist construction." Because of its prior claim and longer experience (arguments made more weighty by power) the USSR claimed to possess a peculiar insight into the workings of Stalinism. Soviet monopoly of this unity of theory and practice meant that anyone who criticized Stalinism could only do so on the basis of either ideology or power, but not both.' Thus in the case of the StalinTito rift of 1948, ideological trimmings to the dispute came only later. Tito had achieved his power by accepting and practicing Stalinism, and the Stalin-Tito rift revolved about, and was resolved on, the power plane. Gomulka failed in 1949 because his ideological opposition was divorced from effective power.2 In the
Gout and Hyperuricemia: New Guidelines and Treatments

Gout is the most common inflammatory arthritis in western countries and the incidence is increasing. Additionally, evidence now exists that cases of severe, refractory gout seem to be increasing. T...
Music Therapy Clinical Practice in Hospice: Differences Between Home and Nursing Home Delivery.

Background Hospice music therapy is delivered in both homes and nursing homes (NH). No studies to date have explored differences in music therapy delivery between home and NH hospice patients. Objective To compare music therapy referral reasons and delivery for hospice patients living in NH versus home. Methods A retrospective, electronic medical record review was conducted from a large U.S. hospice of patients receiving music therapy between January 1, 2006, and December 31, 2010. Results Among the 4,804 patients, 2,930 lived in an NH and 1,847 patients lived at home. Compared to home, NH hospice patients were more likely to be female, older, unmarried, and Caucasian. For home hospice patients, the top referral reasons were patient/family emotional and spiritual support, quality of life, and isolation. The most frequent referral reasons for NH hospice patients were isolation, quality of life, and patient/family emotional and spiritual support. Differences in music therapy delivery depended mainly on patients' primary diagnosis and location of care. Conclusions Results suggest differences in referral reasons and delivery based on an interaction between location of care and patient characteristics. Delivery differences are likely a result of individualized assessment and care plans developed by the music therapist and other interdisciplinary team members to address the unique needs of the patient. Thus, it is important to have professionally trained music therapists assess and provide tailored music-based interventions for patients with different referral reasons and personal characteristics. This study also supports staffing decisions based on patient need rather than average daily census.
Probing intermolecular communication via lattice phonons with time-resolved coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering†

Calculations are presented demonstrating controlled intermolecular communication between dopant molecules via lattice phonons in a cryogenic matrix. By simulating a time-resolved coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (tr-CARS) experiment on an I2-molecule ‘receiver,’ its reception from a Ca-atom ‘transmitter’ of coherent lattice waves in a compressed linear chain of Ar atoms is monitored. A short pulse resonant with an atomic transition in Ca arrives at the sample before the tr-CARS pulses, and the coherent response of the host medium to the electronic excitation sends a rarefaction wave through the lattice. The arrival of this propagating distortion at the I2 molecule is detected through the tr-CARS difference signal, the difference between tr-CARS signals with and without the Ca pulse. A normal-mode analysis of the equilibrium configuration is used to construct an initial Gaussian wave packet, which is propagated by locally quadratic approximations to the relevant many-body nuclear Hamiltonians. Results...
The importance of bronchoscopy in an ambulant chest clinic.

The value of supplementing a chest clinic with bronchoscopy is illustrated by an increase in the percentage of five-year survival cases. This is attributed to earlier confirmatory diagnosis and firmer-established rationale for surgical intervention. The authors recommend early bronchoscopie studies of all patients found in a case-finding program with x-ray film evidence of obscure lung involvement. All patients with persistent respiratory symptoms and hemoptysis, but no radiographic evidence of pulmonary involvement also should be seriously considered for early bronchoscopy.
Multi-platform target detection using multi-channel coherence analysis and robustness to the effects of disparity

The use of multiple disparate platforms in many remote sensing and surveillance applications allows one to exploit the coherent information shared among all sensory systems thereby potentially reducing the risk of making single-sensory biased detection and classification decisions. This paper introduces a target detection method based upon multi-channel coherence analysis (MCA) framework which optimally decomposes the multi-channel data to analyze their linear dependence or coherence. This decomposition then allows one to extract MCA features that can be used to implement a coherence-based detector. This detector is applied to a data set of simulated disparate sonar imagery provided by the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) — Panama City. This database contains images of both targets and non-targets with various variabilities with respect to resolution, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), target and non-target types, etc. Sensitivity analyses are then carried out in order to gauge the performance under such variablities that may be encountered in disparate multi-platform detection problems. Performance of the detection method will be given in terms of probability of detection (Pd), probability of false alarm (Pf a ), and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves.
Product Sterilization: Why Industry Uses Radiation

Industry uses gamma radiation sterilization because of its superior reliability, safety, and cost savings over the EO fumigation method. EO has many processing variables and is toxic and expensive. The Environmental Protection Agency has recently declared EO to be both mutagenic and carcinogenic. The residual EO in hospital products has been reported to adversely affect hospital workers. Unlike EO fumigation, radiation sterilization imparts no toxic residuals. The coloration and embrittlement problems experienced earlier with some products sterilized by gamma radiation are being overcome with the introduction of new manufacturing materials and lower radiation dosages. Other benefits of radiation sterilization include the option of sterilizing some materials that could not otherwise be sterilized and using new types of packaging to better protect the products and increase shelf-life. The emphasis now being placed on cost containment for health care products will be another significant part of the answer to why industry uses gamma radiation sterilization.
RELATION BETWEEN INELASTIC DEFORMABILITY AND THERMAL EXPANSION OF GLASS IN ITS ANNEALING RANGE

In accordance with experience concerning the behavior of glass at temperatures within its annealing range, an equation is proposed which relates the various extraordinary heat effects to the inelastic deformability and to the degree of superheating or undercooling. By using this equation in connection with the thermal-expansion curves of a glass within its annealing range, certain constants that are related to the coefficient of viscosity and its changes with temperature and the degree of superheating or undercooling have been determined with reasonable results. Such results make it possible to estimate the inelastic deformability of a glass in its various conditions at all annealing temperatures and are therefore valuable in connection with problems that are encountered in the process of annealing glass. The apparent success achieved in applying the proposed equation to experimental data suggests that the concepts underlying this equation are fundamental and must be considered in any theory concerning the constitution of glass or that of any other extremely viscous liquid.
Characterization of neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis in 3 cats

Three young domestic shorthair cats were presented for necropsy with similar histories of slowly progressive visual dysfunction and neurologic deficits. Macroscopic examination of each cat revealed cerebral and cerebellar atrophy, dilated lateral ventricles, and slight brown discoloration of the gray matter. Histologically, there was bilateral loss of neurons within the limbic, motor, somatosensory, visual, and, to a lesser extent, vestibular systems with extensive astrogliosis in the affected regions of all 3 cases. Many remaining neurons and glial cells throughout the entire central nervous system were distended by pale yellow to eosinophilic, autofluorescent cytoplasmic inclusions with ultrastructural appearances typical of neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinoses (NCLs). Differences in clinical presentation and neurological lesions suggest that the 3 cats may have had different variants of NCL. Molecular genetic characterization in the 1 cat from which DNA was available did not reveal any plausible disease-causing mutations of the CLN1 (PPT1), CLN3, CLN5, CLN8, and CLN10 (CTSD) genes. Further investigations will be required to identify the mutations responsible for NCLs in cats.
Acoustic dispersion and attenuation measurement using both transmitted and reflected pulses

Traditional broadband transmission method for measuring acoustic dispersion and attenuation requires the measurement of the thickness of the specimen, the transmission coeAcient at the water‐specimen interface, and the Fourier spectra of two transmitted pulses. A new method has recently been developed that can determine both the thickness and dispersion of the specimen by utilizing the phase spectra of two additional pulses reflected back from the front and back surfaces of the specimen. In this paper, the method is further extended to the measurement of attenuation. If the density of the specimen is known, the frequency-dependent transmission coeAcient can be determined based on the measured phase velocity, and only the amplitude spectra of the two transmitted pulses are used to determine the attenuation. If the density of the specimen is unknown, the attenuation can be determined from the amplitude spectra of all the four pulses. In both cases, the thickness estimated from the phase spectra of the four pulses is utilized. Experimental results from two specimens are presented to demonstrate the application of the new method. ” 2001 Elsevier Science
A 300 bp 5′-upstream sequence of a differentiation-dependent rabbit K3 keratin gene can serve as a keratinocyte-specific promoter

Keratinocytes of the suprabasal compartment of many stratified epithelia synthesize as a major differentiation product a keratin pair, consisting of an acidic and a basic keratin, which accounts for 10-20% of the newly synthesized proteins. While genes of several differen tiation-related keratins have been cloned and studied, relatively little is known about the molecular basis underlying their tissue-specific and differentiationdependent expression. We have chosen to study, as a prototype of these genes, the gene of K3 keratin, which has the unique property of being expressed in the majority of corneal epithelial basal cells but suprabasally in peripheral cornea, the site of corneal epithelial stem cells. Using a monoclonal antibody, AE5, specific for K3 keratin, and a fragment of human K3 gene as probes, we have isolated several cDNA and genomic clones of rabbit K3 keratin. One genomic clone has been sequenced and characterized, and the identity of its coding sequence with that of cDNAs indicates that it cor responds to the single, functional rabbit K3 gene. Transfection assays showed that its 3.6 kb 5 -upstream sequence can drive a chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) reporter gene to express in cultured corneal and esophageal epithelial cells, but not in mesothelial and kidney epithelial cells or fibroblasts, all of rabbit origin. Serial deletion experiments narrowed this keratinocytespecific promoter to within 300 bp upstream of the transcription initiation site. Its activity is not regulated by the coding or 3 -noncoding sequences that have been tested so far. This 300 bp 5 -upstream sequence of K3 keratin gene, which can function in vitro as a ker atinocyte-specific promoter, contains two clusters of partially overlapping motifs, one with an NFkB consensus sequence and another with a GC box. The combinatorial effects of these multiple motifs and their cog nate binding proteins may play an important role in regulating the expression of this tissue-restricted and differentiation-dependent keratin gene. SUMMARY
The effects of mindfulness meditation on cognitive processes and affect in patients with past depression.

This study describes the effects of an 8-week course in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR; J. Kabat-Zinn, 1982, 1990) on affective symptoms (depression and anxiety), dysfunctional attitudes, and rumination. Given the focus of mindfulness meditation (MM) in modifying cognitive processes, it was hypothesized that the primary change in MM practice involves reductions in ruminative tendencies. We studied a sample of individuals with lifetime mood disorders who were assessed prior to and upon completion of an MBSR course. We also compared a waitlist sample matched with a subset of the MBSR completers. Overall, the results suggest that MM practice primarily leads to decreases in ruminative thinking, even after controlling for reductions in affective symptoms and dysfunctional beliefs.
The Nature of the Business Group: A Social Network Perspective:

This article takes as its point of departure the ambiguous and inconsistent way in which the concept of the ‘business group’ and other associated concepts has been used in the literature to describe and label different types of interfirm relationships. To remedy this state of affairs, a preliminary conception of the business group is presented and elaborated upon, in which the business group is conceptualized as comprising three analytically separable elements: network(s) of interrelated firms, the institutionalized logic of reciprocity, and the intersubjective interpretation of actors inside as well as outside the group. Further, a social network perspective on organizations is suggested for the analysis of business groups.
Mesolimbic dopamine signals the value of work

Dopamine cell firing can encode errors in reward prediction, providing a learning signal to guide future behavior. Yet dopamine is also a key modulator of motivation, invigorating current behavior. Existing theories propose that fast (phasic) dopamine fluctuations support learning, whereas much slower (tonic) dopamine changes are involved in motivation. We examined dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens across multiple time scales, using complementary microdialysis and voltammetric methods during adaptive decision-making. We found that minute-by-minute dopamine levels covaried with reward rate and motivational vigor. Second-by-second dopamine release encoded an estimate of temporally discounted future reward (a value function). Changing dopamine immediately altered willingness to work and reinforced preceding action choices by encoding temporal-difference reward prediction errors. Our results indicate that dopamine conveys a single, rapidly evolving decision variable, the available reward for investment of effort, which is employed for both learning and motivational functions.
Use of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators for primary prevention in older patients: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis.

Background : Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) have demonstrated the efficacy of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) in reducing sudden cardiac death (SCD) in specific patient populations. However, patients ≥ 65 years were under-represented in these trials and the overall benefit of ICDs may be diminished in older patients due to competing risks for death. We evaluate the published data on ICD efficacy at reducing all-cause mortality in patients ≥ 65 years and in patients ≥ 75 years. Methods : We searched MEDLINE to identify RCTs and observational studies of ICDs that provided age-based outcome data for primary prevention of SCD. The primary endpoint was mortality evaluated by a meta-analysis of the RCTs using a random-effects model. Secondary endpoints included operative mortality, long-term complications and quality of life. Results : The enrollment of patients ≥ 65 years in RCTs was limited (range: 33% in DEFINITE to 56% in MUSTT). Combining data from four RCTs (n = 3,562) revealed that primary prevention ICD therapy is efficacious in reducing all-cause mortality in patients ≥ 65 years (HR 0.66; 95% CI 0.50–0.87; test of heterogeneity: X 2 = 5.26; p = 0.15). For patients ≥ 75 years, combining data from four RCTs (n = 579) revealed that primary prevention ICD therapy remains efficacious in reducing all-cause mortality (HR 0.73; 95% CI 0.51–0.974; p = 0.03). There appears to be no difference in ICD-related, operative, in-hospital, or long- -term complications among older patients compared to younger patients, although it remains unclear if older patients have a better quality of life with an ICD than younger patients. Conclusions : Although the overall evidence regarding ICD efficacy in patients ≥ 65 years is limited and divergent, and the evidence available for patients ≥ 75 years is even more sparse, our meta-analysis suggests that primary prevention ICDs may be beneficial in older patients. Our findings need to be validated by future studies, particularly ones examining ICD complications and quality of life. (Cardiol J 2011; 18, 5: 503–514)
An intelligent surveillance video analysis service in cloud environment

Nowadays, digital surveillance systems are ubiquitously installed and continuously generating huge amount of video data. More often than not, it requires human to identify potential threats. To address that problem, we propose a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) architecture to conduct large scale video analysis in more systematic and efficient ways. In addition, the video analysis application implemented on the proposed PaaS platform provides a more user friendly interface for analyzing video footage. In this paper, we present the construction and implementation steps of a real-world video analysis service based on our previous work for a citywide security service. We successfully integrated over 25 thousands of surveillance devices throughout the city. The integrations of the NVR/DVRs, license plate number recognition engine, and the camera health monitoring engine will be demonstrated. Finally, we conclude with discussions on why we believe the proposed solution has the potential to become the standard for deploying intelligent video surveillance network.
Dendritic Growth in Terrestrial and Microgravity Conditions

Dendritic growth is the most ubiquitous form of crystal growth encountered when metals and alloys solidify under low thermal gradients. The growth of thermal dendrites in pure melts is generally acknowledged to be controlled by the diffusive transport of latent heat from the moving crystal-melt interface into its supercooled melt. However, this formulation is incomplete, and the physics of an additional selection rule, coupled to the transport solution, is necessary to predict uniquely the dendrite tip velocity and radius of curvature as a function of the supercooling. Unfortunately, experimental confirmation or evidence is ambiguous, because dendritic growth can be severely complicated by buoyancy induced convection. Recent experiments performed in the microgravity environment of the space shuttle Columbia (STS-62) quantitatively show that convection alters tip velocities and radii of curvature of succinonitrile (SCN) dendrites. In addition, these data can be used to evaluate how well the Ivantsov diffusion solution, coupled to a scaling constant, matches the dendritic growth data under microgravity conditions.
Re-examining high reliability: actively organising for safety

In the 15 years since To Err is Human was published,1 the US healthcare industry has worked diligently to improve patient safety. Although progress has been made in reducing hospital-acquired conditions2 and, in some cases, rates of surgical mortality,3 healthcare has not achieved broad reductions for most patient harms. In recent years, healthcare has borrowed ideas from industries that have strong safety records, including teamwork and error reporting from aviation, and process improvement techniques from manufacturing. Healthcare's latest patient safety push is to encourage hospitals to become a ‘high reliability organisation’ (HRO).4 HROs have maintained remarkable performance despite complex and risky work. These ultrasafe organisations never set out to be HROs. As Rochlin5 observed: HROs ‘seek an ideal of perfection but never expect to achieve it. They demand complete safety but never expect it. They dread surprise but always anticipate it. They deliver reliability but never take it for granted. They live by the book but are unwilling to die by it’. HROs understand that reliability is an endless journey rather than a simple destination. Evidence suggests that healthcare is starting to organise for higher reliability. Standardised protocols and checklists,6 preprocedural and postprocedural briefings,7 incident reporting and daily huddles,8 although imperfect,9 ,10 may hold promise for enhancing safer care. These types of activities may be part of an institution's master plan to create a comprehensive operating management system—an organisation-wide integrated approach to manage risk and to achieve safe and reliable performance—similar to the systems found in other industries such as oil and gas. Yet, we think it is more likely that these efforts represent piecemeal and fragmented initiatives adopted to solve particular problems. Regardless, high reliability remains elusive. One explanation is that organisations have failed to widely institutionalise high-reliability habits of …
The Life History of Pseudeucoila sp., a Protelian Parasite of Drosophtta

A new arrhenotokous endoparasite, Pseudeucoila sp. (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae), which attacks the 1st- and 2nd-stage larvae of several Drosophila species, was collected at a number of mid-east coast localities. Using wasp and D. melanogaster (Meig.) populations which originated from Chapel Hill, N. C., the basic features of the parasites' life history were determined. The techniques used enabled partitioning the daily egg production and resultant sex ratio, and the daily pattern of offspring emergence as affected by development time. Female wasps had a life expectancy of 15.8 days with 72.4% of the female progeny and 53.1% of the total successful eggs produced during the 1st day. Total offspring production was 371.7 with a 0.45 sex ratio (males/total progeny). The net reproductive rate, generation time, and intrinsic rate of increase were 202.8, 21.3 days and 0.25, respectively.
Consideration of Technology for Constructing Chinese Smart Grid

Taking the current situation of smart grid research as the background,and from the analysis of the difference between smart grid and traditional grid as well as situation of constructing smart grid at home and abroad,some viewpoints of constructing Chinese smart grid are expatiated,and the research directions of concern about constructing Chinese smart grid are analyzed emphatically.
Three Speech Communication Theories: Potential Tools for Selecting and Training of Salespersons

This paper discusses three concepts developed in the Speech Communication Discipline (Reticence, communication apprehension, and unwillingness to communicate) which offer promise in the improvement of hiring and training of salespersons.)
Hapten Design for Anti-addiction Vaccine Development

The key scientific challenge in the emerging field of drugs of abuse vaccines is the delineation of the complex factors that determine the immune response to the target drug following administration with a chosen hapten. A concise summary is presented of all the various elements of hapten design for the four major drugs of abuse, along with comparative analysis of their relevance and strategic importance using the results of published immunization studies. The central theme is the difficulty in identifying robust, transferable strategies to increase vaccine efficacy given the inter-study variability in experimental factors that would ideally be standardized across the field. Nonetheless, advances made both rationally and empirically in hapten and vaccine design are progressing towards the efficacious treatment of addiction.
Fluorescence spectroscopy and imaging for biomedical diagnostics

Many of the discoveries and techniques of physical science have been successfully applied to investigate and quantify the complex systems found in the life sciences. Methods of laser spectroscopy and imaging offer the ability to noninvasively probe structure and function in biological systems, potentially providing useful diagnostic information for biomedical applications. For example, clinical instruments based on both fluorescence spectroscopy and imaging have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use by physicians in detecting pre-malignancies in vivo during cancer screening procedures.