cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
DISAIN PEMBELAJARAN ONLINE PADA ERA DAN PASCA COVID-19

Penelitian ini dilatarbelakangi situasi dan kondisi pada masa covid-19 mengharuskan setiap orang melakukan kegiatan di rumah. Pemerintah telah menetapkan policy bahwa semua masyarakat stay at home, termasuk kegiatan belajar, bekerja dan beribadah pun dilakukan dari rumah. Dengan instruksi di atas implikasi bagi kegiatan pembelajaran memerlukan disain pemnbelajan online untuk memastikan berlangsungnya pendidikan dengan baik. Metode penelitian dalam tulisan ini ialah studi kepustakaan dengan fokus menemukan model-model disain pembelajaran yang efektif dan dapat di gunakan pada era dan pasca covid-19. Hasil penelitian ini diharapkan mampu memberikan pilihan-pilihan model disain pembelajaran online kepada dosen sehingga mampu menyajikan pembelajaran secara efektif dan berkualitas.
SQUID Magnetometers for Depth-Selective, Oriented Eddy Current Imaging

Because of their unparallelled sensitivity, bandwidth, and spatial resolution, Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) magnetometers are unequalled in their ability to image the temporal and spatial variation of weak, low frequency magnetic field. For eddy current NDE, SQUIDs can be used with a low frequency excitation current to image cracks or material loss deep in aluminum structures. To detect the subsurface cracks adjacent to a fastener in multilayer aircraft structures, SQUID NDE measurements have utilized a sheet inducer [1] combined with depthselective techniques [2, 3], a gridiron coil inducer combined with pulsed eddy current techniques [4], and a double-D inducer [5].
Achieving Coordination in Agricultural Value Chains: The Role of Lead Agents and Multi-stakeholder Platforms

Value chains (VC) have become increasingly prevalent instruments through which smallholder farmers link to markets and potentially overcome market failures and government deficiencies that constrain their competitiveness. With multiple agents involved in the VC, coordination is important to invest in club goods and complementary private investments, engage in resource providing contracts, acquire shared competencies, and achieve high quality standards. Coordination can be facilitated by development agents and enhanced by increased payoffs from coordination and increased beliefs in coordination behavior. Coordination can be achieved through lead agents in the VC, either top-down by large commercial firms or bottom-up by producer organizations. It can also be achieved by multi-stakeholder platforms, either self-sustaining or prodded by public agencies and NGOs. We show through case studies that these multiple paths to coordination are indeed feasible. Abstract Value chains (VC) have become increasingly prevalent instruments through which smallholder farmers link to markets and potentially overcome market failures and government deficiencies that constrain their competitiveness. With multiple agents involved in the VC, coordination is important to invest in club goods and complementary private investments, engage in resource providing contracts, acquire shared competencies, and achieve high quality standards. Coordination can be facilitated by development agents and enhanced by increased payoffs from coordination and increased beliefs in coordination behavior. Coordination can be achieved through lead agents in the VC, either top-down by large commercial firms or bottom-up by producer organizations. It can also be achieved by multi-stakeholder platforms, either self-sustaining or prodded by public agencies and NGOs. We show through case studies that these multiple paths to coordination are indeed feasible.
Book Review: Gender and Judging

The recently published book Gender and Judging brings together a wide-ranging collection of scholarly works that together present the story of women’s difficulties in becoming judges, the degree to which they have in some ways overcome those difficulties, and the impact women have had on society in their role as judicial officers. It is a rich resource for those beginning study in this area, or continuing investigation of an evolving subject. The editors have done an admirable job treating a topic of this breadth and complexity in a single work. Confronted with a variety of articles written from multiple perspectives including differing legal systems, cultures, languages, and approaches, the editors have nonetheless provided an accessible and logically-structured work. The book is vast in scope, comprised of thirty contributions by thirtytwo scholars, of whom twenty-eight are female and four male. Nineteen countries from five continents are represented, covering both the common law and civil law systems. While no work as a practical matter can comprehensively embrace every aspect of this topic throughout the entire world, this volume presents works of sufficient diversity to provide the reader with an impressive cross-section of information.
Combinatorial resveratrol and quercetin polymeric micelles mitigate doxorubicin induced cardiotoxicity in vitro and in vivo

Doxorubicin hydrochloride (ADR) is an anthracycline antibiotic used to treat various cancers. However, due to its extensive cardiotoxic side effects a lifetime cumulative dose limit of 450-550 mg/m2 exists. The postulated mechanism of the cardiotoxicity is generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Natural products like resveratrol (RES), and quercetin (QUE) are known free radical scavengers and have shown cardioprotective effects. However, concurrent dosing of these natural products with ADR is limited due to their low solubility, and low oral bioavailability. We hypothesize that the combination of RES and QUE in Pluronic® F127 micelles (mRQ) when co-administered with ADR, will be cardioprotective in vitro and in vivo, while maintaining or increasing the efficacy of ADR against cancer cell lines in vitro. We prepared mRQ micelles capable of retaining 1.1mg/mL and 1.42 mg/mL of RES and QUE respectively. The in vitro release of RES and QUE from the micelles followed first order kinetics over 48h. In vitro cell viability and combination index analysis studies in human ovarian cancer cells (SKOV-3) and rat cardiomyocytes (H9C2) showed that RES:QUE: ADR at 10:10:1 ratio was synergistic in SKOV-3 cells and antagonistic in H9C2 cells. Caspase 3/7 activity studies indicated that mRQ did not interfere with ADR caspase activity in SKOV-3 cells but significantly decreased it in H9C2 cells. The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in SKOV-3 and H9C2 cells in the presence of mRQ also indicated no changes in ROS activity in SKOV-3 cells but significant scavenging in H9C2 cells. Healthy mice were exposed to acute doses of ADR and ADR with mRQ. Based on biochemical estimations the presence of mRQ with ADR conferred full cardioprotection in these mice. Concurrent administration of mRQ with ADR at 10:10:1 ratio provides a viable strategy to mitigate acute ADR induced cardiotoxicity.
Nasal Spray Desmopressin: Laboratory and Clinical Implications

Desmopressin (DDAVP), a synthetic analogue of vasopressin used as replacement therapy in diabetes insipidus, was shown in 1977 to be clinically effective in preventing bleeding in patients with mild or moderate hemophilia A or von Willebrand disease (vWD)(1). Subsequent investigations confirmed these initial findings (2–4). Intravenous (IV) infusion of 0.3 ug/kg DDAVP typically causes 3- to 5-fold rises of Factor VIII activity (FVIII: C), von Willebrand antigen (vWAg) and Ristocetin cofactor activity (vWF) over baseline levels and can correct the Bleeding Time (BT). An individual patient’s responses to DDAVP are usually consistent on different occasions, although there may be substantial variations among patients; a test infusion is recommended to assess effectiveness prior to elective treatment. The endogenously released FVIII: C and vWF are hemostatically and pharmacokinetically as effective as those obtained from exogenous infusion of plasma concentrates. Some patients treated with repeated doses of DDAVP more frequently than every 12 hrs over several days may develop tachyphylaxis with reduced responsiveness in factor levels, although the response can be restored after several days rest.
Presynaptic mechanism for anti-analgesic and anti-hyperalgesic actions of κ-opioid receptors

Glutamate neurotransmission plays an important role in the processing of pain and in chronic opioid-induced neural and behavioral plasticity, such as opioid withdrawal and opioid dependence. Kappa-opioid receptors also have been implicated in acute opioid modulation of pain and chronic opioid-induced plasticity, both of which are primarily mediated by mu-opioid receptors. Using whole-cell patch clamp recordings in brain slices in vitro and system analysis of pain behaviors in rats in vivo, this study investigated the functional role of glutamate synaptic transmission and kappa-opioid receptors in two behavioral pain conditions: m-opioid-induced analgesia (decreased pain) and mu-opioid withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia (increased pain). In the nucleus raphe magnus (NRM), a brainstem structure that controls spinal pain transmission, we found that kappa-receptor agonists presynaptically inhibited glutamate synaptic currents in both of the two cell types that are thought to respectively inhibit or facilitate spinal pain transmission. In rats, both glutamate receptor antagonists and the kappa agonist microinjected into the NRM attenuated mu-opioid-induced analgesia, which is most likely mediated through activation of such pain-inhibiting neurons. However, during opioid abstinence-induced withdrawal, the same doses of glutamate receptor antagonists and the kappa agonist administered in the NRM suppressed the withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia, which is thought to be mediated by activation of those pain-facilitating neurons during opioid withdrawal. These results demonstrate that kappa-opioid receptors antagonize mu-receptor-induced effects in both analgesic and hyperalgesic states, and suggest inhibition of glutamate synaptic transmission as a presynaptic mechanism for the kappa antagonism of these two mu receptor-mediated actions.
Denitrification and Nitrogen Fixation in Alaskan Continental Shelf Sediments

Rates of nitrogen fixation and denitrification were measured in Alaskan continental shelf sediments. In some regions, rates of nitrogen fixation and denitrification appeared to be equal; in other areas, rates were significantly different. Potential rates of denitrification were found to be limited primarily by the available nitrate substrate. Major regional differences in rates of denitrification were not statistically significant, but significant differences were found for nitrogen fixation rates in different regions of the Alaskan continental shelf. Estimated net losses of nitrogen from Bering Sea sediments were calculated as 1.8 × 1012 g of N/yr. Experimental exposure of continental shelf sediments to petroleum hydrocarbons reduced rates of nitrogen fixation and denitrification in some cases but not others. Long-term exposure was necessary before a reduction in nitrogen fixation rates was observed; unamended rates of denitrification but not potential denitrification rates (NO3− added) were depressed after exposure to hydrocarbons.
Fair Use Across Time

This article proposes that, as a copyright work ages, the scope of fair use, at least as to derivative works and uses, should expand. This is because the market for a copyrighted work has a temporal dimension; the copyrighted work has a market of a fixed number of years. For example, in considering the fourth element of section 107 fair use, courts have discussed two kinds of situations in which the market for the plaintiff's work can be adversely affected: (a) situations where this particular defendant's action adversely affected the plaintiff's market, and (b) situations where the defendant's action, if it became widespread, would adversely affect the plaintiff's market. But in the second situation, when the alleged infringement occurs becomes important. The later the alleged infringement occurs in the copyright term, the less widespread the practice could become - when the market for the work is understood as a market across time. Further supports for the idea that fair use should become broader in the last period of the copyright term comes from the basic investment structure of copyrighted works.
Retinal Thickening and Photoreceptor Loss in HIV Eyes without Retinitis.

Author(s): Arcinue, Cheryl A; Bartsch, Dirk-Uwe; El-Emam, Sharif Y; Ma, Feiyan; Doede, Aubrey; Sharpsten, Lucie; Gomez, Maria Laura; Freeman, William R | Abstract: PurposeTo determine the presence of structural changes in HIV retinae (i.e., photoreceptor density and retinal thickness in the macula) compared with age-matched HIV-negative controls.MethodsCohort of patients with known HIV under CART (combination Antiretroviral Therapy) treatment were examined with a flood-illuminated retinal AO camera to assess the cone photoreceptor mosaic and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) to assess retinal layers and retinal thickness.ResultsTwenty-four eyes of 12 patients (n = 6 HIV-positive and 6 HIV-negative) were imaged with the adaptive optics camera. In each of the regions of interest studied (nasal, temporal, superior, inferior), the HIV group had significantly less mean cone photoreceptor density compared with age-matched controls (difference range, 4,308-6,872 cones/mm2). A different subset of forty eyes of 20 patients (n = 10 HIV-positive and 10 HIV-negative) was included in the retinal thickness measurements and retinal layer segmentation with the SD-OCT. We observed significant thickening in HIV positive eyes in the total retinal thickness at the foveal center, and in each of the three horizontal B-scans (through the macular center, superior, and inferior to the fovea). We also noted that the inner retina (combined thickness from ILM through RNFL to GCL layer) was also significantly thickened in all the different locations scanned compared with HIV-negative controls.ConclusionOur present study shows that the cone photoreceptor density is significantly reduced in HIV retinae compared with age-matched controls. HIV retinae also have increased macular retinal thickness that may be caused by inner retinal edema secondary to retinovascular disease in HIV. The interaction of photoreceptors with the aging RPE, as well as possible low-grade ocular inflammation causing diffuse inner retinal edema, may be the key to the progressive vision changes in HIV-positive patients without overt retinitis.
A comparison of existing tools for ontological analysis of gene expression data

Independent of the platform and the analysis methods used, the result of a microarray experiment is, in most cases, a list of differentially expressed genes. An automatic ontological analysis approach has been recently proposed to help with the biological interpretation of such results. Currently, this approach is the de facto standard for the secondary analysis of high-throughput experiments, and a large number of tools have been developed for this purpose. We present a detailed comparison of 14 such tools using the following criteria: scope of the analysis, visualization capabilities, statistical model(s) used, correction for multiple comparisons, reference microarrays available, installation issues, and sources of annotation data. This detailed analysis of the capabilities of these tools will help researchers choose the most appropriate tool for a given type of analysis. Keywords: functional profiling; ontological analysis; Gene Ontology; gene expression data
Development of New Intensive Hatchery Methods for Rosy Red Fathead Minnow

Abstract Fathead minnow Pimephales promelas farming practices have remained relatively unchanged for decades. To develop new intensive hatchery methods for the rosy red fathead minnow (a color variant of the fathead minnow), we evaluated spawning substrate preferences, egg mimics, anti-fungal treatments for eggs, and fry stocking densities. Rosy red fathead minnow laid significantly more eggs on a single-layer substrate than on a multilayered substrate but showed little preference between a firm substrate and a flexible substrate. The fish strongly preferred nesting substrates with glass-bead egg mimics over plain (control) substrates or substrates with painted-dot mimics. Eggs treated with chemicals (formalin or hydrogen peroxide at 500, 1,000, or 1,500 mg/L) had higher hatch rates (62.3–81.7%) than did controls (34.3%). The once-daily hydrogen peroxide treatment was equally effective as multiple applications (2–3 applications/d) and resulted in fewer deformities. When newly hatched rosy red fathead minn...
Ethanol inhibits C6 cell growth: fetal alcohol syndrome model.

Maternal consumption of ethanol produces a pattern of malformations, including nervous system abnormalities, in the developing fetus, a state called Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. We report the dose-dependent inhibition by ethanol of the growth of a glioma derived cell line, C6 cells; the effects occur at ethanol concentrations commonly encountered in the blood during human intoxication. The effects occur with different morphological subtypes of the cell line and do not occur when the cells are exposed to iso-osmolar concentrations of other chemicals. The results demonstrate that c6 cells are a model for the study of the effects of ethanol on nervous system cell growth.
The Repertoire of Human Antibody to the Haemophilus influenzae Type b Capsular Polysaccharide

Human antibody to the Haemophilus influenzae capsular polysaccharide (Hib CP) is restricted in diversity in the individual and the population with a limited number of variable region genes encoding antibody. Antibody to the Hib CP shows restricted isoelectric focusing gel patterns and light chain usage with frequent restriction to use of only kappa light chains. Shared cross-reactive idiotypes are expressed on antibody. The heavy chain of antibody to the Hib CP is predominantly encoded by two members of the VH3 family—LSG 6.1/M85-like and VH26/30P1-like. In VH the CDR1, based on complete identity in LSG 6.1/M85-like antibodies, CDR2, based on the suggestion of mutation in this region, and CDR3, based on conserved CDR3 usage in unrelated individuals, may be important for antigen binding. Six or more different VL gene families encode antibody. The predominant antibody of the majority of individuals uses the A2-VκII gene in germline or near germline configuraion, which encodes an idiotype designated Hibld-1....
Endocytosis and Lysosomal Targeting of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptors Are Mediated by Distinct Sequences Independent of the Tyrosine Kinase Domain

Ligand-induced internalization of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) leads to accelerated receptor degradation. Two models have been proposed to explain this. In the first model, induced internalization expands the intracellular pool of receptors, leading to enhanced lysosomal targeting. The second model proposes that activation of intrinsic receptor kinase activity induces inward vesiculation of endosomes, thus interrupting receptor recycling. To test these models, we created EGFR mutants that lack the conserved tyrosine kinase domain, but retain different parts of the distal carboxyl terminus regulatory region. Mutants lacking all distal regulatory sequences underwent slow internalization (0.02 min−1) and turnover (t1/2∼ 24 h), similar to unoccupied, holo-EGFR. Mutant receptors that lacked the kinase domain, but retained the entire distal regulatory domain, were constitutively internalized and targeted to lysosomes, even in the absence of EGF. The turnover of these receptors (t1/2∼ 11 h) was similar to that of occupied, kinase-active holo-EGFR (t1/2∼ 9.5 h). These results show that receptor tyrosine kinase activity is not required for the targeting of EGFR to lysosomes. Receptor mutants which expressed previously identified endocytic sequences underwent rapid internalization. Unexpectedly, enhanced turnover of EGFR mutants required additional sequences located between residues 945 and 991 in the holo-EGFR. Thus, internalization and lysosomal targeting of EGFR are separate processes mediated by distinct sequences. Our results indicate that induced internalization is necessary, but not sufficient, for enhanced EGFR degradation. Instead, down-regulation requires exposure of previously cryptic internalization and lysosomal targeting sequences. Occupied EGFR thus appear to be handled by the endocytic machinery in the same fashion as other constitutively internalized or lysosomally targeted receptors.
Cost-efficiency trade-off and the design of thermoelectric power generators.

The energy conversion efficiency of today’s thermoelectric generators is significantly lower than that of conventional mechanical engines. Almost all of the existing research is focused on materials to improve the conversion efficiency. Here we propose a general framework to study the cost-efficiency trade-off for thermoelectric power generation. A key factor is the optimization of thermoelectric modules together with their heat source and heat sinks. Full electrical and thermal co-optimization yield a simple analytical expression for optimum design. Based on this model, power output per unit mass can be maximized. We show that the fractional area coverage of thermoelectric elements in a module could play a significant role in reducing the cost of power generation systems.
Hard thermal loops, static response, and the composite effective action

First, we investigate the static non-Abelian Kubo equation. We prove that it does not possess finite energy solutions; thereby we establish that gauge theories do not support hard thermal solitons. This general result is verified by a numerical solution of the equations. A similar argument shows that static'' instantons are absent. In addition, we note that the static equations reproduce the expected screening of the non-Abelian electric field by a gauge-invariant Debye mass [ital m]=[ital gT] [radical]([ital N]+[ital N][sub [ital F]]/2)/3 . Second, we derive the non-Abelian Kubo equation from the composite effective action. This is achieved by showing that the requirement of stationarity of the composite effective action is equivalent, within a kinematical approximation scheme, to the condition of gauge invariance for the generating functional of hard thermal loops.
Natural immobilization of uranium by phosphate mineralization in an oxidizing saprolite–soil profile: chemical weathering of the Coles Hill uranium deposit, Virginia

Abstract Geochemical and mineralogical studies of the 15- to 20-m-thick soil and saprolite profile developed over the Coles Hill uranium deposit demonstrate that uranium transport may be inhibited or naturally attenuated by the precipitation of U(VI) phosphate minerals in oxidizing and saturated soil environments. This study examines geochemical conditions in which these secondary uranium phosphates are formed and remain stable for hundreds of thousands of years. We also describe geochemical conditions that may lead to their dissolution. The lower part of the weathering profile, which consists of groundwater saturated saprolite, contains up to 1300 mg/kg uranium (within the solid). This concentration is approximately 1.5 times greater than the average ore grade of the deposit, indicating that the saturated saprolites are enriched relative to the underlying primary ore. Uranium within this zone is dominantly associated with U(VI) phosphates of the meta-autunite mineral group. Groundwaters from this zone contain less than 14 μg/l uranium suggesting that the U(VI) phosphate minerals present within the Coles Hill saprolites are capable of buffering dissolved uranium concentrations to values significantly lower (by a factor of 2 or more) than the US-EPA maximum contaminant level of 30 μg/l. Above the water table, U(VI) phosphates of the type found in the saturated saprolite zone are not present, and the soil uranium concentration drops to an average value of 250 mg/kg. Thus, the zone of water table fluctuation represents a major transition zone in uranium mineralogy. Mineralogical characterization of the upper part of the profile suggests that geochemical conditions in the unsaturated zone are not conducive to uranium stabilization by meta-autunite group minerals. Uranium within the vadose zone, however, is associated with phosphate (e.g. Al phosphate minerals and sorption with phosphate to ferric oxyhydroxides). As a whole, the Coles Hill soil profile is interpreted to have reached a steady state with respect to uranium transport and immobilization. Results of this study suggest that uranium is leached from the unsaturated part of the profile (meta-autunite unstable) and reprecipitated below the water table where the measured activity ratio of dissolved phosphate to carbonate is higher. Based on estimates of weathering rates for this region, the processes responsible for the dispersal of uranium within the Coles Hill system are estimated to have been active on a time scale of hundreds of thousands of years. This system thus represents an excellent natural laboratory for understanding the long-term mineralogical and geochemical processes involved in the coupling of uranium and phosphorus in natural, fluid-rich systems.
A prospective study of reproductive history and exogenous estrogens on the risk of colorectal cancer in women.

Abstract Among 118,404 female registered nurses who responded to a mailed questionnaire and had no history of cancer in 1976, 191 colon cancers and 49 rectal cancers were diagnosed during 8 years of follow-up. We observed no material association between parity and colon cancer risk; women who bore four or more children had a risk similar to that of nulliparous women (age-adjusted RR = 1.1, 95% confidence limits (CL): 0.6, 1.9). No consistent patterns of colorectal cancer risk were associated with age at menarche or at first birth. Current or past use of oral contraceptives did not appreciably alter the risk of colorectal cancer; past use of postmenopausal estrogens was associated with a reduced risk of colorectal cancer (RR = 0.5, 95% CL: 0.3, 1.0). These and other data do not support any substantial effect of reproductive history or oral contraceptive use on the risk of large bowel cancer; however, the possible protective role of postmenopausal estrogen therapy merits further investigation.
An Improved Uniform-Size-Droplet Generator:

A new design is presented for a fixed-trajectory, uniform-size-droplet generator. This droplet generator is useful in a variety of scientific studies, one of which is of solute atomization in analytical flames. The improved droplet generator provides more stable droplet production, production of droplets over a wider range of sizes, and easier operation than earlier designs. Fabrication details are provided and performance of the new device is assessed.
Bold jaguars and unsuspecting monkeys: the value of fearlessness in Cofán politics

In their encounters with a globalizing political landscape, indigenous peoples enact and transform long-standing social relations. This article explores the struggle of Amazonian Ecuador's Cofan people to relate their socio-existential values to the challenges of political mobilization. I argue that distinct conceptions of ‘fearlessness’ structure the complex relationship between the majority of Cofan people and those morally ambivalent individuals, including shamans and federation leaders, who mediate the threats posed by impinging sources of violent difference. By employing a value-based approach to analyse this relationship, I seek to connect studies of indigenous social movements to investigations of indigenous socio-cosmological orders. Resume Dans leur rencontre avec un paysage politique globalise, les peuples autochtones pratiquent et transforment des relations sociales anciennes. L'auteur explore ici les efforts des Cofan d'Amazonie equatorienne pour lier leurs valeurs socio-existentielles aux defis de la mobilisation politique. Il avance que differentes conceptions de « l'intrepidite » structurent les relations complexes entre la majorite des Cofan et les individus moralement ambivalents, notamment les chamans et les chefs de federation, mediateurs des menaces exercees par les sources de difference violente. En utilisant une approche basee sur la valeur pour analyser cette relation, l'article cherche a faire le lien entre les etudes des mouvements sociaux autochtones et les investigations des ordres socio-cosmologiques indigenes.
Determining Bounds on Assumption Errors in Operational Analysis

The technique of operational analysis (OA) is used in the study of systems performance, mainly for estimating mean values of various measures of interest, such as, number of jobs at a device and response times. The basic principles of operational analysis allow errors in assumptions to be quantified over a time period. The assumptions which are used to derive the operational analysis relationships are studied. Using Karush-Kuhn-Tucker (KKT) conditions bounds on error measures of these OA relationships are found. Examples of these bounds are used for representative performance measures to show limits on the difference between true performance values and those estimated by operational analysis relationships. A technique for finding tolerance limits on the bounds is demonstrated with a simulation example.
Functional multiplicity of motor molecules revealed by a simple kinetic analysis

We present a simple analytical solution for a kinetic model of motor molecule function with multiple arms. This model has a rate of motion proportional to the probability that all arms in a complex are detached from the cytoskeleton and, therefore, we refer to it as obligate cooperativity. The model has the form: v = Vmax/(1 + q/S)n, where Vmax is the maximum velocity, the product nq is the effective Michaelis constant at high [ATP], and n is the number of arms. Values of n = 2 and n = 1 give good fits to the heavy meromyosin and myosin S1 sliding velocity data, respectively, consistent with the number of active sites. Despite the complexity of the eukaryotic axoneme, beat frequency data from Chlamydomonas wild-type and oda mutants are also fit by this model.
Blood coagulation and idiopathic thromboembolism among fertile women

A case-control study of fibrinolytic activity and antithrombin-III (AT-III) was conducted comparing 16 women within the childbearing ages who had a recent history of idiopathic thromboembolism to 29 age- and race-matched female controls without a history of thromboembolism. All subjects had stopped using oral contraceptives at least 12 months prior to study. No difference in AT-III was evident between cases and controls. The mean fibrinolytic response to venous occlusion in cases was significantly lower; however, baseline fibrinolysis was essentially identical. These data demonstrated a bimodal distribution of fibrinolytic response among controls. By dichotomizing fibrinolytic response between the two modes in the controls, we estimated that the rate of low fibrinolytic response was 6 times as frequent in cases as controls. Thus, low fibrinolytic response may signal a natural predisposition to thromboembolism which could be triggered by use of synthetic estrogens.
Less does more: Adapting pre-order searching to on-line cataloging

Abstract This article describes procedural changes introduced by the Acquisitions Department at the University of Delaware Library between November, 1973, when the library began to use the OCLC Cataloging System, and December, 1980. Many time-consuming manual operations required in the pre-order procedures in effect in 1973 have been eliminated or replaced with a single, multipurpose search of the On-Line Union Catalog. The minimum search required to support an order in 1973 consisted of five steps; the minimum now requires two steps. Post-receipt processing of monographic blanket and standing orders has been simplified by eliminating the name authority search and the typing of temporary in-process records prior to cataloging.
Current status of suture-mediated closure: what is the cost of comfort?

TWO articles in the current issue of JVIR contribute to the current understanding of suture-mediated closure devices. The first, by Wagner et al (1), describes an almost 5% risk of significant arterial complications after use of the Perclose device (Perclose, Redwood City, CA) in patients undergoing uterine artery embolization (UAE). Two patients in their trial required long-term anticoagulation and a third underwent a bypass with eventual amputation of a gangrenous toe. The second article, by Hoffman et al (2), describes reactive narrowing of 44.7% and 59.3% of the femoral artery immediately after deployment of the Perclose and SuperStitch (Sutura, Fountain Valley, CA) devices in a swine model. The spasm spontaneously resolved in all study animals, but the study provides insight regarding the potential human arterial response after deployment of a closure device. The use of percutaneous closure devices to manage femoral arteriotomies is booming. At least 30% among more than 500,000 femoral accesses per year in the United States are managed with either a suture-mediated or collagen-based closure device (3,4). Some authors advocate percutaneous closure of every arteriotomy (5–7). There are many purported advantages to suture-mediated closure. Patients may experience less discomfort, ambulate sooner, and be discharged earlier. Limiting recumbent time allows more schedule flexibility and can increase patient volume. Physicians or their assistants are freed from the drudgery of manual compression and are able to treat other patients. Patients prefer less recumbent time and those who have undergone both manual compression and suture-mediated closure favor the latter option by a large margin (3,8). However, suture-mediated closure is not risk-free. When resulting complications require surgical intervention, treatment is more complex and potentially more morbid than treatment of complications after manual compression (9–12). The decision to use a device to assist in patient comfort and physician efficiency is balanced by a small but finite risk of a major complication that potentially could be avoided with traditional postprocedural management. Therefore, appropriate indications for use of the Perclose device remain unclear. The qualities of an ideal closure device have been described (4). These include prompt, reliable hemostasis with ease of use, early patient ambulation and discharge, and cost-effectiveness without increasing complications. In light of the current articles, and to assist optimization of patient management, it is relevant to inquire how close suture-mediated closure is to the ideal.
Lessons from the Research on Paraprofessionals for Attendant Care in Children’s Mental Health

This article summarizes literature about paraprofessionals who assist children or families in the areas of mental health, education, or early childhood education, and focuses on three main questions: How effective are paraprofessionals?; what are the common and appropriate roles and responsibilities of paraprofessionals?; and what qualifications, training, and supervision are needed for paraprofessionals? Implications are inferred for a burgeoning new form of paraprofessional services: attendant care in community based mental health services for children. Lessons from existing literature can help mental health administrators and clinical supervisors at state and local levels to select, train, supervise, and evaluate attendant care workers.
Recertification in Internal Medicine: A Program of Continuous Professional Development

In 2000, the American Board of Internal Medicine introduced a second-generation recertification process that builds on the current knowledge-centered program by adding assessments of clinical and c...
Toxicologic effects of a high dose of thymidine in mice.

Abstract The pharmacologic effects and plasma concentrations produced by the ip administration of high doses of thymidine were determined in CDF1 mice. Within 15 min after the injection of thymidine at a dose of 4.075 g/kg (between LD0 and LD50), mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate fell precipitously and remained depressed for over 6 hr. During the experimental period, sedation and anuresis were also consistently observed in thymidine-treated mice. After a dose of 4.7 g/kg, millimolar plasma thymidine concentrations were maintained for 16 to 20 hr; by contrast, at a lower but nonlethal dose (3.8 g/kg), millimolar plasma thymidine concentrations were maintained for only 9 hr. It is suggested that sustained elevation of circulating thymidine in the range 1–10 m m for periods greater than 1 2 day may be associated with toxicity in mice.
DETERMINATION OF SPECIES COMPOSITION IN THE ENALLAGMA DAMSELFLY ASSEMBLAGES OF PERMANENT LAKES

In this study I investigated the important ecological interactions that contribute to maintaining a striking species distributional pattern for the Enallagma damselflies (Odonata: Coenagrionidae) among lakes that do and do not support fish populations. One group of Enallagma species is found as larvae only in lakes containing fish, while the remaining Enallagma species are found as larvae only in fishless lakes. I performed observational and experimental studies to evaluate the importance of water chemistry, competition among the Enallagma species, and predators of the Enallagma species in maintaining the two discrete assemblages. The results of observational studies suggested that water chemistry could not account for the pattern of species distributions, but that differences in predator compositions and competition among the Enallagma species may. Quantitative sampling indicated that dragonfly larvae were the most abundant invertebrate predator group in both lake types, with each lake type supporting a characteristic set of dragonfly species, as in the damselflies. Fish were also potentially major predators in lakes containing fish. Also, Enallagma densities in both lake types were among the highest reported in the literature, suggesting that density—dependent competitive interactions may potentially contribute to maintaining the Enallagma species distributions. The results of laboratory and field experiments demonstrated that predation by large dragonflies in fishless lakes and predation by fish in fish—containing lakes are two major environmental factors maintaining the Enallagma species distributions. When simultaneously offered two Enallagma species in the laboratory, one from the fishless lake group and one from the fish—containing lake group, fish consumed more individuals of species from the fishless lake group, but all dragonfly species, regardless of lake type affiliation, consumed more individuals of species from the fish—containing lake group. The results of field experiments in which I transplanted Enallagma species between the lake types showed that large dragonflies in fishless lakes and fish impose much greater mortality on Enallagma species with which they do not coexist than on those with which they do. Other field experimental results indicated that density—dependent competitive interactions among the Enallagma species were only apparent in the fishless lakes, affected species from both groups similarly, and altered their growth but not their survival. The results of this study are discussed in the context of overall community organization and the consequences to the evolution of species.
Energy variational principle for systems in magnetic fields: Application to the anisotropic harmonic oscillator

A method is developed for improving the trial wave function for a particle in a magnetic field when the Rayleigh-Ritz energy variational principle is used. The energy operator depends on the vector potential, which must be chosen in some gauge. The expectation value of the energy with respect to an arbitrary trial wave function depends on the gauge of the vector potential. When the trial wave function is used to calculate the current, the equation of continuity for charge conservation is not, in general, satisfied. The arbitrary trial wave function can be multiplied by a phase factor which depends on the spatial coordinates. When the energy expectation value is minimized with respect to the phase function, the equation for charge conservation is obtained. This equation can be solved for the phase function, and a solution used in the energy expectation value to obtain a lower energy which is also independent of the choice of the gauge of the vector potential. The method is illustrated by applying it to an anisotropic harmonic oscillator in a constant magnetic field.
A putatively novel form of spontaneous coordination in neural activity

We simultaneously recorded local field potentials from three sites along the olfactory-entorhinal axis in rats lightly anesthetized with isoflurane, as part of another experiment. While analyzing the initial data from that experiment with spectrograms, we discovered a potentially novel form of correlated neural activity, with near-simultaneous occurrence across the three widely separated brain sites. After validating their existence further, we named these events Synchronous Frequency Bursts (SFBs). Here we report our initial investigations into their properties and their potential functional significance. In Experiment 1, we found that SFBs have highly regular properties, consisting of brief (approximately 250 ms), high amplitude bursts of LFP energy spanning frequency ranges from the delta band (1-4 Hz) to at least the low gamma band (30-50 Hz). SFBs occurred almost simultaneously across recording sites, usually with onsets <25 ms apart, and there was no clear pattern of temporal leading or lagging among the sites. While the SFBs had fairly typical, exponentially decaying power spectral density plots, their coherence structure was unusual, with high peaks in several narrow frequency ranges and little coherence in other bands. In Experiment 2, we found that SFBs occurred far more often under light anesthesia than deeper anesthetic states, and were especially prevalent as the animals regained consciousness. Finally, in Experiment 3 we showed that SFBs occur simultaneously at a significant rate across brain sites from putatively different functional subsystems--olfactory versus motor pathways. We suggest that SFBs do not carry information per se, but rather, play a role in coordinating activity in different frequency bands, potentially brain-wide, as animals progress from sleep or anesthesia toward full consciousness.
Functional circuitry involved in the regulation of whisker movements.

Neuroanatomical tract-tracing methods were used to identify the oligosynaptic circuitry by which the whisker representation of the motor cortex (wMCx) influences the facial motoneurons that control whisking activity (wFMNs). Injections of the retrograde tracer cholera toxin subunit B into physiologically identified wFMNs in the lateral facial nucleus resulted in dense, bilateral labeling throughout the brainstem reticular formation and in the ambiguus nucleus as well as predominantly ipsilateral labeling in the paralemniscal, pedunculopontine tegmental, Kolliker-Fuse, and parabrachial nuclei. In addition, neurons in the following midbrain regions projected to the wFMNs: superior colliculus, red nucleus, periaqueductal gray, mesencephalon, pons, and several nuclei involved in oculomotor behaviors. Injections of the anterograde tracer biotinylated dextran amine into the wMCx revealed direct projections to the brainstem reticular formation as well as multiple brainstem and midbrain structures shown to project to the wFMNs. Regions in which retrograde labeling and anterograde labeling overlap most extensively include the brainstem parvocellular, gigantocellular, intermediate, and medullary (dorsal and ventral) reticular formations; ambiguus nucleus; and midbrain superior colliculus and deep mesencephalic nucleus. Other regions that contain less dense regions of combined anterograde and retrograde labeling include the following nuclei: the interstitial nucleus of medial longitudinal fasciculus, the pontine reticular formation, and the lateral periaqueductal gray. Premotoneurons that receive dense inputs from the wMCx are likely to be important mediators of cortical regulation of whisker movements and may be a key component in a central pattern generator involved in the generation of rhythmic whisking activity.
Pulse and staircase edge models

Present step and ramp edge models are inadequate for the edges detected by multi-resolution operators. Since the isolated edges rarely occur in the real scenes, we propose new edge models based on the pulse and staircase functions. In these models we include the effect of one edge on a neighboring edge. This effect propagates through to the higher operator sizes. Depending on the mutual polarities of the steps in the staircase and pulse functions, the edge points related to these discontinuities attract or repel each other when the operator size increases. In the case of staircase function, when the edge points attract each other at some scale they collapse into one.
Learning during audit tasks in the field: A model, methodology, and experiment

Learning during performance of auditing tasks in the field is modeled as a change in the state of an auditor's knowledge base that results from experience during performance of a task. Several hypotheses are proposed and, along with data obtained by means of behavior observation and concurrent verbal protocols, used to interpret the problem-solving behaviors of four first-year auditors who performed an unfamiliar but audit-related task in simulated auditing environments. Significant findings of learning during performance of the experimental task are reported. While the data show that the auditor-subjects continuously encountered new learning situations throughout the task, they are inconclusive regarding learning through improved knowledge content. On the other hand, significant evidence is found that the learning that did occur was manifest by a greater availability of the auditor-subjects' knowledge. The implications of these findings in terms of the nature of audit tasks and the development of more expert-like task behavior are discussed.
NF-KB INHIBITION PROTECTS AGAINST MYOCARDIAL ISCHEMIA/REPERFUSION INJURY VIA ACTIVATION OF ANTIAPOPTOTIC SIGNALING

The molecular details of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kB) signaling during myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury remain poorly understood. We hypothesized that inhibition of NF-kB would prevent cell death. We used transgenic mice overexpressing a mutant IkBα with consequent cardiac-specific
PSYCHOSOCIAL CORRELATES OF SHORT STATURE

Prior studies associating short stature in adolescence with difficulties in the areas of self esteem, peer interaction, and acaaemic performance have been inconclusive. We collected questionnaire data on parental perception of their child's health, growth, ease of making friends, and grade placement, and the youth's self esteem, and satisfaction with growth in 42 consecutive male endocrine clinic patients (ages 12-17) for whom short stature was identified as the presenting problem. Self esteem was measured by the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale. All other responses were compared with answers of National Health Examination Survey (NHES) participants comparable for age and SES (Cycle III, 1966-1970). Compared to short (<5th percentile) NHES adolescents, our parents: 1) more often rated their child's general health as poor or fair (14% vs. 0); 2) felt their children make friends less easily (34 vs. 14%); and 3) were much more dissatisfied with the youth's height and weight (50 vs. 30%) and rate of physical growth (90 vs. 30%). Both our adolescents and the short NHES youth were similar in their marked dissatisfaction with their height (92 and 83%). There was no difference on the self esteem measure. These data indicate that pediatricians must be aware of the increased frequency of concern among parents whose adolescents present with short stature and the differences observed between our referral population and the NHES sample demonstrate that data derived from a referral population cannot be extrapolated to snort children in general.