cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evolution of rheological properties of the nanofluids composed of laponite particles and Mg–Fe layered double hydroxide nanosheets

Abstract The thixotropic clay suspensions composed of laponite particles and Mg–Fe layered double hydroxide nanosheets were examined. By adding a very small amount of the layered double hydroxide nanosheets overall rheological properties of the host laponite suspension have been changed. Though the particle concentration of the mixture suspension is only about 1 wt%, the mixture quickly becomes a gel in a day by the electrostatic attraction between nano-materials. When a constant shear rate is applied to the mixture gel suspension, at short time, stress increases linearly with elastic deformation of the mixture. Beyond the maximum of stress, while the solid-like gel structure is being broken down with time of shearing, the stress increases again by reflecting shear enhanced association of solid phase. This is likely that the mixture suspension shows partially the behavior of memory effect.
Emergence of a market for southwest airlines frequent flyer awards

The Internet has facilitated the emergence of a secondary market for Southwest Airlines flight tickets awarded by its frequent flyer program. Possible reasons for the existence of this market are explored, because Southwest bans the sale of these travel vouchers. With data from eBay auctions, hedonic regression results show that a later expiration date, no blackout dates, and the inclusion of drink coupons have positive effects on the prices of these vouchers. Additional security fees and whether a voucher is in paper or electronic form do not appear to affect the price. It is calculated that by selling the voucher, the seller receives, on average, a $34 rebate on each round-trip flight traveled on Southwest.
Single-photon detectors for ultra-low-voltage time-resolved emission measurements of VLSI circuits

Using Time Resolved Emission (TRE) to measure electrical signals inside VLSI CMOS circuits in a non-invasive fashion is a very powerful technique. However, node scaling and the related supply voltage reduction have created significant challenges. In this paper, we investigate the limits of established and prototype single photon detectors for future low voltage applications. In particular the performances of a state of the art InGaAs Single Photon Avalanche Photodiode (SPAD) and Superconducting Single-Photon Detector (SSPD) are reported and compared for low voltage applications using test vehicles fabricated in IBM 65 nm and 45 nm SOI technologies.
Carcinoma arising in an lleostomy stoma. An unusual complication of adenomatous polyposis coli

A patient with adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) without extraintestinal lesions is presented. The clinical course was complicated by rectal adenocarcinoma following subtotal colectomy. A primary adenocarcinoma arising in a villous adenoma within the ileostomy stoma developed seven years later. The varied pathology of gastric and small intestinal involvement in APC/Gardner's syndrome is reviewed. Greater awareness of these lesions has implications for further management.
Quantitation and characterization of a newly described organic anion binder by radioimmunoassay

Abstract We have recently identified a new group of proteins in rat liver cytosol which possess binding properties comparable to those of the glutathione- S -transferases, yet lack transferase activity. The bulk of organic anion binding in this fraction was associated with the tetrameric protein, designated the organic anion binder, molecular weight 34 000 (Sugiyama, Y., Yamada, T. and Kaplowitz, N. (1982) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 709, 342–352). In order to determine its tissue distribution and molecular forms, a sensitive and specific radioimmunoassay was developed. Gel filtration of rat liver and kidney cytosol demonstrated only one peak of organic anion binder-like immunoreactivity corresponding to a molecular weight of 35 000. Organic anion binder-like immunoreactivity was present in 14 separate tissues. The greatest concentration of the organic anion binder was found in the liver and kidney cytosol, where it constituted 0.5% of the cytoplasmic proteins. Similar hepatic contents were noted for female and male rats. The content of the organic anion binder in the liver and kidney were low in the fetus, but approached adult levels by 2–4 weeks of age. Treatments known to augment hepatic glutathione- S -transferases content had minimal effect on organic anion binder content. In summary, the organic anion binder is a newly recognized cytosolic binding protein, distinct from the glutathione- S -transferases, present in greatest concentration in the liver and kidney. The combination of the protein's binding properties along with its location and ontogeny suggests its possible role in intracellular organic anion transport.
Influence of Win-Loss Ratio on Performance, Satisfaction and Preference for Opponents.

Abstract Hypotheses about the preference for opponents in competitive situations, about performance under various win-loss ratios, and about task and opponent satisfaction under various win-loss ratios were tested. A 5 × 5 latin square with four replications and a repeated measure factor of trials was the design used with 20 female college students as subjects. The five different win percents were W 10 , W 30 , W 50 , W 70 , and W 90 . A manipulative maze task was used with subjects receiving 20 trials against each of five confederate opponents. Results indicated that (a) when a person knows little or nothing about her ability level she initially prefers to compete with opponents of low ability but with each subsequent contest opponents of higher ability levels are preferred; (b) subjects performed better in the W 50 condition; (c) task satisfaction is higher when the percent of wins is equal to or greater than the percent of losses; and (d) opponent satisfaction is greater for opponents who perform equal to or better than the subject.
Testing of dry powder aerosol formulations in different environmental conditions

Dry powder aerosol performance of albuterol and albuterol sulfate from a model dry powder inhaler (DPI) was studied under varying environmental conditions using a twin stage impinger (TSI). Pure micronized drug was metered into the DPI and the loaded inhaler inserted into the inlet of the TSI housed in a pre-equilibrated environmental chamber. After 3 min, the drug was aerosolized at 60 1/min for 20 s. Washings from the DPI and TSI were analyzed by UV spectroscopy. Temperature and relative humidity (RH) were varied (20, 30 and 45°C; 30–95% RH). Drug collected in stage 2 of the TSI was expressed as fine particle dose or fine particle percent of either the loaded dose or the amount emitted from the mouthpiece of the DPI. These values decreased with increasing relative humidity for both albuterol and albuterol sulfate at any given temperature with differences being more marked at higher temperatures. For example, at 30°C, the mean(experimental range) fine particle percent of the emitted dose of albuterol sulfate was 59.4(3.1) and 35.8(5.7)% at 43 and 85% RH, respectively, n = 3 (p < 0.05). Increasing temperature also resulted in diminished aerosol performance. These differences were more marked for albuterol sulfate. The fine particle percent of the emitted dose of albuterol base was always greater than that of albuterol sulfate under similar environmental conditions. The reverse was true when fine particle percents of the loaded dose were considered because only 32 +- 6.6% of the loaded albuterol was emitted from the inhaler as compared to 58.5 +- 6.3% of albuterol sulfate mean +- SD, n = 27). There is a need, in some circumstances, to define specific ranges of temperature and humidity for the testing of dry powder aerosols.
Full vectorial eigenmode analysis of VCSELs: threshold gain values and modal frequencies

A complete theoretical approach to the electromagnetic properties of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) is presented. The Maxwell's equations are solved by using the local mode expansion technique. The transverse components of the electromagnetic field in each layer of the cavity are expressed in terms of complete set of orthogonal local modes. Matching these components at each boundary yields the vectorial transform matrix of the structure. The cavity eigenmodes are found from the condition of vanishing in-coming amplitudes. Results for the characterization of laser modes include modal frequencies, threshold gains and eigenmode light-field vector patterns. The influence of scattering losses on threshold gain values as a function of VCSEL radius, model order and number of dielectric layers are discussed.
Assessing the effect of changes in housing costs on food insecurity

In this paper, we examine whether changes in housing costs lead to changes in rates of food insecurity for economically vulnerable families. We use data on a national, longitudinal sample of young families with children merged with data on housing (rental) costs at the state, metropolitan statistical area, and county levels (2001–2003). Focusing on families near or at the poverty level and using household fixed effects, we demonstrate that increased housing costs over this time period have indeed increased rates of food insecurity. Our preferred results suggest that a $500 increase in yearly rental costs is associated with nearly a 3% increase in food-insecurity rates (10% relative increase). We show that our measure of rental costs seems to affect only the food insecurity of renters and not that of poor low-income home owners, suggesting the validity of our methods and robustness of the findings. We also look at selected subgroups (e.g., food stamp recipients, individuals receiving housing subsidies) and...
Roughness Scaling of Fracture Surfaces in Polycrystalline Materials

The roughness scaling of fracture surfaces in two-dimensional grain boundary networks is studied numerically. Grain boundary networks are created using a Metropolis method in order to mimic the triple junction distributions from experiments. Fracture surfaces through these grain boundary networks are predicted using a combinatorial optimization method of maximum flow - minimum cut type. We have preliminary results from system sizes up to N = 22500 grains suggesting that the roughness scaling of these surfaces follows a random elastic manifold scaling exponent {zeta} = 2/3. We propose a strong dependence between the energy needed to create a crack and the special boundary fraction. Also the special boundaries at the crack and elsewhere in the system can be tracked.
Acute exposure to naphthalene reduces oxyregulating capacity of the brown shrimp, Penaeus aztecus , subjected to progressive hypoxia

The brown shrimp, Penaeus aztecus, in the northern Gulf of Mexico is faced with dual stresses of environmental hypoxia, which occurs as a result of oxygen depletion from microbial decomposition of organic materials from algal blooms, and pollution from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from petroleum and gas production on the continental shelf of the northern Gulf of Mexico. This study investigated the effect of naphthalene, a PAH, on oxyregulating capacity of P. aztecus, when shrimps were subjected to progressive hypoxia. It was found that P. aztecus is an oxyregulator with a critical oxygen concentration of 2.53 mg/l at 19–21°C, below which the animal becomes an oxyconformer. Acute exposure to naphthalene at 2.0 mg/l significantly reduced the oxyregulating capacity by 112%. This is the first report on the alteration of an aquatic animal’s oxyregulating capacity by a PAH. Possible mechanism for the impaired oxyregulation in the presence of naphthalene was discussed.
Revictimizing the Victims? Interviewing Women About Interpersonal Violence

Research on women's experiences of interpersonal violence has grown dramatically and, as a result, the ethical issues surrounding this research are a concern. Although regulatory procedures ensure that research participants are protected from undue risk, little is known about the impact of victimization research on participants. In this study, the authors examine the differences in the abilities of a "vulnerable" population (142 incarcerated women) to complete interviews about the extent and nature of their violent experiences. Using quantitative and qualitative analysis, the authors assess whether the prevalence and incidence of women's victimization experiences, other stressful life events, and personal backgrounds are related to response rates to specific questions and completion rates. The authors find that the cumulative effect of violence over the life course has a significant relationship to women's disclosure of sensitive issues and that providing multiple avenues for disclosure of prior victimization is critical for facilitating a positive outcome for research participants.
"Puzzling pain conditions": a puzzling article.

When I realize I am in pain, at least three things are happening: 1) I have a sensation of the pain, which usually is quite keen but sometimes can be vague. In any event, the sensation and my raw feeling of it are one and the same. In fact, the dependent clause of my opening sentence, “When I realize I am in pain,” goes contrary to the way we normally talk about pain. I don’t turn to my friend and say, “You know what? I’m ‘realizing’ that I’m in pain.” The pain experience is usually so direct—that is, it hurts such that a pain that didn’t hurt would be very odd—that perhaps the best way to declare it is to say simply but ungrammatically, “I pain.” 2) A very complex neurophysiological process is at work that neuroscientists tell us is causing the pain feeling. This process is mediated by a host of neural transmissions to and from the brain and the pain causing stimulus, or the “physical disturbance” as the authors of this article put it, that are ultimately interpreted in the brain as pain. 3) In addition to its purely felt quality, pain is also representational in that it signals an affected body part. I believe this article is flawed in that it frequently conflates these different pain phenomena such that rather than clarifying the very tricky and often confounding language we use to speak about pain, we instead get numerous confusions that not only do not clear things up but that sometimes fly in the face of what we presently hold to be scientifically true. I shall justify my criticisms by citing specific passages in the article that I find confusing or unhelpful. I do want to congratulate this journal, however, for its interest in a philosophical approach …
Figurative Dream Analysis and U.S. Traveling Identities

Abstract Many psychologists and anthropologists argue that dreams depict people's sense of self. Here I offer a method of interpreting dream collections that regards major dream figures as alluding to cultural self-models—"figurative analysis." In figurative analysis, an ethnographer reviews a dream collection for figures that are salient, ambiguous, and of major significance in the culture. Ambiguity, I argue, indicates that a figure and concomitant self-model are in a moment of historical transformation and also that they are likely to be undergoing cultural work in the dreams of group members. In turn, group members' dreams reveal a range of orientations to these self-models and their vicissitudes in the psychology and lives of individuals. In spring and fall 2004, I collected over 300 dream accounts in an undergraduate university class in the United States. Cars emerged as a major figure, one characterized by ambiguity and configuring a "traveling" self-model. Through the investigation of the car self-model and related traveling identities in dreams, I illustrate figurative analysis.
Functional Consequences of Malnutrition

Human factors likely to be related to dietary intake and regarded as important across cultures and time are disease response, reproductive competence, cognitive function, work output, and social and behavioral habits. Functional failure in these domains is seen as having profound effects on health and demography. Most investigators who have examined issues of food intake and human function have accepted some indicator of an individual's body size as a measure for malnutrition. Anthropometric indicators, such as weight/age, weight/height, or height/age, are most commonly used. Unfortunately, body size reflects many other factors in addition to malnutrition. Because food intake is seldom known, it is difficult to estimate the amount of variation in size due either to nutrition or to other factors. The tacit assumption is that, within a given milieu, conditioning factors are reasonably constant and that differences in size not attributable to conditioning factors are due to differences in intake of nutrients. Thus, persons of larger stature generally appear to function better than persons of smaller stature, with respect to reproductive and disease competencies, work performance, and cognitive ability. Evidence from studies in humans also shows that food deprivation affects ability to produce healthy babies, physical performance, mental attitude, and disease experience, irrespective of body size. Communities that have evolved under conditions of recurrent scarcity will have developed and accepted what are seen to be the lowest-risk strategies for coping with the immediate and longer-range problems of survival. Because the cost of failure is perceived to be high, there will be pressure against innovation. This tendency to avoid risk-taking, in turn, may be among the grave effects of chronic food deprivation, even when deprivation is not severe.
The Design and Implementation of Service Reservations in Real-Time SOA

Service-oriented architecture (SOA) provides the flexibility of dynamically composing business processes in enterprise computing. However, they must be enhanced to support real-time activities in future SOA applications such as media streaming, control applications, cyber-physical, and intelligent vehicle systems. In this paper, we present the RT-Llama SOA middleware to support predictability in real-time processes. Given a user-specified service process and deadline, the RT-Llama resource management system will reserve resources in advance for each service in the process to ensure the process can meet its end-to-end deadline. RT-Llama provides a global resource manager (GRM) to compose and reserve services in a business process. The GRM is facilitated by an efficient data structure that keeps track of the utilization of local resources. The data structure, called dTBTree, is updated by each local resource manager (LRM) periodically and cached in the Host Utilization Repository in GRM. We have implemented RT-Llama's resource management components so that they can efficiently adapt to dynamic real-time environments.
Engrafted human stem cell–derived hepatocytes establish an infectious HCV murine model

The demonstrated ability to differentiate both human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) into hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs) holds great promise for both regenerative medicine and liver disease research. Here, we determined that, despite an immature phenotype, differentiated HLCs are permissive to hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and mount an interferon response to HCV infection in vitro. HLCs differentiated from hESCs and hiPSCs could be engrafted in the liver parenchyma of immune-deficient transgenic mice carrying the urokinase-type plasminogen activator gene driven by the major urinary protein promoter. The HLCs were maintained for more than 3 months in the livers of chimeric mice, in which they underwent further maturation and proliferation. These engrafted and expanded human HLCs were permissive to in vivo infection with HCV-positive sera and supported long-term infection of multiple HCV genotypes. Our study demonstrates efficient engraftment and in vivo HCV infection of human stem cell-derived hepatocytes and provides a model to study chronic HCV infection in patient-derived hepatocytes, action of antiviral therapies, and the biology of HCV infection.
Descriptive terminology of the phasmid egg capsule, with an extended key to the phasmid genera based on egg structure

An attempt is made to standardize further the descriptive terminology of the phasmid egg capsule by introducing stricter definitions and standard abbreviations. In addition, the various forms of the internal micropylar plate are categorized. Eophasma Sellick is replaced by Eophasmodes nov.n. A key to 131 generic forms of these eggs is provided. Where more than one egg form is associated with a genus, a diagnosis of the subgroups is provided.
Can Handling E85 Motor Fuel Cause Positive Breath Alcohol Test Results

Hand-held breath alcohol analyzers are widely used by police in traffic stops of drivers suspected of driving while intoxicated (DWI). E85 is a motor fuel consisting of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline or other hydrocarbons, and is available at nearly 2,600 stations in the USA. We sought to determine whether handling E85 fuel could produce measurable breath alcohol results using a hand-held analyzer and to see if this would be a plausible explanation for a positive breath alcohol test. Five healthy adult subjects dispensed or transferred 8 US gallons of E85 fuel in each of four scenarios. We measured breath alcohol concentration in g/210 L of exhaled breath using the BACTrack S50 at 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 15 and 20 min after each fuel-handling scenario. Most of the subjects had no detectable breath alcohol after handling E85 motor fuel. Transient elevations (0.02-0.04 g/210 L) in breath alcohol measurement occurred up to 6 min after handling E85 in a minority of subjects. We conclude that it is unlikely that handling E85 motor fuel would result in erroneous prosecution for DWI.
The relationship between insulin-like growth factor-I, adiposity, and aging.

Aging is associated with both a relative accumulation of body fat and a reduction in growth hormone (GH) secretion. This study was devised to investigate the relationship between plasma insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), an index of GH secretion, and anthropometric indices of body fat in normal subjects of various ages. Somatic and biochemical indices of nutrition were assessed in 107 subjects between the ages of 17 and 83 years who attended an outpatient clinic for general health supervision. Plasma IGF-I correlated negatively with age in both males (r = -.44, P = .001) and females (r = -.40, P = .005). In addition, plasma IGF-I correlated negatively with body mass index (BMI) (r = .35, P = .006), percentage of standard triceps skinfold (TSF) (r = -.26, P = .05), and percentage of standard weight (r = -.35, P = .006) in males, but not in females. Multiple regression analysis indicated that in males, BMI and percentage of standard weight correlated with plasma IGF-I independent of the effect of age. We conclude that adiposity and aging are independently associated with decreased plasma IGF-I concentrations. The negative correlations between indices of adiposity and IGF-I were observed only in males, whereas the age-associated decline in IGF-I was present in both males and females. We speculate that sex differences in the gonadal steroid milieu, combined with declining GH secretion in both sexes, may contribute to the age-associated development of obesity in males.
Teacher Quality, Opportunity Gap, and National Achievement in 46 Countries:

The 2003 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study data from 46 countries showed that, although the national level of teacher quality in the United States was similar to the international average, the opportunity gap in students’ access to qualified teachers between students of high and low socioeconomic status (SES) was among the largest in the world. Cross-national analyses revealed that the countries with better teacher quality produced higher mathematics achievement. However, larger opportunity gaps in access to qualified teachers did not predict larger achievement gaps between high-SES and low-SES students cross-nationally. These analyses provide empirical, cross-national evidence of the importance of investing in teacher quality for improving national achievement. National policies and practices related to improving teacher quality appear to be a promising area for future research to identify how other countries have achieved both excellence and equity in student achievement.
Waiting to decide helps in the face of probabilistic uncertainty but not delay uncertainty.

A first-person shooter video game was adapted for the study of causal decision making within dynamic environments. Participants chose which of three potential targets in each of 21 groups was producing distal explosions. The source of the explosion effect varied in the delay between the firing of its weapon and its effect (0.0, 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 s), the probability that the weapon caused the effect (50%, 75%, and 100%), and the occurrence of auditory events that filled the delay. In Experiment 1, participants’ choice accuracy was highest with short delays but was not affected by probability; participants often compensated for lower probability by increasing their latencies, and thus the number of outcomes sampled. In Experiment 2, a broad range of delays (0–2 s) and probabilities (20%–100%) were randomly sampled for each cause; the results largely replicated those of the prior experiment. The experiments demonstrate people’s ability to successfully modulate their environmental sampling in the face of uncertainty due to lower cause–effect probabilities, but not in the presence of longer cause–effect delays.
PLATO: A computer-based system used in the engineering of education

Research results obtained with the PLATO computer-based education systems, developed at the University of Illinois, indicate that computer technology can be effectively applied to some of the problems of our present educational system. The research results and system designs reported are based upon studies in computer-based education which have included over 150 000 student contact hours of credited instruction in a variety of subjects and educational levels. The discussions concerning computer-based instruction are divided into two major areas: first, the science of computer-based education and second, the engineering of computer-based education. Also included are a description of some new hardware developments which are necessary to the realization of an economically viable system, and a discussion of the economic and educational considerations which should influence the design of any computer-based education system.
Dampening NF-κB Signaling by “Self-Eating”

Activation of NF-κB transcription factor is crucial for survival, proliferation, and differentiation of T cells. In this issue of Immunity, Paul et al. (2012) demonstrate that autophagy is a pathway by which TCR-activated NF-κB is turned over.
A new Bonner-sphere set for high energy neutron measurements: Monte Carlo simulation

The usual Bonner sphere set consists of six to eight high density polyethylene spheres with diameters varying from 3 to 12 inches. Either a BF/sub 3/ counter, LiI scintillator, or /sup 3/He detector is located at the center of each sphere to detect the moderated neutrons. The responses of these spheres for high energy neutrons are very low even for the largest 12 inch sphere. To increase the response for high energy neutrons, high Z material such as Pb, W, TI, or Au can be added to the sphere to utilize the (n,xn) reaction of these materials. Monte Carlo simulations for the Pb-added case with a /sup 3/He detector as an example will be presented. The response at high energy for this case is enhanced by a factor of 5 to 8 depending upon the sphere diameter. >
Contemporary Varieties of Ethical Leadership in Organizations

Classical ethics perspectives are generally sorted into the virtue, deontological, or teleological approaches, also known as the character, means (duty), and ends (greatest good) schools of ethical thought. In recent decades, the catalog of literature extolling the various types of ethical leadership has proliferated. Analysis of the six major contemporary ethical leadership perspectives that follow reveals that they can be grouped into “scientific” articulations of three dominant classical distinctions. That is, the personal integrity and authentic/positive leadership models can be seen as classic virtue approaches, looking to the individual as the primary locus of ethical action. Moral management and professionally-grounded leadership can be seen as classic deontological approaches, focusing on society’s rules and roles, as spelled out through compliance or professional education. Finally, variants of the socially responsible leader and transforming leadership models can be seen as classic teleological approaches, emphasizing broad shareholder inclusiveness with “greatest-good” assumptions. Critique of each of the various varieties of ethical leadership is also reviewed.
Delayed intrinsicoid deflection of the QRS complex is associated with sudden cardiac arrest.

Background Prolongation of initial ventricular depolarization on the 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG), or delayed intrinsicoid deflection (DID), can indicate left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH). The possibility that this marker could convey distinct risk of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) has not been evaluated. Objective To evaluate the association of DID and SCA in the community. Methods In the ongoing prospective, population-based Oregon Sudden Unexpected Death Study (Oregon SUDS; catchment area approximately 1 million), SCA cases were compared to geographic controls with no SCA. Archived ECGs (closest and unrelated to SCA event for cases) were evaluated for the presence of DID, defined as ≥0.05 second in leads V 5 or V 6 . Left ventricular (LV) mass and function were evaluated from archived echocardiograms. Results SCA cases (n = 272, 68.7 ± 14.6 years, 63.6% male) as compared to controls (n = 351, 67.6 ± 11.4 years, 63.3% male) were more likely to have DID on ECG (28.3% vs 17.1%, P = .001). DID was associated with increased SCA odds (odds ratio [OR] 1.92; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.31–2.81; P = .001), but showed poor correlation with LV mass and echocardiographic LVH (kappa 0.13). In multivariate analysis adjusted for clinical and ECG markers, reduced LV ejection fraction, and echocardiographic LVH, DID remained an independent predictor of SCA (OR 1.82; 95% CI 1.12–2.97; P = .016). Additionally, in a sensitivity analysis restricted to narrow QRS, DID and ECG LVH by voltage were each independently associated with SCA risk. Conclusion DID was associated with increased SCA risk independent of echocardiographic LVH, ECG LVH, and reduced LV ejection fraction, potentially reflecting unique electrical remodeling that warrants further investigation.
From Java to C# a workshop on the how, what, and why

The .NET platform is incredibly rich, allowing you to build a variety of applications with a multitude of languages. Using a common development environment, students can program in languages such as C#, VB, C++, F#, and Python, creating software with a range of interfaces (console, GUI and web) and functionality (scientific, database, distributed, service-oriented, game and robotic). Microsoft's flagship development environment, Visual Studio 2008, is freely-available to students via Microsoft's DreamSpark program, along with Windows, SQL Server, and Expression Studio. These same tools are available for a nominal fee to institutional departments through Microsoft's MSDN Academic Alliance. If you prefer, you can work outside of Visual Studio with command-line compilers, editors, and 3rd-party IDEs, or step off the Windows platform entirely and work with .NET on Linux, OS X or BSD using Mono.
Abstract P4-06-03: Targeting the insulin receptor with a small peptide (S961) in cancer

The insulin-like growth factor (IGF)/insulin receptors are members of the superfamily of growth factor receptor tyrosine kinases. The insulin and type I IGF-I receptors (IGF-1R) have very similar structure and share high homology (∼84%) in the kinase domain. Their dimeric structure allows for the formation of either holo or hybrid receptors. Thus, targeting of any individual receptor has been a challenge. We have previously shown that the insulin receptor is expressed in tamoxifen resistant breast cancer cell lines. Therefore, specific targeting might be a useful strategy to block this pathway. The antagonist S961 is a single chain peptide that binds insulin receptor and has been reported to have partial antagonist activity. The affinity of S961 for the insulin receptor is comparable to that of insulin and the selectivity of the insulin receptor versus IGF1 is higher than that of insulin itself (Sturis et al). To determine if S961 has activity in breast cancer cells, we tested its ability to disrupt insulin and IGF-I signaling and growth in a panel of cancer cell lines (MCF-7L, MCF-7L TamR, MDA-231, and HepG2 cells). MCF-7L cells express high levels of IGF1, while HepG2 express mostly insulin receptor. Pre-incubation with S961 significantly suppressed p-Akt and p-MAPK after insulin stimulation in the HepG2, but not in MCF-7L. In contrast, insulin receptor stimulation in MCF-7L TamR cells, which do not express IGF1R, was inhibited by S961. Even a 1000-fold increase in S961 was unable to suppress insulin receptor activation in cells expressing both insulin receptor and IGF1R. S961 inhibits insulin-stimulate cell cycle progression in MCF7L TamR cells. In these TamR cells, S961 also suppresses colony formation in anchorage independent growth assays. These data suggest S961 is an effective inhibitor of insulin receptor activation but only when little IGF1R is expressed. Thus, insulin receptor targeting might be useful in the management of endocrine resistant breast cancer. Citation Format: Kelly LaPara, Douglas Yee. Targeting the insulin receptor with a small peptide (S961) in cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Seventh Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2014 Dec 9-13; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(9 Suppl):Abstract nr P4-06-03.
Deductibility of Contributions to Religious Institutions

In Hernandez v. Commissioner, 490 U.S. 680 (1989), the Supreme Court held that payments by Scientologists to their local churches for auditing and training, which are required religious practices, were not deductible as charitable contributions because they were made in exchange for specific services. Four years later the Internal Revenue Service "walked away" from its victory. Since 1993 the IRS has allowed a deduction for payments that are identical to those the Supreme Court held to be nondeductible in Hernandez, but has never explained its rationale. As Sklar v. Commissioner, 282 F.3d 610 (9th Cir. 2002), has shown, adherents of mainstream religions are now claiming that they are being treated unfairly compared to the Scientologists. The law concerning deductibility of charitable contributions to religious institutions is unclear. This article explores the issues raised by Hernandez and provides a framework for determining deductibility of "quid pro quo contributions." It recommends that payments for auditing should be deductible, but payments for training should not be. The failure by all those involved in the Hernandez litigation to distinguish between auditing and training may be one of the reasons that the Supreme Court decision has been so unsatisfactory.
Ground Control to Major Tom: The Cell Body Signals Axon Degeneration

Axon degeneration in response to trophic deprivation was thought to be locally restricted to the axon. However, increasing evidence points to a requirement for the cell body in the degenerative program. Now, Simon et al. identify the pro-apoptotic protein Puma as a key factor in this cell body-derived signal.
Effect of SV40 Virus Immunization on Growth of Transplantable SV40 and Polyoma Virus Tumors in Hamsters.

SummaryAdult hamsters immunized with SV40 or polyoma virus were challenged with graded doses of virus-free polyoma or SV40 tumor cells. Animals immunized with SV40 virus were resistant to a small inoculum of SV40 tumor cells, and animals immunized with polyoma virus were resistant to a small inoculum of polyoma tumor cells. There was no cross protection between polyoma virus immunization and SV40 tumor cells or between SV40 virus immunization and polyoma tumor cells, even at the minimum cell dose required to give tumors in all the animals.
Analysis of food safety risk surveillance of laboratory comparison examination in Xinjiang, 2014

Objective To improve laboratory detection level and quality management of food safety risk surveillance in Xinjiang, to ensure accuracy, comparability and reliability of the surveillance results of food safety risks at labs. Methods All labs were carried out blind sample assessment. Results Out of the 15 labs reported microbiological examination results of blind samples, all of them were satisfactory, accounting for 100.0% of the total. Lead examination results of the blind samples were reported by 14 labs, and 13 labs had satisfactory results, holding 92.9% of the total. There was one lab obtained suspicious results. Conclusions Microbiological and conventional physical and chemical detection level of food safety risk surveillance at labs in Xinjiang is high. And the results show that their technology ability of detection and management should be improved further.
Respiratory rehabilitation in elderly patients after surgical treatment in the thoracic region

Respiratory rehabilitation is performed by a team of physicians, nurses, physiotherapists (respiratory therapists), nutritionists, and pharmacists together with the patient's family if necessary. In elderly patients, in whom chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often complicated before and after surgery, it is necessary to start respiratory physiotherapy and kinesiotherapy as the major therapies of respiratory rehabilitation in the early stage after surgery. Postoperative control of the amount of sputum, and recovery and maintenance of ventilatory gas exchange become possible by early respiratory rehabilitation, leading to prevention of complications, recovery of activities of daily living (ADL), and early discharge from hospital.
Novel Interventions for Stroke: Nervous System Cooling

Stroke accounts for more disability than any other neurological disorder and globally ranks as a leading cause of death. Neuroprotection must be developed, because although recanalization therapy benefits over half of all treated stroke victims, there remains substantial residual morbidity. A significant development in translational stroke research was the creation of the quantal bioassay for drug screening. Using the bioassay and other models, many have shown the benefit of therapeutic hypothermia for acute ischemia stroke in a variety of animal models, making hypothermia the most potent putative stroke therapy ever developed. Ongoing clinical trials will validate these promising translational findings.
Recovery coaches and the stability of reunification for substance abusing families in child welfare

Abstract Substance abuse is a long-standing challenge for child welfare systems. Parental substance abuse disrupts family stability, family cohesion, and jeopardizes the well-being of children. In the current study we test an intervention to improve child welfare outcomes for substance abusing families, specifically the probability of families achieving a stable (at least 12 months) reunification. The intervention was an integrated case management model where recovery coaches were appointed to substance abusing parents associated with an open foster care placement. A diverse group of families ( n = 1623) were randomly assigned to either a control group (services as usual) or an experimental group (services as usual plus a recovery coach). Multinomial logistic regression indicated that substance abusing parents associated with a recovery coach were significantly more likely to achieve a stable reunification as compared with similar families in the control group.
Superposition coding based cooperative communication with relay selection

We study the layered transmission of a Gaussian source over multiple relays using superposition coding. First, we analyze the outage probability and performance in terms of average throughput and distortion for decode-and-forward protocols with single layer and superposed two-layer coding. For the superposition coding approach, we consider different power allocations to the base and enhancement layers. Then, we propose a simple protocol which assigns a pre-determined number of relays to individual layers instead of repeating the superposition coded source packet at the relay. Finally, we present numerical results based on the analysis to compare the performance.
459. Evaluation of Miltenyi ExpAct and TransAct CD3/28 Beads for CAR-T Cell Manufacturing

Adoptive transfer of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) engineered T cells is a promising emerging strategy to treat cancer patients. Large-scale manufacturing of cGMP-grade CAR T cells using patient T cells selected and activated by CTS™ Dynabeads® CD3/CD28 (Dynabeads) followed by transduction with retroviral vectors is being used in the context of many clinical trials by our laboratory and others. Although we have established a robust protocol using Dynabeads, it is important to explore alternative sources to pre-empt supply chain limitations of this critical reagent. To this end, we evaluated T cell activation with either Miltenyi TransAct CD3/28 (TransAct) beads or Miltenyi ExpAct Treg (ExpAct) beads. In small-scale experiments, PBMCs were directly activated with TransAct or ExpAct beads and compared with our standard T cell selection and activation using Dynabeads. Overall, the transduction efficiency and expansion of T cells were comparable upon activation with all three reagents. The TransAct bead-stimulated cells exhibited comparable effector memory (EM)/central memory (CM) phenotype to that of the Dynabeads stimulated cells. In line with the EM/CM phenotype, CAR T cells stimulated with either TransAct or Dynabeads and tranduced with CD19-targeted CAR demonstrated robust and comparable antitumor activity in a systemic NSG/CD19+ NALM6 tumor mouse model. We further tested the efficacy of TransAct beads using positively or negatively selected T cells in a large-scale cGMP grade CAR-T cell manufacturing setting. Both the transduction efficiency and expansion of selected CD3+ cells activated with TransAct beads and Dynabeads were comparable. CD19-targeted CAR T cells activated by either TransAct or Dynabead were subjected to an in vivo stress test by using decreasing amount of CAR-T cells to treat systemic CD19+NALM6 tumors in NSG mice. In this experimental setting, T cells stimulated with TransAct beads demonstrated equivalent if not better anti-tumor activity than T cells stimulated with Dynabeads. In conclusion, our pre-clinical results suggest that TransAct beads support efficient transduction and expansion of CAR T cells. TransAct activated T cells exhibit antitumor activity equivalent to Dynabeads activated T cells in our NSG/CD19+NAML6 stress test. Therefore, Miltenyi TransAct beads can be used as an alternative to Dynabeads to stimulate T cells in clinical trials aiming at evaluating CAR T cell safety and antitumor activity.
Endoscope Maintenance and Repairs

A well organized approach to endoscope maintenance and repair is a necessity for cost efficiency. More than 20 years’ experience in this area is presented. The major subjects addressed are the reprocessing of endoscopes and accessories, storage of endoscopes, inspection and troubleshooting steps, record keeping, and analysis of instrument use and repairs.
How do helpers help? Helper contributions throughout the nesting cycle in the cooperatively breeding brown-headed nuthatch

Breeder investment in offspring reflects a trade-off between the benefits realized from current reproductive efforts and the benefits expected from future reproductive opportunities. When assisted by nonbreeding helpers that provide care for offspring, breeders may modify reproductive investments to minimize the costs of producing offspring, or in ways that maximize productivity and offspring survival. How helpers assist breeders can vary with different stages of reproduction, and how breeders alter investment in response to helpers may change depending on the stage of reproduction. We assessed how helpers contribute to reproduction and how breeders alter their investment in response to helper contributions in the cooperatively breeding brown-headed nuthatch (Sitta pusilla). We assessed helper contributions across three stages of reproduction: (1) nest excavation, (2) maternal egg production, and (3) nestling care and development at days 8–12 post-hatching, a period of rapid nestling growth. We also investigated how breeders responded to helper contributions and the relationship of helper behavior with breeders’ reproductive success. Helpers contributed to offspring care but not nest excavation. Breeders assisted by helpers did not alter investments in nest excavation, offspring production, or offspring care. As a result, offspring raised by cooperative groups received more food and weighed more. Nests with helpers were more likely to fledge at least one offspring, even when considering variation in territory characteristics and breeder experience. Results indicate breeders likely benefit from the favorable breeding conditions helpers provided for current breeding efforts, which influenced the quality of offspring produced and their likelihood of fledging in this study. Helpers may contribute to breeders’ reproductive effort during many stages of reproduction. The presence of nonbreeding helpers should therefore influence the investments made by breeders during different stages of breeding. Investment decisions in one stage should furthermore influence later investment decisions. We demonstrated that helpers assisted breeders primarily during the offspring rearing stage in brown-headed nuthatches (Sitta pusilla), a facultative cooperative breeder. Breeders with helpers maintained their level of investments in offspring similar to the investments documented for breeders without helpers. As a result, chicks in nests with helpers received more food and were heavier, and adults with helpers were more likely to fledge at least one young. Our results suggest that the combined effects of parental and helper investment provided benefits for current broods with potentially important survival consequences for offspring.
Network-Wide Heavy Hitter Detection with Commodity Switches

Many network monitoring tasks identify subsets of traffic that stand out, e.g., top-k flows for a particular statistic. A Protocol Independent Switch Architecture (PISA) switch can identify these "heavy hitter" flows directly in the data plane, by aggregating traffic statistics across packets and comparing against a threshold. However, network operators often want to identify interesting traffic on a network-wide basis. To bridge the gap between line-rate monitoring and network-wide visibility, we present a distributed heavy-hitter detection scheme for networks modeled as one-big switch. We use adaptive thresholds to perform efficient threshold monitoring directly in the data plane. We implement our system using the P4 language, and evaluate it using real-world packet traces. We demonstrate that our solution can accurately detect network-wide heavy hitters with up to 70% savings in communication overhead compared to an existing approach with a provable upper bound.