cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Storage-excretion of metallic cations in the adult housefly, Musca domestica

Abstract The objective of this investigation was to elucidate further the phenomenon of storage-excretion of metallic cations in the housefly. The sites for deposition of zinc, calcium and copper have been identified in this study. The metal intake of the flies was altered by raising one group on sucrose and tap water while in the experimental groups sucrose was supplemented with either 0.05% zinc sulphate, 0.05% calcium phosphate or 0.03% copper sulphate. There were no significant differences in the average life spans of the flies in different groups indicating physiological tolerance to the higher mineral intake. The Malpighian tubules, the midgut and the remainder of the body were analyzed for mineral content in houseflies ranging from 1 to 25 days posteclosion by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. There was a progressive age-associated increase in the total metal content of the flies with age. Zinc and calcium were primarily stored in the Malpighian tubules whereas copper was sequestered in the midgut. Microscopic examination of the epithelial cells of the Malpighian tubules and the midgut revealed a corresponding age-associated increase in mineralized concretions.
Integrating End-of-Life and Initial Profit Considerations in Product Life Cycle Design

Growing concerns from customers and the government about product disposal highlight the necessity of improving product take-back systems to retain the embedded values in disposed products. Progress has been made towards minimizing the cost of the disassembly process. While some progress has been made in improving end-of-life (EOL) value through decision making in the early design stage, contradictive objectives make it difficult to simultaneously optimize initial sales profits and EOL value. In this paper, a mathematical model is developed to integrate end-of-life recovery value considerations with product design decisions. The improvement of component reuse value or recycling value is achieved by linking design decisions in the early design stage with end-of-life decisions in order to maximize total product value across the span of the life cycle. A matrix based representation that can group components into several end-of-life modules with similar end-of-life decisions is also presented. The results are discussed to compare different design alternatives to understand their influence on product lifecycle value. The proposed method is illustrated through an example involving cell phone product design decisions and end-of-life strategies.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Mechanism of particle entrainment in a gas‐liquid‐solid fluidized bed

Particle elutriation is an important problem in the practical operation of three-phase fluidized beds and may be significant if the freeboard region is not sufficiently large. The problem appears to be more significant for beds of small and/or light particles than those of large and/or heavy particles. Furthermore, the axial solids holdup distribution differs appreciably between the former and latter types of particles in the freeboard region. This paper provides a quantitative description of fundamental particle entrainment phenomena. It also examines similarities between the single bubble-wake behavior in the in-bed region and that in the freeboard region. The maximum particle-entrainment height attained by a single bubble and successive bubbles is analyzed based on a simple model which takes into account such wake properties as wake shedding frequency and wake velocity.
Systemic Inhibition of Canonical Notch Signaling Results in Sustained Callus Inflammation and Alters Multiple Phases of Fracture Healing

The Notch signaling pathway is an important regulator of embryological bone development, and many aspects of development are recapitulated during bone repair. We have previously reported that Notch signaling components are upregulated during bone fracture healing. However, the significance of the Notch pathway in bone regeneration has not been described. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the importance of Notch signaling in regulating bone fracture healing by using a temporally controlled inducible transgenic mouse model (Mx1-Cre;dnMAMLf/-) to impair RBPjκ-mediated canonical Notch signaling. The Mx1 promoter was synthetically activated resulting in temporally regulated systemic dnMAML expression just prior to creation of bilateral tibial fractures. This allowed for mice to undergo unaltered embryological and post-natal skeletal development. Results showed that systemic Notch inhibition prolonged expression of inflammatory cytokines and neutrophil cell inflammation, and reduced the proportion of cartilage formation within the callus at 10 days-post-fracture (dpf) Notch inhibition did not affect early bone formation at 10dpf, but significantly altered bone maturation and remodeling at 20dpf. Increased bone volume fraction in dnMAML fractures, which was due to a moderate decrease in callus size with no change in bone mass, coincided with increased trabecular thickness but decreased connectivity density, indicating that patterning of bone was altered. Notch inhibition decreased total osteogenic cell density, which was comprised of more osteocytes rather than osteoblasts. dnMAML also decreased osteoclast density, suggesting that osteoclast activity may also be important for altered fracture healing. It is likely that systemic Notch inhibition had both direct effects within cell types as well as indirect effects initiated by temporally upstream events in the fracture healing cascade. Surprisingly, Notch inhibition did not alter cell proliferation. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that the Notch signaling pathway is required for the proper temporal progression of events required for successful bone fracture healing.
Visual Acuity and Binocularity in Unilateral High Myopia

Thirty-eight patients with unilateral high myopia ranging from 5 to 19 diopters were followed up for a median of two years. All were treated with full-spectacle correction and most had occlusion. When initially examined one patient (3%) had visual acuity of 6/12 (20/40) or better, four patients (12%) had central fusion, and 24 patients (63%) were phoric. At the conclusion of the study 12 patients (32%) had visual acuities of 6/12 (20/40) or better, 17 patients (45%) had central fusion, and 29 patients (76%) were phoric. Age at the start of treatment was not a factor in the versely affect the response to amblyopia was inversely related to both final fusion and final visual acuity.
Effects of experience and a visual aid on ptilochronology

Ptilochronology, the study of feather growth bars, has been used to assess nutritional condition, yet the implementation of this technique can be challenging. This study investigated how a magnification aid and level of experience with the technique affected the variability and accuracy of ptilochronology measurements. The average width of growth bars was significantly narrower when made with a magnifying visor as opposed to the unaided eye, suggesting that future ptilochronology studies should incorporate magnification. Measurements were also influenced by the measurer’s level of experience, suggesting that a learning curve must be taken into account when analyzing ptilochronology results.
Decentralised online charging scheduling for large populations of electric vehicles: a cyber-physical system approach

As the number of electric vehicles EVs grows, their electricity demands may have significant detrimental impacts on electric power grid when not scheduled properly. In this paper, we model an EV charging system as a cyber-physical system, and design a decentralised online EV charging scheduling algorithm for large populations of EVs, where the EVs can be highly heterogeneous and may join the charging system dynamically. The algorithm couples a clustering-based strategy that dynamically classifies heterogeneous EVs into multiple groups and a sliding-window iterative approach that schedules the charging demand for the EVs in each group in real time. Extensive simulation results demonstrate that our approach provides near-optimal solutions at significantly reduced complexity and communication overhead. It flattens the aggregated load on the power grid and reduces the costs of both the users and the utility.
Central venous catheter-related septicaemia in paediatric cancer patients

Abstract A prospective study of septicaemia, with special reference to central venous catheter (CVC)-related septicaemia, was performed over a nine-month period in paediatric cancer patients undergoing anti-neoplastic therapy. A total of 142 patients with 153 CVCs were included in the study. Seventy-two episodes of septicaemia were detected in 66 patients; overall, 46% of patients developed one or more episodes of septicaemia. Thirty-nine (54%) of these episodes occurring in 34 patients were CVC-related. Twenty-one (29%) of the episodes occurring in twenty patients were probably unrelated to CVCs and 12 (17%) episodes in 12 patients were of uncertain source. A total of 22 932 CVC days were studied. The rate of CVC-related septicaemia was 1·7 episodes/1000 catheter days. Gram-positive organisms were commonest, causing 34 (87%) episodes of CVC-related septicaemia. Twenty-five (71%) of 35 evaluable episodes were successfully treated with antibiotics without CVC removal. Two patients died, CVC related sepsis probably contributing to death, and one patient suffered prolonged morbidity associated with CVC sepsis. Gram-negative organisms were the commonest cause of CVC-unrelated septicaemia, being implicated in 13 (62%) episodes.
August and Marie (1904)

“When happiness presents itself to you, you must act quickly without hesitation or caution. ‘One has to strike while the iron is hot.’ If you delay, happiness will pass you by and you may never see it again.” This is what the eighteen-year-old August wrote in 1892 in his paper on the theme “Each person is the forger of his own happiness.” Now, twelve years later in spring 1904, happiness unexpectedly presented itself to August and he followed his own blueprint. During the preceding years, he had followed the other part of his blueprint for happiness—work.
An Inquiry Into the Chilling Effects of Stringent Little Hatch Act Prohibitions

This study examined ways that differences in state political-activity laws affect the political attitudes and reported behavior of state-level public administrators. It included officials employed ...
Analysis of meiotic recombination pathways in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

In the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, several genes appear to act early in meiotic recombination. HOP1 and RED1 have been classified as such early genes. The data in this paper demonstrate that neither a red nor a hop1 mutation can rescue the inviable spores produced by a rad52 spo13 strain; this phenotype helps to distinguish these two genes from other early meiotic recombination genes such as SPO11, REC104, or MEI4. In contrast, either a red1 or a hop1 mutation can rescue a rad50S spo13 strain; this phenotype is similar to that conferred by mutations in the other early recombination genes (e.g., REC104). These two different results can be explained because the data presented here indicate that a rad50S mutation does not diminish meiotic intrachromosomal recombination, similar to the mutant phenotypes conferred by red1 or hop1. Of course, RED1 and HOP1 do act in the normal meiotic interchromosomal recombination pathway; they reduce interchromosomal recombination to approximately 10% of normal levels. We demonstrate that a mutation in a gene (REC104) required for initiation of exchange is completely epistatic to a mutation in RED1. Finally, mutations in either HOP1 or RED1 reduce the number of double-strand breaks observed at the HIS2 meiotic recombination hotspot.
A generalized service-oriented architecture for remote control of scientific imaging instruments

Scientific imaging instruments are used in a variety of disciplines to gather vital data for research and study. Specifically, in the biomedical field various types of biological imaging instruments, such as electron microscopes and light microscopes, are used everyday to acquire 2D and 3D datasets for further understanding of biological structures. Remote operation or "teleoperation" of instruments has become a popular solution for research scientists to acquire and share data across research domains separated by geographical barriers. A generalized software architecture solution is presented in this paper to use emerging software technologies to develop a reusable framework to easily integrate instruments for remote-operation in a safe and secure fashion. Web services have emerged as a popular technology to provide software applications with a framework to achieve interoperability and integration with other applications. This generalized software architecture was developed to take advantage of Web service middleware technology and to provide a solution for easily plugging in scientific imaging instruments for teleoperation. The architecture has also incorporated grid technology to achieve a more scalable and robust solution for handling the enormous data sets produced from these instruments. Finally a set of client libraries is presented to demonstrate a useful API for developers to quickly develop a graphical user interface to communicate and acquire data from these instruments
Targeting obesity to reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes and other co-morbidities in African American youth: a review of the literature and recommendations for prevention:

Over the last decade, the prevalence of obesity has continued to rise within the adolescent population of the US. Data show that African American youth are disproportionately affected by the obesity epidemic due to their higher risk for obesity-related co-morbidities, such as type 2 diabetes. Interventions that target risk factors for obesity at the individual, family and community levels are needed in order to prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes and related complications. This article provides an overview of the prevalence of obesity and type 2 diabetes in African American youth, the pathophysiology of the disease, and the behavioural risk factors that have contributed to its high prevalence within the African American adolescent population. Successful intervention strategies that target modifiable risk factors, such as diet and physical activity, will be identified. Finally, recommendations for programmes to prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes within the African American adolescent population are presented.
Single-stage isolated bi-directional converter topology using high frequency AC link for charging and V2G applications of PHEV

In this paper, an isolated bi-directional ac/dc converter with a single power conversion stage is proposed for both charging and Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) applications of PHEV. The converter consists of two active bridges connected through a series resonant tank and a high-frequency transformer. Steady-state analysis is presented for the proposed phase-shift modulation technique between active bridges, to control the bi-directional power flow in the converter. Simulation results are presented to augment the analysis. The proposed converter has the advantages of minimal power conversion stages, high switching frequency operation and low switching losses.
A Conceptual Tool for Climate Change Risk Assessment

This study develops a new conceptual tool to explore the potential societal consequences of climate change. The conceptual tool de- lineates three quasi-independent factors that contribute to the societal con- sequences of climate change: how climate changes; the sensitivity of physical systems, biological resources, and social institutions to climate change; and the degree of human dependence on those systems, resources, and institutions. This conceptual tool, as currently developed, is not predictive, but it enables the exploration of the dependence of climate change risks on key contributing factors. In exploring a range of plausible behaviors for these factors and methods for their synthesis, the authors show that plausible assumptions lead to a wide range in potential societal consequences of climate change. This illustrates that the societal consequences of climate change are currently difficult to constrain and that high-consequence climate change outcomes are not necessarily low probability, as suggested by leading economic analyses. With careful implementation, this new conceptual tool has potential to increase public understanding of climate change risks, to support risk management
Why does saccade execution increase episodic memory retrieval? A test of the top-down attentional control hypothesis.

Making repetitive saccadic eye movements has been found to increase subsequent episodic memory retrieval and also to increase subsequent top-down attentional control. We theorise that these effects are related such that saccade-induced changes in attentional processing facilitate memory retrieval. We tested this idea by examining the effect of saccade execution on retrieval conditions that differed in relative ease of consciously accessing episodic memories. Based on recent theories of episodic retrieval, we reasoned that there is a larger role for top-down attention when memories are more difficult to access. Consequently, we expected saccade execution to have a greater facilitative effect on retrieval when memories were more difficult to access. We obtained the expected result in a recall procedure in Experiment 1 and in a recognition procedure in Experiment 2. We also examined an individual difference factor—consistency of handedness—as a possible moderator of saccade execution effects on retrieval. We...
Cost implications of new evidence on prevention of cardiovascular disease

Due to the high morbidity, mortality and medical costs associated with cardiovascular diseases, the efficiency of western healthcare economies as a whole depends largely on the cost effectiveness of cardiovascular disease preventive interventions. In this review, the cost implications of new evidence relating to the treatment of cardiovascular disease risk factors are examined. In patients with hypertension, low-dose diuretics have been proven to be both the most effective and least costly first-line therapy. Recent data support more aggressive use of antihypertensive and lipid-lowering therapies in patients with myocardial infarction and other high-risk individuals such as diabetics. The use of behavioral and pharmacologic smoking cessation interventions and emerging screening or diagnostic approaches such as C-reactive protein testing and coronary calcium scanning are also discussed.
Learning Gaussian Conditional Random Fields for Low-Level Vision

Markov random field (MRF) models are a popular tool for vision and image processing. Gaussian MRF models are particularly convenient to work with because they can be implemented using matrix and linear algebra routines. However, recent research has focused on on discrete-valued and non-convex MRF models because Gaussian models tend to over-smooth images and blur edges. In this paper, we show how to train a Gaussian conditional random field (GCRF) model that overcomes this weakness and can outperform the non-convex field of experts model on the task of denoising images. A key advantage of the GCRF model is that the parameters of the model can be optimized efficiently on relatively large images. The competitive performance of the GCRF model and the ease of optimizing its parameters make the GCRF model an attractive option for vision and image processing applications.
In vitro ischemia suppresses hypoxic induction of hypoxia‐inducible factor‐1α by inhibition of synthesis and not enhanced degradation

Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) mediates a broad, conserved adaptive response to hypoxia, and the HIF pathway is a potential therapeutic target in cerebral ischemia. This study investigated the mechanism by which in vitro ischemia (oxygen-glucose deprivation; OGD) affects canonical hypoxic HIF-1α stabilization. We validated the use of a reporter containing the oxygen-dependent degradation domain of HIF-1α fused to firefly luciferase (ODD-luc) to monitor quantitatively distinct biochemical events leading to hypoxic HIF-1α expression or stabilization in a human neuroblastoma cell line (SH-SY5Y). When OGD was imposed following a 2-hr hypoxic stabilization of ODD-luc, the levels of the reporter were reduced, consistent with prior models proposing that OGD enhances HIF prolylhydroxylase (PHD) activity. Surprisingly, PHD inhibitors and proteasome inhibitors do not stabilize ODD-luc in OGD. Furthermore, OGD does not affect the half-life of ODD-luc protein following hypoxia, suggesting that OGD abrogates hypoxic HIF-1α induction by reducing HIF-1α synthesis rather than by enhancing its degradation. We observed ATP depletion under OGD vs. hypoxia and propose that ATP depletion enhances translational suppression, overcoming the selective synthesis of HIF concurrent with global decreases in protein synthesis in hypoxia. Taken together, these findings biochemically characterize a practical reporter for monitoring HIF-1α levels and support a novel model for HIF regulation in an in vitro model of human ischemia.
Underwater video observation of the Antarctic toothfish Dissostichus mawsoni (Perciformes: Nototheniidae) in the Ross Sea, Antarctica

A towed benthic camera system captured images of a ca. 66-cm-long Antarctic toothfish partially under a boulder at 76°30′S, 174°59′E (depth 454 m) in the southern Ross Sea. This is noteworthy because, excluding McMurdo Sound, there are only two published records for this species in the Ross Sea and none in an offshore locality. Adult Dissostichus mawsoni are neutrally buoyant and live and feed in the lower reaches of the water column. Benthic perching is unexpected, suggesting that this subadult is not neutrally buoyant.
Riding on Homer's Chariot: The Search for a Historical 'Epic Society'*

This paper continues the author's long-standing quest to define the historicity of ‘epic society’ and to understand epic warfare and battle descriptions. It summarises the range of questions involved and a number of aspects on which some agreement has been achieved. Further progress is only possible by using new approaches. One of these, the comparative study of epic traditions, has recently yielded important results that are briefly summarised. Another new approach, overlapping with that of narratology, aims at understanding the working methods and conventions of the epic singer's art. The application of this approach to the narrative of epic battles has made it possible to distinguish between two large type scenes: ‘normal battles’ and ‘flight and aristeia phases’. The former are essentially historical and thus help us understand early Greek fighting, while the latter are essentially fantastic. Three elements occur predominantly or almost exclusively in these fantasy scenes: the aristeiai of the greatest heroes, the active intervention of gods in battle, and the use of chariots in battle. The demonstration, provided in the final section of this paper, that the latter — a component of Homeric battle that has long resisted convincing explanation — is part of the singer's arsenal of fantastic entertainment and ‘special effects’, removes it from historical consideration and further facilitates the explanation of epic battles and their historicity.
Broadening student enthusiasm for computer science with a great insights course

We describe the "Great Insights in Computer Science" courses that are taught at Rutgers and UMBC. These courses were designed independently, but have in common a broad, engaging introduction to computing for non-majors. Both courses include a programming component to help the students gain an intuition for computational concepts, but neither is primarily programming focused. We present data to show that these courses attract a diverse group of students; are rated positively; and increase students' understanding of, and attitudes towards, computing and computational issues.
Local dynamic interactions in the collicular motor map: a neural network model

In this paper we explore the possibility that some of the dynamic properties of the neural activity in the gaze-related motor map (located in the intermediate layers of the superior colliculus) might be mediated by local interactions between movement-related neurons and fixation neurons. More specifically, the goal of this research is to demonstrate, from a computational standpoint, which classes of dynamic behaviour of the collicular neurons can be obtained without the intervention of feedback signals, and hence to begin to explore the extent to which the gaze system needs feedback in order to operate. We modelled: (i) the collicular motor map as dynamical system realized with a recurrent neural network: (ii) the dynamics of the neural activity in the map as the trnnsients of that system towards an equilibrium configuration which the network learnt with a recurrent learning algorithm (recurrent backpropagation). The results of our simulations demonstrate the following. (i) The transients of the trained n...
Mechanism of Nitric Oxide Reactivity and Fluorescence Enhancement of the NO-Specific Probe, CuFL1

The mechanism of the reaction of CuFL1 (FL1 = 2-{2-chloro-6-hydroxy-5-[(2-methylquinolin-8-ylamino)methyl]-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl}benzoic acid) with nitric oxide (NO) to form the N-nitrosated product FL1-NO in buffered aqueous solutions was investigated. The reaction is first-order in [CuFL1], [NO], and [OH−]. The observed rate saturation at high base concentrations is consistent with a mechanism in which the protonation state of the secondary amine of the ligand is important for reactivity. This information provides a rationale for designing faster-reacting probes by lowering the pKa of the secondary amine. Activation parameters for the reaction of CuFL1 with NO indicate an associative mechanism (ΔS‡ = −120 ± 10 J/mol·K) with a modest thermal barrier (ΔH⧧ = 41 ± 2 kJ/mol; Ea = 43 ± 2 kJ/mol). Variable-pH electron paramagnetic resonance experiments reveal that, as the secondary amine of CuFL1 is deprotonated, electron density shifts to yield a new spin-active species having electron density localized on th...
On the feasibility of completely wireless datacenters

Conventional datacenters, based on wired networks, entail high wiring costs, suffer from performance bottlenecks, and have low resilience to network failures. In this paper, we investigate a radically new methodology for building wire-free datacenters based on emerging 60GHz RF technology. We propose a novel rack design and a resulting network topology inspired by Cayley graphs that provide a dense interconnect. Our exploration of the resulting design space shows that wireless datacenters built with this methodology can potentially attain higher aggregate bandwidth, lower latency, and substantially higher fault tolerance than a conventional wired datacenter while improving ease of construction and maintenance.
Tracking the Latino Gender Gap: Gender Attitudes across Sex, Borders, and Generations

Many cultural stereotypes exist regarding the “modernity” of values possessed by Latino immigrants, particularly in reference to gender norms. Common perceptions about Latin machismo and marianismo (the idea that women should be pure and moral) do not paint a portrait of gender egalitarian dispositions. These assessments are upheld by neomodernization theorists who specifically identify gender attitudes as a critical element of modernity. In applying a revised modernization theory to the issue of comparative gender values, Inglehart and Norris (2003, 10) hypothesize that development “brings about changed cultural attitudes toward gender equality in virtually any society that experiences the various forms of modernization linked with economic development.” The idea that gender equality norms develop gradually, as a function of modernization, gives rise to different expectations about accepted gender roles in developing countries as opposed to those in advanced industrial democracies. Another feature of this modernization process is the emergence of gender gaps in political behavior and attitudes. Inglehart and Norris (2000) distinguish between traditional gender gaps found in postcommunist and developing societies (in which women are more conservative in their behavior and cultural attitudes relative to men) and modern gender gaps evident in postindustrial societies (in which women are more progressive than men).
An antisense oligonucleotide targeted at MAO-B attenuates rat striatal serotonergic neurotoxicity induced by MDMA.

The present study was designed to elucidate the role of dopamine (DA) metabolism in the serotonergic neurotoxicity induced by 3,4methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). An antisense (AS) oligonucleotide (ODN) sequence targetedat monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) was utilized to attenuate MAO-B activity prior to MDMA administration. Sprague–Dawley rats were surgically implanted with intracerebroventricular (icv) cannulae and received a continuous infusion of MAO-B AS-ODN via an osmotic minipump. Constant AS ODN infusion for 7 days at a rate of 0.5 ml/h (total daily dose 600 pmol) resulted in a 63% knockdown of MAO-B activity. MDMA (40 mg/kg, sc) produced a rise in body temperature within 1 h of MDMA administration and a reduction in striatal serotonin (5-HT) and 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) levels 7 days later. Pretreatment with the MAO-B AS ODN prior to MDMA attenuated this reduction in serotonergic markers, yet had no effect on MDMA-induced hyperthermia. Furthermore, in vivo microdialysis revealed that previous AS ODN treatment failed to alter the acute DA release induced by MDMA (10 mg/kg, sc) within the striatum. These results indicate that MAO-B plays an integral role in the development of MDMA-induced neurotoxicity while not affecting MDMA-induced hyperthermia or acute DA release. D 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
AMG 151 (ARRY‐403), a novel glucokinase activator, decreases fasting and postprandial glycaemia in patients with type 2 diabetes

Phase I studies have shown that AMG 151 activates glucokinase, a key enzyme in glucose homeostasis. The present randomized, placebo-controlled phase IIa study evaluated the dose-effect relationship of the glucokinase activator AMG 151 relative to placebo on fasting plasma glucose (FPG) in 236 patients (33-35 patients per arm) with type 2 diabetes treated with metformin. Patients received oral AMG 151 at 50, 100 or 200 mg twice daily, AMG 151 at 100, 200 or 400 mg once daily or matching placebo for 28 days. A significant linear dose-effect trend was observed with the twice-daily regimen (p = 0.004) for change in FPG to day 28. No trend was observed with the once-daily regimen. A higher incidence of hypoglycaemia and hypertriglyceridaemia was observed with AMG 151 administration. AMG 151 significantly reduced FPG when administered twice daily but not when administered once daily in patients with type 2 diabetes treated with metformin.
Why is it appropriate to recommend human papillomavirus vaccination as cervical cancer prevention

Two common concerns that are raised with regard to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination are that: (1) because the vaccine clinical trial endpoints were highgrade cervical lesions and not cancer, the vaccine has never been shown to prevent cancer, and (2) Papanicolaou (Pap) smear screening/cervical cytology is sufficient to prevent cervical cancer. These 2 concerns, when taken in tandem, do not account for the underlying biology of HPV infection and natural history to carcinogenesis and the mechanisms of cancer prevention offered through these interventions. Because Pap smear screening is designed to identify and facilitate treatment of cervical abnormalities prior to development of invasive cancer, it is important to realize that these same abnormalities (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia [CIN] 2/3) are the endpoints used in the HPV vaccine clinical trials. Therefore, to argue that vaccine-induced prevention of CIN 2/3 does not prevent cancer is akin to arguing that Pap smear testing does not prevent cancer. In this Viewpoint, we describe these biological mechanisms to facilitate an evidence-based discussion with HPV vaccineehesitant parents and young adults, to address these misconceptions that may be negatively affecting HPV vaccination uptake. In 2006, the US Food and Drug Administration approved
2,4-Toluene diisocyanate detection in liquid and gas environments through electrochemical oxidation in an ionic liquid

The electrochemical oxidation of 2,4-toluene diisocyanate (2,4-TDI) in an ionic liquid (IL) has been systematically characterized to determine plausible electrochemical and chemical reaction mechanisms and to define the optimal detection methods for such a highly significant analyte. It has been found that the use of an IL as the electrolyte allows the oxidation of 2,4-TDI to occur at a less positive anodic potential with no side reactions as compared to traditional acetonitrile based electrolytes. UV-Vis, FT-IR, cyclic voltammetry and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) studies have revealed the unique mechanisms of dimerization of 2,4-TDI at the electrode interface by self-addition reactions, which can be utilized to improve the selectivity of detection. The study of 2,4-TDI redox chemistry further facilitates the development of a robust amperometric sensing methodology by selecting a hydrophobic IL ([C4mpy][NTf2]) and by restricting the potential window to only include the oxidation process. Thus, this innovative electrochemical sensor is capable of avoiding the two most ubiquitous interferents in ambient conditions (i.e. humidity and oxygen), thereby enhancing the sensor performance and reliability for real world applications. The method was established to detect 2,4-TDI in both liquid and gas phases. The limits of detection (LOD) values were 130.2 ppm and 0.7862 ppm, respectively, for the two phases, and are comparable to the safety standards reported by NIOSH. The as-developed 2.4-TDI amperometric sensor exhibits a sensitivity of 1.939 μA ppm−1. Moreover, due to the simplicity of design and the use of an IL both as a solvent and non-volatile electrolyte, the sensor has the potential to be miniaturized for smart sensing protocols in distributed sensor applications.
Chapter 20 Beyond A Commodity View of Knowledge in Instruction

The symposium 1 that gave rise to this book represents an important step in the psychology of knowledge and, implicitly, in my own field of the psychology of education, namely the end of a viewpoint that people learn by having units of knowledge “inserted” into their minds. Too often in the past, knowledge has been seen as a commodity that could be delivered generically, usually via verbal incantation. In an earlier era, some psychologists viewed learning as a set of contingent actions, dispositions to do certain things at certain times. The eventual reactions to this view were highly negative, though not always with sufficient reflection. One reaction was that people acquire (or know) abstract principles, which cannot be captured by stimulus-response connections. It was also problematic that as a scientific term, stimulus was exactly the kind of abstraction that was not considered acceptable as an account of something a person might know. Cognitive science replaced behaviorism to some extent, and it became commonplace to build theories and models in which symbols, and the abstractions they indexed, were assumed to exist in the human mind. This was not as big a leap as it might appear, since there has been a more or less continual thread of associationism from the British associationists through the behaviorists to such cognitive psychologists as John Anderson (Anderson, 1983). What has remained constant is the view of knowledge as a collection of associations among categories that can be represented by one set of symbols and indexed by others. What has varied is theory about what those categories represent.
Mandate, Subsidize, Market, and Tax: An Approach to Redressing Urban Food Deserts through Convenience Stores

Since convenience stores are a primary source of food in many urban neighborhoods and these stores typically have low volumes of “healthy” foods, I propose using these stores to address urban food deserts. There have recently been a few voluntary efforts at the local level to reach out to convenience stores to improve their selection of healthy foods, and some of these efforts have involved funding to subsidize expenses that stores incur in implementation. There have also been some efforts to market healthier food choices. A combination of mandates on what stores carry, subsidies of store expenses, and marketing of healthy food would enable a substantive battle to eliminate urban food deserts. Since an independent revenue stream would secure funding over time, a small sales tax on food and beverages would make the program feasible.
By Hook or By Crook: A History of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Chapter 8: Growing Pains

Internal debates over the focus of the Clearwater organization again came to a head in 1977 and 1978. During that time, several attempts were made to more clearly define the organization’s role in the environmental movement, and in each case controversy erupted. These cases included proposals to align the group with advocates of organized labor or civil rights. The largest issue in question was whether or not the Clearwater should sail to Seabrook, New Hampshire to take part in large protests against the construction of a nuclear power plant. At the heart of each of these controversies was the question of whether the Clearwater organization should identify with the more mainstream elements of the American environmental movement or the more radical elements, as well as whether its focus should be strictly regional or more broad. In the minds of many Clearwater members, the debate went to the core of the organization’s mission, and each issue prompted passionate arguments on all sides of the issue. Because these debates came about in quick succession and lasted for several months, it seemed to many that too much effort was spent arguing and a bad impression was left in the minds of many casual participants in the organization. The Seabrook controversy and others hurt the organization in terms of its reputation for uniting people with mixed interests, but at the same time the organization was strengthened by establishing a more clear focus and mission as it approached the end of the Clearwater’s first decade on the Hudson River.
Biomedical Informatics Infrastructure

The objective of Clinical and Translational Science (CTS) is to reduce the time-to-practice of biomedical scientific discoveries, and the time-to-research of clinical and community health care issues. The guiding mission of the Biomedical Informatics Infrastructure (BII) is to provide the information technology infrastructure and informatics services to support the many-way translation of research between the bench, the bedside, and the community. It will create networks across silos to break the silos. This infrastructure and the services offered recognize the need for data integration across platforms and over time. They recognize the need to support basic bench research, clinical trials, and community health investigations. Built with the goals of supporting research work flow, researcher networks, and researcher-resources networks, the scalable and adaptable architecture and services must provide an easy avenue for researchers, along with informatics expertise, for focused functionality build out. The Biomedical Informatics Infrastructure will be, in addition to being a technological infrastructure, a social, psychological, organizational, and educational one as well. The proposed system will by its very design restructure work groups and cause stress to the organization, its social groups, and individuals. Appropriate education, consultation, training, change management, evaluation, and assessment services are critical for the success of BII.We present the BII capabilities as a menu with four columns, each representing a dimension of its capabilities, namely: (a) the different domains of integration central to CTS, (b) the different functions required of the infrastructure, (c) the resources available for CTS, and (d) the informatics services for CTS. The categories within each dimension can be concatenated, with the conjunctive phrases/words preceding the columns, to form sentences that describe all the capabilities of the BII. Integrating all the capabilities, the ideal BII is a combination of Google (TM), Facebook (TM), Amazon (TM), and Orbitz (TM) - the four systems, which have revolutionized consumer informatics.
Strategy Shifting With Multisensorial Cueing: Theoretical Capability of Multitasking Throughput

Human multitasking performance is important in many areas, such as defense, medicine, and everyday life. However, multitasking can be difficult to research due to a lack of objective metrics. This gap is remedied by applying information theory-based models to multitasking systems. The human operator informatic model is a throughput model that has been successfully applied to the multiple attribute task battery (MATB) software. In this study, auditory and haptic cueing were applied to the monitoring and targeting components of MATB, respectively. Interestingly, overall information throughput was not significantly affected by the cueing. These results can be traced to a mathematical change in operator strategy. In the presence of multisensory cueing, operators responded at higher information rates to the monitoring and targeting components; however, this came at a proportional cost to the communications and resource components. We propose that each operator has an information throughput capacity—an asymptotic limit to the amount of information he/she can process. This theoretical limit is analogous to the “channel capacity” for single tasking proposed by Miller in 1956.
Reply: PET Prediction of Response to Trastuzumab in ErbB2-Positive Human Xenograft Model

REPLY: The work that we have recently described tested the feasibility of the use of Affibody molecules (Affibody AB) and PET to predict tumor response to ErbB2-targeted therapy. It is clear that additional studies will be needed to dissect the mechanistic events underlying the observed changes.
Abstract 1063: The ErbB3/4 receptor ligand Heregulin negatively regulates ErbB2 and ErbB3 receptor levels

ErbB2 is overexpressed in 30% of breast cancers and its overexpression is associated with poor prognosis. In addition, the ErbB2/3 heterodimer forms the most potent mitogenic receptor in vitro and is key to the proliferation of breast cancer cells. Despite the importance of this heterodimer in breast cancer progression, the negative regulation of these ErbB tyrosine kinases is still poorly understood. We demonstrate here for the first time that the ErbB3/4 ligand Heregulin (HRG) reduces mRNA and protein levels of both ErbB2 and ErbB3 in human breast cancer cell lines. We have found that after 24h of HRG treatment, ErbB2 expression decreased at both the RNA and protein levels in ErbB2 overexpressing AU565, BT474 and LTLT-Ca breast cancer cell lines. In contrast, EGFR levels were unaffected by HRG treatment. An initial decline in steady state mRNA levels was first noted at 1 hour after HRG treatment. ErbB3 levels also decreased in LTLT-Ca cells after HRG treatment. Lapatinib, which inhibits ErbB2 and EGFR kinase activity and HRG induced-ErbB3 phosphorylation, diminished the HRG- induced decrease in ErbB2 and ErbB3 in AU565 and LTLT-Ca cells. This finding suggests that the kinase activity of EGFR/ErbB2 may be involved in the HRG-induced down-regulation. HRG did not change the activity of ErbB2 promoter reporter constructs spanning 215 kb to 6007 kb upstream of the ErbB2 transcription start site as indicated by luciferase assays. An ongoing study suggests that HRG could be involved in decreasing ErbB2 mRNA stability. Our findings suggest that resistance to Lapatinib may be due in part to the fact that inhibition of ErbB2/ EGFR kinase activity dampens the negative effect of HRG on ErbB2 expression, resulting in elevated levels of ErbB2 in breast cancer cells. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 1063. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-1063
Lumped-Element Equivalent-Circuit Modeling of Millimeter-Wave HEMT Parasitics Through Full-Wave Electromagnetic Analysis

We present a broadband lumped-element parasitic equivalent circuit to accurately capture the frequency response of electromagnetic (EM) interactions inside the structure and surrounding environment of high electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs). A new mutual inductance term is included to account for the high-frequency magnetic field coupling between device electrodes. An analytical method is also proposed, for the first time, to extract the gate-to-drain mutual inductance $L_{\mathrm {MGD}}$ , which creates an undesirable inductive feedback path from output to input at millimeter wavelengths. Based on the suggested extrinsic equivalent circuit, we propose a novel multi-step parameter extraction procedure that utilizes direct analytic extraction and linear regression techniques systematically to determine the parasitic component values. The accuracy and robustness of the presented extraction algorithm are established via comprehensive comparisons between EM simulations, measurements, and frequency responses of the suggested equivalent circuits up to and beyond 300 GHz in the millimeter-wave (mmW) band. The key parasitic elements that are most detrimental to the microwave performance are identified and optimized through subsequent circuit analysis. Design guidelines are provided for optimum device layout selection to achieve the highest frequency performance. It is demonstrated through a full-wave simulation based parametric study that around 20% improvement in maximum oscillation frequency is achievable via optimization of device gate finger number and unit finger width.
Analysis and Treatment for Unstable Vibration of Three-bearing Generator Exciter System

There has been the problem of unstable exciter vibration in three-bearing generator exciter system.It is difficult to solve it due to numerous influencing factors.Through the tests and treatment of the end bearing vibration of the exciters of a number of units,the research into the vibration fault is carried out,and the influencing factors and vibration mechanism are analyzed in detail.The diagnostic strategy and treatment methods are proposed and effectively solve the difficult problem.
Finite element study on the microdamage progression within bone

Objective To study the effects of mineral-collagen interfacial behavior on the microdamage progression within bone tissue.Methods Based on the finite element model,cohesive elements were introduced and the traction-separation law was used to simulate the role of ionic interactions,hydrogen bonds and van der waals forces.The effects of aforementioned interactions on the microdamage progression within bone were studied by the random field theory and probabilistic failure analysis.Results Strong interfaces(ionic interactions in both opening and sliding modes) between the mineral and collagen phases might encourage the formation of linear cracks in bone,whereas weak interfaces(van der Waals in opening mode and viscous shear in sliding mode) might facilitate the formation of diffuse damages.In addition,there existed a transitional interfacial bonding strength(hydrogen/van der Waals bonds) that governed the transition of microdamage accumulation from linear microcrack to diffuse damage.Conclusions The results from this study will help to understand the effects of mineral-collagen interfacial behavior on microdamage accumulation in bone and further investigate the underlying mechanism of bone fracture due to osteoporosis or ageing.