cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Legal and Ethical Issues in Human Subjects Research

AbstractConcern for outside review of medical research involving human subjects has been documented as far back as the early Nineteenth Century. It was not until 1966, however, when applicants for Public Health Service grant funding were subjected to such a requirement, that researchers were required to undergo review. Institutional Review Boards (IRB) and Noninstitutional Review Boards (NRB) are the bodies charged with performing the mandated screening functions by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for federally funded projects and by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the drug and device approval process.This paper explores Board responsibilities under the HHS and FDA regulations generally, and emphasizes several critical attendant issues including: Manufacturer'-Boards members' individual liability; compensation for research injuries; civil rights protections afforded subjects; impact upon academic and health practitioner research; and effect upon drug and device approvals.
STRUCTURAL DUCTILITY IN HYBRID HIGH PERFORMANCE STEEL BEAMS

The present study employs experimentally verified nonlinear finite element modeling techniques for the study of hybrid high performance steel I-shaped beams. An evaluation as to the appropriateness...
Nobody Dares: Freedom, Dissent, Self-Knowing, and Other Possibilities in Sebald Beham's Impossible*

Featuring the image of an athlete tugging at a rooted sapling, Impossible is the most enigmatic of the many small-scale engravings produced by Hans Sebald Beham. Juxtaposed with the adage “Nobody should dare great things that are impossible for him to do,” the image not only challenges the astute viewer to a game of wits: the resulting paradox also unleashes a cascade of ethical questions concerning the boundedness of the will, Christian freedom, human perfectibility, and the paradoxical conditions of self-knowledge. These issues came to the fore in the sixteenth-century debate over free will, which pitted humanists, magisterial, and radical reformers against one another. Beham's documented experience as a religious and political dissident during the 1520s raises the possibility that the print, made later in life, embeds still another allegorical layer: the conflicted situation of the artist in an era of reform and iconoclasm, Renaissance and revolution, hope and disillusionment.
Holographic Line-Scanning Confocal Microscope

A new imaging system is proposed by combining line-scanning confocal microscope with digital holography. By this combination, the proposed system will posses characteristics of these two imaging technologies, such as low coherent noise, optical sectioning and accessibility to complex optical field.
Modeling hemodynamics in an unoccluded and partially occluded inferior vena cava under rest and exercise conditions

Pulmonary embolism is the third leading cause of death in hospitalized patients in the US. Vena cava filters are medical devices inserted into the inferior vena cava (IVC) and are designed to trap thrombi before they reach the lungs. Once trapped in a filter, however, thrombi disturb otherwise natural flow patterns, which may be clinically significant. The goal of this work is to use computational modeling to study the hemodynamics of an unoccluded and partially occluded IVC under rest and exercise conditions. A realistic, three-dimensional model of the IVC, iliac, and renal veins represents the vessel geometry and spherical clots represent thombi trapped by several conical filter designs. Inflow rates correspond to rest and exercise conditions, and a transitional turbulence model captures transitional flow features, if they are present. The flow equations are discretized and solved using a second-order finite-volume method. No significant regions of transitional flow are observed. Nonetheless, the volume of stagnant and recirculating flow increases with partial occlusion and exercise. For the partially occluded vessel, large wall shear stresses are observed on the IVC and on the model thrombus, especially under exercise conditions. These large wall shear stresses may have mixed clinical implications: thrombotic-like behavior may initiate on the vessel wall, which is undesirable; and thrombolysis may be accelerated, which is desirable.
Optimal monetary policy in the presence of a monetarist transmission mechanism

Abstract A monetarist transmission mechanism is introduced whereby the money supply directly affects aggregate demand. Money supply and demand disturbances are now distinct. Interest rate targeting dominates for the former, but the issue is ambiguous regarding the latter. © 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.
A quassinoid from Brucea javanica.

Abstract The structure for javanicin, a novel quassinoid isolated from Brucea javanica , was determined by a combination of spectral X-ray crystallographic analyses.
46 Effect of Antibiotics on Postnatal Intestinal Colonization in Term Newborns

Background: The intestinal tract of the fetus is sterile but after birth is colonized with bacteria from the mother and environment. Multiple factors affect the postnatal colonization of the GI tract. Early exposure of newborn infants to antibiotics may be associated with disturbances in the normal postnatal acquisition of the intestinal flora. Most of the previous studies used classical culture methods that only identify a limited number of bacterial species. Recently, the use of molecular techniques has greatly improved the study of GI ecology. Objectives: This is an ongoing descriptive study designed to examine the effect of antibiotic exposure on the postnatal intestinal bacterial colonization of term newborns, by using comparative analysis of clone libraries of 16S rRNA genes. Methods: We plan to enroll a total of 20 infants GA>37, divided in 2 groups: antibiotic-treated (7 day course) and non-treated (control) infants. Stool samples are collected from each infant on day 3-5, day 7-10 and day 20-30 of life. DNA is amplified using universal bacterial primers. PCR products are cloned and for each sample, a library of about 96 clones is obtained. Results: To date, we have collected 43 stool samples from 15 infants (8 study patients and 7 controls). Clone libraries from 19 samples are available so far. Our preliminary results show that Lactobacillus, Enterobacteria or Enterococcus dominate early colonization of control infants (in one infant 63% of the clones were Lactobacillus, in 2 infants 75% and 81% of the clones were Klebsiella and Escherichia, respectively, and in 2, Enterococcus clones were isolated in 56% and 95% respectively). By day 7-10 intestinal flora was more diverse and included Enterobacteria, Clostridia, Steptococcus and Enterococcus (with no one dominating). By day 20-30 there was again an increased predominance of Enterobacteria but other species were also present. Infants exposed to antibiotics (2 analyzed to date) had a less diverse intestinal flora on the initial sample, dominated by either Lactobacillus or Bacteroides. At 7-10 days, the flora was dominated by Enterobacteria (90%). By one month of age, the number of species identified increased similarly to infants that were not exposed to antibiotics. Conclusion: Our preliminary observations suggest that early exposure to antibiotics may be associated with decreased diversity of intestinal bacterial colonization. As known, there is a relative paucity of bacterial species in the initial intestinal colonization of newborns. The number of species decreases further during and after antibiotic treatment. By one month of age the flora is again more diverse. As our sample size increases, we anticipate further clarification of the effect of antibiotic treatment and other perinatal factors in modifying the stool bacterial ecology.
Small-scale, patchy distributions of infauna in hydrodynamically mobile continental shelf sands: Do ripple crests and troughs support different communities?

Abstract Spatial variability of infauna with respect to distribution of topographic habitat features was examined in hydrodynamically mobile sandy sediments on the inner continental shelf off New Jersey, USA (39° 27.69′ N, 74° 15.81′W). Sediment cores for infauna were taken by SCUBA divers at multiple spatial scales over time at 12-m depth in the LEO-15 research area on Beach Haven Ridge. Crests, troughs and less consistently flanks of sand ripples 5–15-cm in height, were characterized by different infaunal community patterns at spatial scales of centimeters to kilometers on several sampling dates. Overall, infaunal community differences among ripple crests, troughs, and/or flanks within areas
Durable Narrow Absorption Band Infrared Filters Utilizing Powdered Mineral Materials on Polyethylene Substrates

Infrared filters are normally fabricated using precise vacuum evaporation techniques or specialized coating procedures. The resulting filters demand careful handling. Narrow absorption band infrared filters were formed utilizing powdered mineral materials on polyethylene substrates. Various minerals caused specific infrared absorptions in the 9.0 to 11.8 μ region. These absorptions were chosen as desired for applications where narrow absorption band filters were required at specific wavelengths. Several minerals were investigated. Filters were achieved with nearly complete absorption at a specific wavelength, having spectral half-widths of as little as 0.3 μ. The filters were easily prepared, and very reliable.
A familial incidence of structurally restricted antibodies to pneumococcal polysaccharides.

Rabbits were selected for their ability to produce structurally restricted anti-polysaccharide antibodies when immunized with either type III or type VIII pneumococcal vaccines. Close relatives and offspring of these animals also exhibited this trait, indicating that it is inheritable. Within two groups of such restricted responders the trait could be observed with either type of vaccine. No correlation was observed with the magnitude of the immune response and the degree of antibody restriction. Furthermore, there was no correlation of this trait with sex, nor was there any obligate association with any a or b locus allotype. Isoelectric spectra of antibodies produced by individual rabbits showed no gross similarities, although siblings did appear to share components. In several instances, prolonged immunization of nonrestricted responders in these groups resulted in the production of structurally restricted antibodies. However, this was not a general phenomenon. Finally, some rabbits immunized with type III Pneumococcus produced restricted components that did not appear to possess anti-polysaccharide activity.
National Initiatives within the UN Decade for Human Rights Education: The Implementation of Human Rights Education Policy Reforms in Schools

As the ubiquitous force of globalization further erodes the nation-state and political activity increasingly focuses on global issues, there is renewed attention to models of global education. Within this global context, human rights education emerges as a response to the demands of global education. One of the main objectives of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995--2004) is the building and strengthening of programs and capacities for human rights education at the national and local levels. In this essay, an overview of human rights education and the policy guidelines for national plans of action for human rights education developed by the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR) are presented. Further, the essay focuses on comprehensive national initiatives within the Decade that are being undertaken in Japan, Austria, and the United States, with particular attention to the implementation of human rights education in formal secondary school settings.
On the infiltration of metal matrix composites

Keywords: FIBER REINFORCEMENT ; INFILTRATION ; LIQUID METAL FRONT ; PRESSURE DIFFERENTIAL ; METALS AND ALLOYS Note: MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA03602133 (ISSN) Reference LMM-ARTICLE-1987-001View record in Scopus Record created on 2006-10-09, modified on 2017-05-10
Breast cancer in a county hospital population: impact of breast screening on stage of presentation.

Background: Indigent patients in a county hospital setting typically present with breast cancer at a later stage than do patients in the private sector. In the early 1980s, 50% of all breast cancers diagnosed in our county hospital were stages III and IV. This contrasted markedly with the findings of an American College of Surgeons study, which showed <15% of breast cancers diagnosed as stages III and IV. Methods: Recognizing this disparity, we instituted a breast screening project in the county teaching hospital targeted at women who routinely received medical care in the county hospital clinics. Between 1985 and 1992, 14,567 mammograms were performed. Results: Two hundred eighty-nine breast biopsies were performed and 76 cancers were identified (26%). Ninety-five patients advised to have surgical consultation for biopsy declined further evaluation. The stage distribution of cancers diagnosed was as follows: stage 0, 20%; stage I, 43%; stage II, 28%; stage III, 8%; and stage IV, 1%. This compares favorably with National Cancer Data Base statistics for 1988. In contrast, symptomatic nonscreened patients diagnosed at the county hospital in 1992 presented at a significantly more advanced stage: stage 0, 1%; stage I, 14%; stage II, 45%; stage III, 26%; and stage IV, 13%. Conclusions: Mammographic screening has lowered the stage of cancers diagnosed in the screened indigent population. However, a significant percentage of patients are presenting to our hospital with stage III and IV disease. Problems identified in the screening project included noncompliance with recommendations for follow-up of abnormal studies and noncompliance with appointments. In order to broaden the impact of our breast screening project, we have instituted outreach programs with community-based clinics and the American Cancer Society.
The evolving spectrum of amiodarone hepatotoxicity

Amiodarone is believed to have caused acute hepatitis 24 hours after intravenous administration in two patients in whom no other alternative cause of hepatitis was found.
Dopamine in the nucleus accumbens modulates the memory of social defeat in Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus).

Conditioned defeat (CD) is a behavioral response that occurs in Syrian hamsters after they experience social defeat. Subsequently, defeated hamsters no longer produce territorial aggression but instead exhibit heightened levels of avoidance and submission, even when confronted with a smaller, non-aggressive intruder. Dopamine in the nucleus accumbens is hypothesized to act as a signal of salience for both rewarding and aversive stimuli to promote memory formation and appropriate behavioral responses to significant events. The purpose of the present study was to test the hypothesis that dopamine in the nucleus accumbens modulates the acquisition and expression of behavioral responses to social defeat. In Exp. 1, bilateral infusion of the non-specific D1/D2 receptor antagonist cis(z)flupenthixol (3.75 μg/150 nl saline) into the nucleus accumbens 5 min prior to defeat training significantly reduced submissive and defensive behavior expressed 24 hr later in response to a non-aggressive intruder. In Exp. 2, infusion of 3.75 μg cis(z)flupenthixol 5 min before conditioned defeat testing with a non-aggressive intruder significantly increased aggressive behavior in drug-infused subjects. In Exp. 3, we found that the effect of cis(z)flupenthixol on aggression was specific to defeated animals as infusion of drug into the nucleus accumbens of non-defeated animals did not significantly alter their behavior in response to a non-aggressive intruder. These data demonstrate that dopamine in the nucleus accumbens modulates both acquisition and expression of social stress-induced behavioral changes and suggest that the nucleus accumbens plays an important role in the suppression of aggression that is observed after social defeat.
How much are Harry Potter's glasses worth? Children's monetary evaluation of authentic objects.

Adults attach special value to objects that link to notable people or events—authentic objects. We examined children's monetary evaluation of authentic objects, focusing on four kinds: celebrity possessions (e.g., Harry Potter's glasses), original creations (e.g., the very first teddy bear), personal possessions (e.g., your grandfather's baseball glove), and merely old items (e.g., an old chair). Children ages 4 to 12 years old and adults (N = 151) were asked how much people would pay for authentic and control objects. Young children consistently placed greater monetary value on celebrity possessions than on original creations, even when adults judged the two kinds of items to be equivalent. These results suggest that contact with a special individual may be the foundation for the value placed on authentic objects.
Loss of the SIVsmmPBj14 Phenotype andnefGenotype during Long-Term Survival of Macaques Infected by Mucosal Routes

Abstract The ability of the simian immunodeficiency virus SIVsmmPBj14 (SIV-PBj14) to activate and induce proliferation of quiescent peripheral blood lymphocytes from macaques is an in vitro correlate of its acutely lethal in vivo phenotype. SIV-PBj14 differs from other SIV strains by encoding tyrosine at amino acid 17 (Y17) in Nef, which generates an activation motif important for signal transduction. Although intravenous inoculation of pig-tailed macaques with SIV-PBj14 uniformly leads to death within 2 weeks, inoculation by mucosal routes results in persistent infections that progress to AIDS. In the present study, we determined whether viruses in long-term survivors retained not only the Nef Y17 residue but also the biologic properties associated with rapid disease and death. Viruses reisolated at early and late times after mucosal infection of macaques with SIV-PBj14 were tested in vivo for acute lethality and in vitro for the ability to replicate in and induce activation and proliferation of quiescent macaque lymphocytes. In addition, the coding sequence for the first 55 amino acids in Nef was amplified from proviral DNA or plasma virion RNA by PCR or RT-PCR, respectively, and nucleotide sequences were obtained. The results showed that the majority of the quasispecies that persisted as disease progressed not only lost biological properties unique to SIV-PBj14, but also lost through mutation either Y17 or Y28 in Nef, which together were part of the activation motif. In the case of Y17, these mutations were stepwise to histidine then arginine, the amino acid encoded in this position in other SIV strains. We conclude, therefore, that replicative properties of the acutely lethal virus provide no selective advantage during long-term infections with SIV-PBj14 and that disruption of the activation motif in Nef is associated with loss of the acutely lethal phenotype.
Substance Abuse and Prison Recidivism: Themes from Qualitative Interviews.

This qualitative analysis explores the role of substance abuse in reentry from prison to society. Participants who recidivated (N = 20) in an urban prison system identified substance abuse as their primary reason for recidivism. Treatment implications are discussed.
Foregrounding effects in discourse comprehension

Five experiments are presented which illustrate microprocesses of discourse comprehension related to foregrounding. It is argued that when a sentence of a discourse is comprehended, its given portion must be matched to prior text memories by one of three processes. If the antecedent memory structure is in a short-term memory, matching is rapid; if no direct antecedent is found, bridging inferences, which take time to make, are performed. The present studies explore in detail an intermediate case in which prior memories exist but must be reinstated to active memory.
Room-Temperature Luminescence of Formaldehyde-Condensed Amines Adsorbed on Filter Paper

Abstract The luminescence of tryptophan, dopamine, and epinephrine adsorbed on filter paper and condensed by the aluminum formaldehyde (ALFA) histoluminescence method is reported. The resultant luminescence is a short-lived phosphorescence or long-lived fluorescence which is partially dependent on the inhibition of oxygen quenching by aluminum. Attempts to condense the amines by the formaldehyde (FA) method were not successful. Filter paper is a surface that can potentially be used for histochemical modeling and the influence of albumin and pH on such models is discussed. The room temperature phosphorescence characteristics of tryptophan, dopamine, epinephrine, tryptamine, and 5-methoxytryptamine are compared with the luminescence of the condensed amines.
Contributions from Improvements in Marketing System Activities by the Pharmaceutical Industry

ABSTRACTThe pharmaceutical industry has many successes in its handling of the classic “4 P's.” With respect to “product,” the pharmaceutical research and manufacturing companies have long realized the importance of the marketing concept, focusing on the unmet needs of society. While the contributions by the pharmaceutical industry to society are undeniable with respect to the discovery of new drug substances, the industry has engaged in a variety of other activities, each designed to improve its product for the ultimate consumer. Efforts by the pharmaceutical industry have significantly contributed to the fundamental change in how health care, regardless of the presence of medication, is evaluated. One definite contribution to marketing systems is the distribution system that operates within this industry. Products are available to essentially any patient anywhere within the reaches of the system within 24 hours and with maximum efficiency. Many examples exist of patient support programs that are sponsore...
Finite deflections of an elastic circular plate with a central hole.

Von Karman equations in dimensionless and finite difference forms for deflections of elastic circular plate with central hole under load solved by iteration
Blogging Back then: Annotative journalism in I.F. Stone’s Weekly and Talking Points Memo

This article develops the concept of ‘annotative journalism’ through a close review of two muckraking investigations, 50 years apart, by the newsletter I.F. Stone’s Weekly and the website Talking Points Memo. These cases stand out in hindsight as investigative coups, though neither relied on the tools we associate with that kind of journalism: anonymous sources, secret documents, and so on. Instead, both investigations proceeded mainly through the analysis of published texts, in particular news reports, in light of a wider media and political critique. Annotative journalism unsettles core practices and assumptions of objective reporting. It rejects narrative coherence in favor of a set of critical textual practices, revealing reporting routines to the reader and building explicit arguments from and about the work of other journalists. And it troubles the professional distinction between reporting and opinion; these ‘scoops’ came through, not in spite of, the politics of the journalists who worked on them.
Retardation and suppression of nickel silicide formation by N+ implantation

Abstract The effects of implanted N on Ni 2 Si formation have been studied using 4 He + backscattering spectrometry and the 14 N(d,α) 12 C nuclear reaction. Ni films 1.5–4 kA thick were evaporated onto Si 〈100〉 and 〈111〉 substrates; were implanted with N + into the Ni film and through the Ni film into the substrate; and were thermally annealed under vacuum at 290 and 350°C. The two cases behave differently. For the N initially in the Ni film on Si 〈100〉, the reaction is greatly suppressed if the N is above a threshold dose φ th of about 1 × 10 16 N/cm 2 , independent of the Ni film thickness. Changing the substrate orientation to 〈111〉 raises the threshold φ th . The nitrogen profile changes its distribution from an as-implanted approximate gaussian located in the Ni films to a peak positioned at the NiSi interface without loss of N. For the case when the N is initially in the Si substrate, the growth rate of Ni 2 Si is retarded, but not suppressed. These results are explained in terms of a model based on the chemical affinity of N to Si and Ni and on the fact that Ni is the moving species in Ni 2 Si growth.
Synthesis and characterization of nanostructured nickel diselenide nise 2 from the decomposition of nickel acetate, (CH 3 CO 2 ) 2 Ni

Solution processed NiSe2 nanorods were synthesized by a modified colloidal synthesis technique, by chemical reaction of TOPSe and nickel acetate at 150°C. The rods exist as an oleic acid ligand stabilized solution, with oleic acid acting as a capping group. Structural characterization by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy indicates that the particles are rodlike shaped crystals with a high and relatively constant aspect ratio (30:1). TEM shows that the width and the length of the nanorods are in the range 10-20 nm and 300-350 nm, respectively. XRD indicates that the nanorods are pure and well crystallized. The size of nanorods based on the Debye-Scherrer effect, was 150 nm, the average value of length and width. They display thermal stability over prolonged heating times (<100 hours) at 150°C, for which the average particle size is roughly constant. After about 100 hours of heating time there is an onset and growth of micron sized cubes and concurrent decomposition of NiSe2 to Ni and NiSe at 150°C.
Calibration and characterization of HETG grating elements at the MIT X-Ray Grating Evaluation Facility

ABSTRACT The High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer (HETGS) of the Advanced X-Ray AstrophysicsFacility (AXAF) will include 336 gratings, of period 2000 A and 4000 A . The flight gratings haveentered production, and preliminary tests for verification and calibration have begun. We presentthe current status of the X-ray tests at MIT, focusing on diffraction efficiency measurements and agrating tilt test. We indicate the direction the X-ray testing will take in the near term.Keywords: X-ray astronomy, X-ray spectroscopy, transmission gratings, calibration 1 INTRODUCTION The High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer (HETGS) of the Advanced X-ray AstrophysicsFacility (AXAF) is a high-spectral resolution instrument including focussing mirrors, grating assem- bly and focal plane detector. (The instrument is described in Markert, et al.'.) The transmission grating assembly, called the High Energy Transmission Grating (HETG), is composed of 336 gratingelements, each of which is tested and calibrated individually. Fabrication of the flight gratings hasbegun, following techniques outlined in Schattenburg et al.2 The gratings are of two types: the highenergy grating (HEG) with 2000 A period and nominal bar height 0.7 ,um; and the medium energy
Does electric light stimulate cancer development in children

Incidence of cancer in children has increased in recent decades, and known risk factors can account for only a small minority of cases. Gestation and early childhood are particularly vulnerable periods in human development and an important aspect of development is in circadian rhythmicity. Emerging evidence implicates the molecular circadian mechanism in a vast array of other physiologic functions including metabolism, DNA damage response and cell-cycle regulation. Electric light exposure at night can disrupt circadian rhythms and, thereby, many other physiologic processes that are under circadian control. On this basis, it is proposed that ill-timed electric light exposure to pregnant women, to neonates, infants, and small children may increase cancer risk in those children. There are practical implications and interventions that accrue from this idea should it later be confirmed to be true. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 21(5); 701–4. ©2012 AACR .
Large joint destruction erosive osteoarthritis

We present this case to document extensive large joint destruction in a patient with otherwise classic erosive osteoarthritis. The pathologic findings are consistent with the diagnosis of erosive osteoarthritis. No steroids had been administered to account for the radiographic changes. It seems reasonable to assume that the hip and shoulder abnormalities are unusual manifestations of this disease.
SU-FF-T-151: In-Vivo Diode Dosimetry for IMRT Treatment Dose Verification

Purpose: To investigate how diodes respond to various IMRT beam conditions and to evaluate the feasibility of using in‐vivo diode dosimetry for IMRTtreatment delivery verification. Method and Materials: A series of dynamic MLC files were created to simulate IMRT fields. Diodes and a Farmer chamber were used to measure IMRT doses at dmax in a phantom. Dose dependence on field size (FS), sliding window MLC leaf gap width, SSD and energy was investigated. In‐vivo diode dosimetry was also used for patient IMRTtreatment dose verification and compared with IMRT plan calculations. Results: Measured doses decreased with decreasing FS and MLC leaf gap. Diode readings agreed with ion chamber at dmax to within 3%. All measured data points were fitted to a straight line of “Measured Dose” vs. “%Primary Beam”, with a slope of 0.945, intercept 0.04 cGy/MU, and correlation coefficient 0.997. For a given FS and leaf gap, measured doses increased with decreasing SSD. SSD dependence for ion chamber agreed with Inverse Square Factor (ISF) to ∼1%. Diode SSD dependence deviated ISF by 1∼4%. Conclusion: In measuring IMRT dose at dmax in phantom, diode readings agreed with ion chamber to within a few percent. Diode correction factors for SSD, FS, leaf gap, and energy dependence in IMRTtreatment fields are small. Our study has shown that diode dosimetry can be used for in‐vivo patient IMRTtreatment delivery verification. In most cases, in‐vivo diode measurements and IMRT plan calculations should agree to within ±7%. It is important to select a low dose gradient region from IMRT plan for diode placement. Larger discrepancies between measurements and calculations usually can be attributed to high dose gradient, errors in patient setup and diode positioning, and SSD change.
Use of pimecrolimus cream 1% (Elidel) in the treatment of atopic dermatitis in infants and children: the effects of ethnic origin and baseline disease severity on treatment outcome.

Background Pimecrolimus cream 1%, a cell-selective inhibitor of inflammatory cytokines, has been shown to be effective in treating atopic dermatitis (AD). This report examines the effect of ethnic origin and baseline disease severity on treatment outcomes in pediatric patients with AD treated with pimecrolimus cream 1%. Methods The analysis included 589 patients aged 3 months to 17 years from three 6-week, randomized, multicenter studies of similar design. Patients were treated with pimecrolimus cream 1% or vehicle twice daily. Efficacy, safety and tolerability in Caucasian and non-Caucasian groups were compared. In addition, the effect of baseline disease severity on treatment outcome was investigated. Results A total of 321 Caucasian and 268 non-Caucasian patients [Blacks, Asians and others (including Hispanics)] with mild, moderate or severe disease at baseline were included. Baseline characteristics were comparable between the pimecrolimus and vehicle control groups and between Caucasian and non-Caucasian groups. Significantly higher efficacy [measured by Investigators’ Global Assessment and Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) scores] was achieved in the pimecrolimus-treated group, compared with the vehicle group, irrespective of ethnic origin. Baseline disease severity had no effect on treatment outcome: patients with both mild and moderate AD responded well to pimecrolimus (absolute change from baseline in EASI score −2.60 and −5.48, respectively; both P < 0.001). Pimecrolimus cream 1% was safe and well tolerated in all ethnic groups and at all levels of disease severity. Conclusions Ethnic origin and baseline disease severity had no effect on treatment outcome with pimecrolimus cream 1% in patients with AD.
The diagnostic validity of the Athens Insomnia Scale

Abstract Objective: To provide documentation for the diagnostic validity of the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS), a self-assessment psychometric tool which has previously shown high consistency, reliability and external validity for the evaluation of the intensity of sleep difficulty. Methods: The AIS was administered to a total of 299 subjects (105 primary insomniacs, 100 psychiatric outpatients, 44 psychiatric inpatients and 50 nonpatient controls) who were also assessed for the ICD-10 diagnosis of “nonorganic insomnia” blindly in terms of the AIS scores. Results: 176 subjects were identified as insomniacs and 123 as noninsomniacs. Logistic regression of AIS total score against the ICD-10 diagnosis of insomnia demonstrated that a score of 6 is the optimum cutoff based on the balance between sensitivity and specificity. When diagnosing individuals with a score of 6 or higher as insomniacs, the scale presents with 93% sensitivity and 85% specificity (90% overall correct case identification). For this cutoff score, in the general population, the scale has a positive predictive value (PPV) of 41% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 99%. For the same cutoff score, among unselected psychiatric patients, the PPV was found to be 86% and the NPV 92%. Other cutoff scores can be also considered, however, depending on the importance of avoiding false positive or false negative results; for example, for a cutoff score of 10, the PPV in the general population reaches about 90% without the NPV becoming lower than 94%. Conclusion: The AIS can be utilized in clinical practice and research, not only as an instrument to measure the intensity of sleep-related problems, but also as a screening tool in reliably establishing the diagnosis of insomnia.
On the truncation error of the cardinal sampling expansion

Modern communication theory and practice are heavily dependent on the representation of continuous parameter signals by linear combinations, involving a denumerable set of random variables. Among the best known and most useful is the cardinal series f_{n} (t) = \sum^{+n}_{-n} f(k) \frac{\sin \pi (t - k)}{ \pi ( t - k )} for deterministic functions and wide-sense stationary stochastic processes bandlimited to (-\pi, \pi) . When, as invariably occurs in applications, samples f(k) are available only over a finite period, the resulting finite approximation is subject to a truncation error. For functions which are L_{1} Fourier transforms supported on [-\pi + \delta, + \pi - \delta] , uniform trunction error bounds of the form O(n^{-1}) are known. We prove that analogous O(n^{-1}) bounds remain valid without the guard band \delta and for Fourier-Stieltjes transforms; we require only a bounded variation condition in the vicinity of the endpoints - \pi and + \pi of the basic interval. Our methods depend on a Dirichlet kernel representation for f_{n}(t) and on properties of functions of bounded variation; this contrasts with earlier approaches involving series or complex variable theory. Other integral kernels (such as the Fejer kernel) yield certain weighted truncated cardinal series whose errors can also be bounded. A mean-square trunction error bound is obtained for bandlimited wide-sense stationary stochastic processes. This error estimate requires a guard band, and leads to a uniform O(n^{-2}) bound. The approach again employs the Dirichlet kernel and draws heavily on the arguments applied to deterministic functions.
Dissolving poly(tetrafluoroethylene) in low boiling halocarbons

An apparatus and methodology are described for dissolving poly(tetrafluoroethylene) in relatively low boiling perhalocarbons at temperatures as high as 330°C and up to about 20 MPa pressure. Cloud points are reported for these solutions with the following solvents: n-perfluorohexane, perfluorodecalin, Freon® 113 (1,1,2-trichloro-1,2,2-trifluoroethane) and Fluorinert® FC-75 (a perfluorocarbon ether). Most of the solutions were studied above the critical temperatures of their solvents. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Therapeutic vaccines in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer: principles in clinical trial design

Although docetaxel was approved for the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer in 2004, additional therapies are still required. Prostate cancer is often slow-growing and expresses many tumor-associated antigens, making it a feasible target for immunotherapy. Several therapeutic cancer vaccines have been developed for prostate cancer, including antigen-presenting-cell-based, vector-based, and whole tumor cell vaccines. Initial trials demonstrated that vaccine approaches have limited toxicity. Clinical trials of targeted biologic therapies have demonstrated that patient selection is vital, and there is preliminary evidence that clinical parameters can be used to encompass metastatic prostate cancer patients who will more probably respond to vaccine treatment. In addition to appropriate patient selection, a successful clinical trial must have an appropriate primary endpoint as well. Three randomized, 'placebo'-controlled studies in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer have suggested a clinically significant survival advantage in spite of a lack of improvement in time to progression, implying that overall survival is the ideal endpoint for such trials. Careful examination of data from completed immunotherapy clinical trials in prostate cancer has identified appropriate patient populations and endpoints. Those principles need to be applied to future trial design to properly evaluate prostate cancer vaccines.
Changes in membrane transport function in G0 and G1 cells.

Confluent quiescent monolayers of aneuploid and euploid cells in culture can be stimulated to proliferate by appropriate nutritional changes. In confluent monolayers of WI-38 human diploid fibroblasts the uptake of cycloleucine is increased three hours after these cells are stimulated to proliferate by a change of medium plus 10% serum. No changes in the uptake of cycloleucine are observed in logarithmically-growing WI-38 cells exposed to fresh medium plus 10% serum, or in WI-38 confluent monolayers in which the conditioned medium has been replaced by fresh medium with 0.3% serum (a change that does not cause stimulation of cellular proliferation in WI-38 cells). In 3T6 cells in the stationary phase stimulated to proliferate by nutritional changes, there is a prompt increase in the uptake of cycloleucine, within one hour after stimulation of cell proliferation. Similar results were obtained with stationary 2RA cells which are SV-40 transformed WI-38 fibroblasts. In addition, chromatin template activity which is known to increase in the early stages after stimulation of confluent WI-38 cells, was unchanged in confluent 3T6 or 2RA cells stimulated to proliferate. These results show that at least two of the very early biochemical events occurring in response to stimulation of cell proliferation are different in WI-38 diploid cells and in aneuploid 2RA or 3T6 cells. It is proposed that WI-38 cells in the stationary phase are arrested in the G0 phase of the cell cycle, while 2RA and 3T6 cells are arrested in the G1 phase.
Image microarrays derived from tissue microarrays (IMA-TMA): New resource for computer-aided diagnostic algorithm development.

Background: Conventional tissue microarrays (TMAs) consist of cores of tissue inserted into a recipient paraffin block such that a tissue section on a single glass slide can contain numerous patient samples in a spatially structured pattern. Scanning TMAs into digital slides for subsequent analysis by computer-aided diagnostic (CAD) algorithms all offers the possibility of evaluating candidate algorithms against a near-complete repertoire of variable disease morphologies. This parallel interrogation approach simplifies the evaluation, validation, and comparison of such candidate algorithms. A recently developed digital tool, digital core (dCORE), and image microarray maker (iMAM) enables the capture of uniformly sized and resolution-matched images, with these representing key morphologic features and fields of view, aggregated into a single monolithic digital image file in an array format, which we define as an image microarray (IMA). We further define the TMA-IMA construct as IMA-based images derived from whole slide images of TMAs themselves. Methods: Here we describe the first combined use of the previously described dCORE and iMAM tools, toward the goal of generating a higher-order image construct, with multiple TMA cores from multiple distinct conventional TMAs assembled as a single digital image montage. This image construct served as the basis of the carrying out of a massively parallel image analysis exercise, based on the use of the previously described spatially invariant vector quantization (SIVQ) algorithm. Results: Multicase, multifield TMA-IMAs of follicular lymphoma and follicular hyperplasia were separately rendered, using the aforementioned tools. Each of these two IMAs contained a distinct spectrum of morphologic heterogeneity with respect to both tingible body macrophage (TBM) appearance and apoptotic body morphology. SIVQ-based pattern matching, with ring vectors selected to screen for either tingible body macrophages or apoptotic bodies, was subsequently carried out on the differing TMA-IMAs, with attainment of excellent discriminant classification between the two diagnostic classes. Conclusion: The TMA-IMA construct enables and accelerates high-throughput multicase, multifield based image feature discovery and classification, thus simplifying the development, validation, and comparison of CAD algorithms in settings where the heterogeneity of diagnostic feature morphologic is a significant factor.
The role of the I/O psychologist in police psychology

This article explains the role of the industrial/organizational psychologist for students interested in a career in police psychology. The article describes what I/O psychologits do and the education and training necessary to enter this career field.
Effects of lidocaineine on hypoxic and ischemic cardiac cells

Abstract Cardiac cells severely affected by ischemia or hypoxia were exposed to lidocaineine in vitro while intracell and extracell potentials were recorded. Endocardial preparations dissected from normal dog hearts were superfused with physiologic solutions of low oxygen content until myocardial cells were partially depolarized and generated poor action potentials. Purkinje fibers were slightly altered. Epicardial preparations dissected from infarcted dog hearts to Include both normal and ischemic regions were superfused with physiologic solutions of normal oxygen content. The ischemic cells were partially depolarized and generated poor action potentials. In both types of preparations, conduction was very slow and irregular but abnormal automaticity was not observed with intracell recordings. However, abnormal spontaneous firing occurred. Lidocaineine in therapeutic concentrations (1.1 or 2.2 × 10−5 molar) invariably abolished propagated action potentials in severely affected cells and modestly reduced membrane responsiveness in cells that were nearly normal. Concomitantly, abnormal spontaneous beats disappeared with exposure to lidocaine. The recovery of responsiveness of abnormal cells was greatly prolonged by lidocaine and strength-interval curves were shifted upward and to the right. Tetrodotoxin (5 × 10−7 g/ml) markedly depressed or abolished the action potentials of the severely affected cells. It is concluded that lidocaine abolished abnormal spontaneous beats by extinguishing very slow conduction resulting from depressed fast channels.
Comfrey herb tea-induced hepatic veno-occlusive disease.

Cette observation decrit une maladie veino-occlusive provoquee par des thes aux herbes achetes dans un magasin de produits dietetiques et illustre la large utilisation des produits renfermant des alcaloides pyrrolizinodiniques meme dans les nations industrialisees
Antibiotics in the Treatment of Low-velocity Gunshot-induced Fractures: A Systematic Literature Review

Background Low-velocity gunshots are often associated with extremity fractures. There is no consensus, however, on the use of antibiotics for these injuries.
Education, outreach, and inclusive engagement: Towards integrated indicators of successful program outcomes in participatory science

The use and utility of science in society is often influenced by the structure, legitimacy, and efficacy of the scientific research process. Public participation in scientific research (PPSR) is a growing field of practice aimed at enhancing both public knowledge and understanding of science (education outreach) and the efficacy and responsiveness of scientific research, practice, and policy (participatory engagement). However, PPSR objectives focused on “education outreach” and “participatory engagement” have each emerged from diverse theoretical traditions that maintain distinct indicators of success used for program development and evaluation. Although areas of intersection and overlap among these two traditions exist in theory and practice, a set of comprehensive standards has yet to coalesce that supports the key principles of both traditions in an assimilated fashion. To fill this void, a comprehensive indicators framework is proposed with the goal of promoting a more integrative and synergistic PPS...
Accuracy of Noncycloplegic Retinoscopy, Retinomax Autorefractor, and SureSight Vision Screener for Detecting Significant Refractive Errors

Purpose. To evaluate, by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the ability of noncycloplegic retinoscopy (NCR), Retinomax Autorefractor (Retinomax), and SureSight Vision Screener (SureSight) to detect significant refractive errors (RE) among preschoolers.
The Future Workforce in Cancer Prevention: Advancing Discovery, Research, and Technology

As part of a 2-day conference on October 15 and 16, 2009, a nine-member task force composed of scientists, clinicians, educators, administrators, and students from across the USA was formed to discuss research, discovery, and technology obstacles to progress in cancer prevention and control, specifically those related to the cancer prevention workforce. This article summarizes the task force’s findings on the current state of the cancer prevention workforce in this area and its needs for the future. The task force identified two types of barriers impeding the current cancer prevention workforce in research, discovery, and technology from reaching its fullest potential: (1) limited cross-disciplinary research opportunities with underutilization of some disciplines is hampering discovery and research in cancer prevention, and (2) new research avenues are not being investigated because technology development and implementation are lagging. Examples of impediments and desired outcomes are provided in each of these areas. Recommended solutions to these problems are based on the goals of enhancing the current cancer prevention workforce and accelerating the pace of discovery and clinical translation.
ASHG Honors Its Own

The American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) has a rich history of honoring outstanding leaders in the science of human genetics through its awards program. The 2006 Awards Committee, chaired by David Valle, convened in May and reviewed nominations submitted from the membership. Each year, we seek to better engage ASHG members in this process. Other members of the Committee are Maureen Bocian; Michael Boehnke; Charis Eng; Jane Gitschier; Robert Nussbaum, ad hoc; and Stephen Warren, ex officio. They are pleased to announce the following winners.