cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Green tea polyphenols increase p53 transcriptional activity and acetylation by suppressing class I histone deacetylases

Acetylation of the tumor suppressor gene p53 at the carboxy-terminal lysine (Lys) residues enhances its transcriptional activity associated with cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Histone deacetylases (HDACs), a family of evolutionarily conserved enzymes, counterbalance the acetylation of lysine residues on histone and non-histone proteins. In this study, we demonstrate that green tea polyphenols (GTPs) and their major constituent, (-) epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), activate p53 through acetylation at the Lys373 and Lys382 residues by inhibiting class I HDACs in LNCaP human prostate cancer cells. Treatment of cells with GTPs (2.5-10 µg/ml) and EGCG (5-20 µM) resulted in dose- and time-dependent inhibition of class I HDACs (HDAC1, 2, 3 and 8), albeit at varying levels. Discontinuation of treatment with GTP/EGCG resulted in the loss of p53 acetylation at both the sites in these cells. GTP/EGCG treatment also resulted in increased expression of p21/waf1 and Bax at the protein and message levels in these cells. The increased GTP/EGCG-mediated p53 acetylation enhanced its binding on the promoters of p21/waf1 and Bax, which was associated with increased accumulation of cells in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle and induction of apoptosis. Our findings indicate that GTP/EGCG causes acetylation of p53 by inhibiting class I HDACs, a function that is likely to be part of the mechanisms that control the physiological activity of p53.
Energy loss of protons in gases

Abstract Energy loss of protons in N 2 , air O 2 , Ne, Ar, Kr, CH 4 and CO 2 has been measured as a function of incident energy from 0.4 to 3.4 MeV. The incident beam of protons from a Van de Graaff accelerator was scattered from a thin gold foil into an isolated gas cell. A surface barrier solid state detector and a 512-channel pulse height analyzer were used to measure the energy of the protons after they had traversed the gas cell. The experimental results obtained have a probable error of 2–5%. Comparison of these results has been made with available experimental results, Whaling's stopping power curves and the Lindhard-Scharff theory.
Hyperfine Fields for Transition Metals Substituted in Fe3Si

The purpose of this note is to report hyperfine field values for selected 3d, 4d, and 5d transition metal impurities, as well as for the sp elements Al and Si in the Fe 3 Si matrix.
Tetrapod Ichnofacies: A New Paradigm

We recognize three fundamental terms in ichnology: (1) ichnoassemblage, which is an assemblage of ichnofossils conceptually equivalent to an assemblage of body fossils; (2) ichnocoenosis, which is a trace fossil assemblage produced by a biological community that can be characterized by morphological criteria; and (3) ichnofacies, which refers to recurrent ichnocoenoses that represent a significant portion of Phanerozoic time. There are two different kinds of ichnofacies, ethoichnofacies (mostly invertebrate ichnofacies) and biotaxonichnofacies (mostly tetrapod ichnofacies). Nonmarine invertebrate ichnologists now recognize five archetypal ichnofacies (Mermia, Skolithos, Scoyenia, Coprinisphaera, Psilonichnus) to which we add the Octopodichnus ichnofacies. We propose a coherent and consistent classification and nomenclature for tetrapod ichnofacies. We name five archetypal vertebrate ichnofacies for nonmarine environments: Chelichnus, Grallator, Brontopodus, Batrachichnus and Characichnos ichnofacies.
Frontal white matter integrity predictors of adult alcohol treatment outcome.

Background Previous research has associated abnormalities in frontal lobe functioning with alcohol relapse. In this study, we used diffusion tensor imaging to investigate whether frontal white matter integrity measured at the start of treatment differs between persons with alcohol use disorders (AUD) who sustain treatment gains and those who return to heavy use after treatment. Methods Forty-five treatment-seeking AUD inpatients and 30 healthy control subjects were included in the study. Six months after completing treatment, 16 of the AUD participants had resumed heavy use (RHU) and 29 others remained abstinent or drank minimally (treatment sustainers [TS]). Voxel-wise group comparisons (TS vs. RHU) were performed on fractional anisotropy (FA), radial diffusivity (RD), and axial diffusivity maps generated from each subject's diffusion tensor imaging scan at the start of treatment. Results We found significantly lower FA and significantly higher RD in the frontal lobes of the RHU group, relative to the TS group. The RHU group data are consistent with previous reports of abnormal frontal white matter tract abnormalities in persons with AUD. Conclusions It is possible that the lower FA and higher RD in the RHU group reflect microstructural injury to frontal circuitries, and these may underlie the reduced cognitive control amid heightened reward sensitivity associated with resumption of heavy drinking.
Uridine potentiates haloperidol's disruption of conditioned avoidance responding

The pyrimidine nucleoside, uridine, has been proposed as a potential supplement in the treatment of psychosis based on its ability to reduce haloperidol-induced dopamine release. These experiments investigated the effect of uridine (32 mg/kg, i.p.) coadministered with the neuroleptic haloperidol, on rats engaged in one way conditioned avoidance responding. Uridine itself had no effect on animals' performance, while haloperidol (dose range 0.05-0.4 mg/kg, i.p., 90 min before test session) decreased number of avoidances and increased avoidance and escape latencies in a dose-dependent manner. When coadministered with haloperidol, uridine significantly potentiated the disruption of avoidance and avoidance latency induced by haloperidol. This potentiation was still evident after chronic (27 days) uridine treatment. Importantly, coadministration of uridine did not potentiate haloperidol-induced increase of escape latency. The potentiation of haloperidol-induced disruption of conditioned avoidance responding suggests that uridine coadministration might enhance the antipsychotic action of traditional neuroleptics. This would allow for a reduction in the therapeutic dose of the antipsychotic, thereby reducing side effect frequency.
138 Modulation of Gene Expression by Norleu3A(1–7) in Diabetic Wounds

Neuropathic ulcers represent a significant cause of morbitity for diabetics in the United States. Diabetic wounds are notoriously difficult to resolve. Treatment options are limited due in part to the lack of knowledge about the molecular events that regulate successful resolution of wounds. To identify differences between normal and diabetic gene regulation in wounds, we examined the level of expression of 12,000 genes in granulation tissue and wound-edge epithelium in normal animals and in an experimental model of diabetes following induction of full thickness skin injuries. Full thickness injuries in diabetic mice were characterized in part by altered regulation of structural genes and genes that regulate energy metabolism and utilization. The energy cycle contributes backbone structures for the synthesis of a variety of amino acids, the molecular building blocks essential for wound repair. A direct consequence of a diminished ability to efficiently exploit energy supplies would be decreased availability of regulatory and structural proteins necessary for efficient healing in diabetic wounds. We have successfully enhanced healing in diabetic wounds by treatment with the angiotensin II peptide NorLeu3A(1–7). NorLeu3A(1–7) accelerates healing of full thickness injuries in diabetic mice. While NorLeu3A(1–7) enhances healing by accelerating collagen deposition and reepithelialization, gene array studies show that NorLeu3A(1–7) acts locally within the wound site by altering gene expression within the granulation tissue. Specifically at day 7 after injury, NorLeu3A(1–7) reduced the expression of MMP genes and increase the expression of genes involved in energy metabolism. Supported by PHS grant NIAMS 2 R44 AR47481
Vacuum assisted drying of hydrophilic plates: static drying experiments

Abstract This investigation seeks to identify the effects of partial vacuums on the steady-state drying rate of cotton plates. Five pressure levels between atmospheric pressure and 33.6 kPa (20″ Hg vacuum) were tested in an aluminum vacuum chamber. Improvements in steady state drying rates on the order of 62% were observed at the lowest pressure level. The hoped-for design points were not discovered. Both theoretical and experimental values of the mass transfer rate are developed.
Applied psychological science and HIV-1 spectrum disease

Abstract In the absence of a vaccine, prevention represents the major hope for limiting the spread of HIV-1 infection. Prevention efforts focus on behavioral change techniques, widespread availability and use of condoms, and substance abuse management and treatment. Secondary prevention programs require behavioral interventions to help infected people cope with their illness. Behavioral interventions, such as cognitive behavioral stress management and aerobic exercise, and pharmacologic treatment have begun to improve the management of HIV-1 spectrum disease.
Sharply defined lateral composition gradients of copper on gold by spatiotemporal control of the in-plane electrochemical potential distribution

Injecting an in-plane current by connecting the two ends of a thin Au film to different potentials relative to a common reference couple results in the formation of a linear potential gradient at the surface of the electrode. Coupling the surface potentials to a redox species in solution then causes spatially dependent redox chemistry, effectively mapping the electrochemical reaction onto the surface. Copper was selectively deposited to the surface of the Au film by selecting applied potentials that encompass Eeq for the Cu2+/Cu0 reduction. Upon potential application copper deposits onto the area of the electrode for which V(x)<Eeq, while the areas with local potentials positive of Eeq contained no observable Cu. A transition region is established on the surface in an area corresponding to the anodic peak (strip-out) potential. Careful calibration of the surface electrochemical potential gradient indicates that the transition occurs at ca. 116 mV in agreement with an anodic peak potential centered at ca. 125 mV vs. Ag/AgCl from cyclic voltammetry. The width of the interfacial region analyzed by Auger electron spectroscopic line profiling and atomic force microscopy (AFM) is found to be dramatically sharper than expected. For a reversible two-electron process the development of surface composition based on a Nernstian local potential would yield a transition region ∼59/2 mV wide. Translated to the spatial domain the interfacial width should be ∼243 μm when a 123 mV/mm electrochemical potential gradient is imposed. Auger and AFM data confirm the interfacial width is strikingly smaller—by a factor of approximately 10—strongly suggesting that either the local electrochemical potential, V(x), is altered significantly upon Cu deposition, or V(x) alone is not responsible for the sharpness of the interface.
The Digital Remains: Social Media and Practices of Online Grief

This article analyzes comments posted in response to articles and blog posts discussing Facebook's policies on the pages of deceased site members. These virtual discourses reflect the sociocultural importance of social media policies in everyday life that is increasingly a blend of online and offline interaction. The analysis reveals themes of contested ownership of online identities, resistance to unilateral institutional policies, and social media site users’ complex relationship to the preservation of virtual content. As a still-evolving phenomenon, virtual grief elucidates wider cultural trends at work in the construction of identity and community online.
Two-dimensional modeling and analysis of generalized random mobility models for wireless ad hoc networks

Most important characteristics of wireless ad hoc networks, such as link distance distribution, connectivity, and network capacity are dependent on the long-run properties of the mobility profiles of communicating terminals. Therefore, the analysis of the mobility models proposed for these networks becomes crucial. The contribution of this paper is to provide an analytical framework that is generalized enough to perform the analysis of realistic random movement models over two-dimensional regions. The synthetic scenarios that can be captured include hotspots where mobiles accumulate with higher probability and spend more time, and take into consideration location and displacement dependent speed distributions. By the utilization of the framework to the random waypoint mobility model, we derive an approximation to the spatial distribution of terminals over rectangular regions. We validate the accuracy of this approximation via simulation, and by comparing the marginals with proven results for one-dimensional regions, we find out that the quality of the approximation is insensitive to the proportion between dimensions of the terrain.
Circadian Clocks and Metabolism: The Nutrient-Sensing AKT and TOR Pathways Make the Link

Summary How do organisms sense metabolic and nutrient status to set their biological clocks? The significance of recent work showing that nutrient-sensing pathways influence central circadian clocks in Drosophila is discussed.
Data mining from extreme data sets: very large and/or very skewed data sets

The article describes an approach to the construction of classifiers from imbalanced data sets. A data set is imbalanced if the classification categories are not approximately equally represented. Often real-world data sets are predominately composed of normal examples with only a small percentage of abnormal or interesting examples. It is also the case that the cost of misclassifying an abnormal (interesting) example as a normal example is often much higher than the cost of the reverse error. Under-sampling of the majority (normal) class has been proposed as a good means of increasing the sensitivity of a classier to the minority class. We discuss a combination of over-sampling the minority (abnormal) class and under-sampling the majority (normal) class can achieve better classifier performance than only under-sampling the majority class. Our method of over-sampling the minority class involves creating synthetic minority class examples. Performance is measured using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. It is shown that generally a more diverse set of operating points can be found with the combination of over and undersampling of an imbalanced data set. Usually, the best of the true positives with minimal false negatives is found when compared with loss ratios, different classification costs, etc. Details are provided.
EP News: Allied Professionals

Compliance with quality measures based on provider type Using the American College of Cardiology’s PINNACLE (Practice Innovation and Clinical Excellence) registry, Virani et al (J Am Coll Cardiol 2015;66:1803, PMID 26483105) sought to show whether there are any “meaningful differences” in the quality of care delivered by advanced practice providers (APPs) such as physician assistants (PAs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) compared with physicians. The PINNACLE registry is part of the National Cardiovascular Data Registry and is a collection of quality improvement data from outpatient cardiovascular practices in the United States. The authors were able to extract data on 459,669 patients who had outpatient visits in practices with both APPs and physicians in 2012. They then compared compliance with performance measures developed by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association/Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement for coronary artery disease (CAD), heart failure (HF), and atrial fibrillation (AF) in the 43,531 patients treated by 167 APPs vs the 416,138 patients treated by 716 physicians. They also compared compliance with these measures between practices with physicians and APPs (459,669 patients, 41 practices, and 883 providers) and those practices with physicians only (189,240 patients, 49 practices, and 351 providers). The performance measures for CAD (8 measures) and HF (2 measures) were detailed in the article. The performance measure for AF was use of anticoagulation (warfarin, dabigatran, and rivaroxaban) in high-risk patients with nonvalvular AF defined as CHADS2 score Z2. The authors found that compliance was similar between APPs and physicians for HF and AF measures. They noted that compliance was equally low for physicians and APPs for the AF measure of anticoagulant use in high-risk patients (63% of those treated by APPs and 61% of those treated by physicians). For most of the 8 CAD performance measures,
Tocqueville On War

The title of this article has been chosen deliberately, for we find interesting parallels in the careers and outlooks of Alexis de Tocqueville and the great Prussian theorist of war, Carl von Clausewitz whose master work, On War, remains sui generis. They overlapped in time (Tocqueville lived from 1805 to 1859, Clausewitz from 1780 to 1831), but, more importantly, their major theoretical works dealt in large measure with the same problem – the democratic revolution and its impact on politics. As Clausewitz argued, the warfare of the new era wascaused by the new political conditions which die French Revolution created both in France and in Europe as a whole, conditions that set in motion new means and new forces, and have thus made possible a degree of energy in war diat odierwise would have been inconceivable.It follows that the transformation of the art of war resulted from the transformation of politics.
Rhetoric, Reality, and Possibilities: Interdisciplinary Teaching and Secondary Mathematics.

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics has proposed a broad core mathematics curriculum for all high school students. One emphasis in that core is on “mathematical connections” both among mathematical topics and between mathematics and other disciplines of study. It is suggested that mathematics should become a more integrated part of all students' high school education. In this article, working definitions for the terms curriculum, interdisciplinary, and integrated and a model of three categories of curriculum design based on the work of Harold Alberty are developed. This article then examines how a “connected” mathematics core curriculum might be situated within the different categories of curriculum organization. Examples from research on interdisciplinary education in high schools are presented. Issues arising from this study suggest the need for a greater emphasis on building and using models of curriculum integration both to frame and to give impetus to the work being done by teachers and administrators.
Cervical Cancer Screening

Cervical cytology has proved to be one of the most successful examples of cancer screening and has resulted in significant decreases in incidence and mortality from invasive cervical cancer in regions in which comprehensive programs have been instituted. A standardized system of reporting abnormal cervical cytology, the Bethesda System has been developed and revised to reflect our current understanding of HPV-related precancers. The Pap smear has been the backbone of cervical cancer screening programs in North America over the past five decades; however, recent advances, including liquid-based cytology, HPV typing, and direct visualization techniques, are proposed to address the inherent weaknesses of cytologic screening in women who are screened. The problem of unscreened and underscreened women exists and accounts for most cases of invasive cancer. Widespread screening hopefully one day will lead to a significant decrease in the mortality of cervical cancer, the second most common female malignancy worldwide. Another means of preventing this disease involves HPV vaccines, which are in development but are not ready for use outside of a clinical trial.
Probabilistic interactive segmentation using multiphase level sets

This paper presents methods to incorporate user input into a probabilistic multiphase set segmentation framework. The first method allows the user to input preferred labels to regions of the image. The second method allows the user to input boundary segments between two regions. This paper improves on existing methods by allowing an arbitrary number of phases and by formulating a probability model that does not assume the image and user input are independent. The methods presented are applicable to an image of any dimension with any number of phases.
Corrosion Behavior of the Transient Liquid Phase Diffusion Bonding Joint of TiNi Shape Memory Alloy and Stainless Steel in Hanks' Solution

The transient liquid phase diffusion bonding (TLP-DB) was employed to join TiNi shape memory alloy (SMA) and stainless steel (SS) with an interlayer metal of Ag-Cu eutectic metal foil.The corrosion behavior of the TLP-DB joint in Hanks solution at 37°C was investigated by electrochemical methods.The results show that the corrosion resistance of the joint is comparable to, but lower than that of base metals during the early anodic polarization, and the corrosion rate of the joint is between that of TiNi SMA and SS in the transpassive region at high potentials. The corrosion resistance of the specimens in Hanks' solution is associated with the surface quality, mircotructure and the intermetallics. Both TiNi SMA and SS display the characteristics of localized corrosion with a little pitting corrosion, while the joints mainly show the characteristics of pitting corrosion concentrated on the enrichment Cu phases.
Optimal 'series-parallel' networks of 3-state devices

A 3-state component is one which can fall in two different modes: an open mode and a shorted mode. Systems built from such components can also experience either of these two failure modes. For a given number of s-identical s-independent components, a pure 'series' or pure 'parallel' configuration would be most reliable if only one of the two failure modes were possible. This paper treats the problem of designing the most reliable configuration of a given number of s-identical components that can experience both failure modes. Two simple algorithms for designing an optimal configuration are presented, and by analysis of 6, 8, and 20-component systems they illustrate the extent to which other configurations can be more reliable than 'series-parallel' or 'parallel-series' arrays. >
Shared strategies for behavioral switching: Understanding how locomotor patterns are turned on and off

Animals frequently switch from one behavior to another, often to meet the demands of their changing environment or internal state. What factors control these behavioral switches and the selection of what to do or what not to do? To address these issues, we will focus on the locomotor behaviors of two distantly related ‘worms’, the medicinal leech Hirudo verbana (clade Lophotrochozoa) and the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (clade Ecdysozoa). Although the neural architecture and body morphology of these organisms are quite distinct, they appear to switch between different forms of locomotion by using similar strategies of decision-making. For example, information that distinguishes between liquid and more solid environments dictates whether an animal swims or crawls. In the leech, dopamine biases locomotor neural networks so that crawling is turned on and swimming is turned off. In C. elegans, dopamine may also promote crawling, a form of locomotion that has gained new attention.
AM-FM models, partial Hilbert transform, and the monogenic signal

We propose a new algorithm to compute the frequency modulation functions associated with the well-known monogenic signal. The new algorithm extracts the frequency modulation functions without requiring an auxiliary process to estimate local orientation. In addition, we show that, in situations where a multi-scale multi-orientation decomposition is required to analyze a signal, the partial Hilbert transform approach computes AM-FM functions similar to those obtained by the monogenic signal while maintaining a more efficient signal representation.
Ethanol-induced cytotoxicity in rat pancreatic acinar AR42J cells: Role of fatty acid ethyl esters

Aims: To understand the mechanism(s) of alcoholic pancreatitis and role of fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs, non-oxidative metabolites of ethanol) in ethanol-induced pancreatic injury. Methods: A time- and concentration-dependent synthesis of FAEEs and the cytotoxicity of ethanol and its predominant fatty acid esters were studied in rat pancreatic tumour (AR42J) cells in cultures. Role of FAEEs in ethanol-induced cytotoxicity was investigated by measuring the synthesis of FAEEs, injury markers and apoptosis in cells incubated simultaneously with ethanol and FAEE synthase inhibitor, 3-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone. The cells were pre-incubated with caspase-3 inhibitor (N-acetyl-DEVD-CHO) to measure the effect of caspase-3 inhibition on ethanol-induced apoptosis. Results: The levels of FAEEs synthesized in cell cultures incubated with 800 mg% ethanol for 6 h were ∼10-fold higher (60 nmol/25 × 106 cells) than those in cells incubated with 100 mg% ethanol (5.4 nmol/25 × 106 cells). Ethanol exposure resulted in a concentration-dependent apoptosis (10, 12 and 13% at 200, 400 and 800 mg% ethanol, respectively, vs 5% in controls). A similar concentration-dependent apoptosis was also found in the cells incubated with ethyl oleate (one of the predominant FAEEs reported in alcoholic patients). Inhibition of FAEE synthesis and resultant apoptosis was found in the cells incubated simultaneously with pancreatic FAEE synthase inhibitor and ethanol. Ethanol-induced apoptosis was significantly inhibited in cells pre-incubated with caspase-3 inhibitor. Conclusions: These results support our hypothesis that ethanol-induced cytotoxicity in AR42J cells is mediated by the non-oxidative metabolite(s) of ethanol, and caspase-3 mediated apoptosis could be one of the mechanisms involved in ethanol-induced pancreatic injury.
Nielsen fixed point theory for partially ordered sets

In this paper, we introduce a Nielsen type number N.f;P/ for any selfmap f of a partially ordered setP of spaces. This Nielsen theory relates to various existing Nielsen type fixed point theories for different settings such as maps of pairs of spaces, maps of triads, fibre preserving maps, equivariant maps and iterates of maps, by exploring their underlying poset structures. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
The Logic of Biblical Anthropomorphism

The Bible, we are continually reminded, was written with an intent remote from that of the philosopher. To examine the Bible for its logical implications might therefore appear futile. The present inquiry, however, is undertaken in a more Socratic spirit. Socrates carried his search for truth into the most unlikely quarters. Unimpressed by pedigrees, he winnowed ideas in banquet hall and market place, rejecting none until they stood condemned by their own inner contradictions. The aim of the following pages is to apply the Socratic method to the Bible; more specifically, to examine some logical implications of biblical anthropomorphism.
Personal Styles, Cultural Values and Management: The Sincere and Wing on Companies in Shanghai and Hong Kong, 1900–1941

While retailing a great variety of goods under one roof and single management already existed in China by the late nineteenth century, modern style department stores on the China coast began only in 1900. Organized by Chinese entrepreneurs who had started their careers in Australia, they consciously borrowed managerial techniques from abroad. Sincere and Wing On, the two premier Chinese department stores, expanded rapidly during diese years and, in the process, developed new forms of organization and strategy based on western models as well as on traditional Chinese business practices and cultural values. When political and economic turmoil during the 1920s and 1930s slowed the growth of these companies, Wing On emerged more successfully tban Sincere. Wing On's path diverged from that of its competitor because its stronger management team was better at blending individual personality, western organization and Chinese cultural values.
A KNOWLEDGE-BASED ANSWER ENGINE FOR OPEN-DOMAIN QUESTIONS

This paper describes a knowledge-based methodology of mining textual answers from large collections of texts. We present an answer engine capable of providing answers to any question posed in natural language, regardless of the domain of interest. The answers are produced by combining semantic data from question taxonomies with information abductively inferred from texts. The high precision of the retrieved answers is due to novel, efficient knowledge processing techniques.
The inhibitory effect of strophanthidin on secretion by the isolated gastric mucosa.

The unidirectional fluxes of Na+ and Cl- were measured across the isolated gastric mucosa of the bullfrog (R. catesbiana). The addition of strophanthidin, a cardiac aglycone, resulted in marked reductions of the spontaneous potential and short-circuit current. Associated with these changes, the isolated gastric mucosa ceased secreting chloride and hydrogen ion. Although the active component of chloride transfer was inhibited, the exchange diffusion component seemed to increase. No significant changes in membrane conductance or sodium flux were noted. Possible mechanisms of strophanthidin inhibition were discussed in view of its effect on chloride transport across the gastric mucosa and on sodium and potassium transfer in other tissues. It was concluded that the cardiac glycosides may not be specific inhibitors of sodium and potassium transport. This non-specific inhibition suggests that active chloride transport is affected by strophanthidin directly and/or anion secretion is dependent upon normal functioning of cation transport systems in the tissue.
Evaluation of electron impact excitation of N2 X 1Σg+(0) into the N2+ X 2Σg+(v), A 2Πu(v), and B 2Σu+(v) states

[1] Published experimental integrated electric dipole photoionization oscillator strengths (fij) have been applied to the determination of absolute electron impact excitation cross sections of the N2 X 1Σg+(0) state into the N2+ X 2Σg+(v), A 2Πu(v), and B 2Σu+(v) states. The required relative electron impact cross section shape functions from threshold to energy values, limited by the imposition of relativistic effects at the high end, are established in this work by extracting accurate analytic functions from a critical review of extensive published experimental results. The cross sections examined here are important benchmarks used in establishing absolute values for critical rate processes in aeronomy. The determination of the absolute cross sections using the derived fij is accomplished through the physical relationship to a modified Born approximation analytic function that defines the electron impact shape functions. The zero order term of the analytic function is established in value relative to the remaining terms through shape analysis of the experimental electron impact results. The value of fij fixes the absolute value of the zero order term, determining the cross sections over the entire electron impact energy range. It is argued that this methodology is the most accurate approach at this time because of the existence of the intrinsically more accurate photometrically dermined fij. The critical quantities in atmospheric process applications are the branching ratios of excitation into the N2+ X 2Σg+, A 2Πu, and B 2Σu+ states. The N2+ (X 2Σg+, A 2Πu, B 2Σu+) partitioning within the total ionization cross section has been a source of disagreement in the literature, in spite of the fact that substantial effort has been expended in establishing acceptably accurate values. The present work establishes accurate cross sections for these states over the entire practical energy range required for research in atmospheric N2 physical chemistry. The accuracy of the results obtained here are verified by consistency with the most reliably established past experimental electron impact cross sections, in agreement with the independently established total N2+ cross section. We provide analytic collision strengths for the vibrational levels of the N2+ X 2Σg+, A 2Πu, and B 2Σu+ states, allowing establishment of rate coefficients for the system, at an estimated error ≤±8%.
Lymphoma and peripheral neuropathy: a clinical review.

Lymphoma occasionally affects the peripheral nervous system. When it does, the diagnosis can be elusive since many patients present without known lymphoma. Most peripheral nerve complications are due to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), which infiltrates nerves causing axonal damage. This disorder can affect nerve roots and cranial nerves, often associated with lymphomatous meningitis. NHL may also infiltrate peripheral nerves and cause plexopathy, mononeuropathy, or generalized neuropathy. These neuropathies may resemble an asymmetric mononeuropathy multiplex or a generalized disorder such as chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy. When NHL infiltrates diffusely, the term neurolymphomatosis is used. Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL), by contrast, rarely infiltrates nerves. More often, HL causes immunological disorders of the peripheral nervous system such as inflammatory plexopathy or Guillain-Barre syndrome. Other rare lymphomas such as intravascular lymphoma and Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia can also affect peripheral nerves in specific ways. In addition, other malignant and nonmalignant lymphoproliferative disorders enter into the differential diagnosis of lymphomatous neuropathy. This review discusses the multiple peripheral nerve presentations of lymphoma from the clinician's point of view and provides a guide to the evaluation and diagnosis of these uncommon, challenging disorders.
Do all of the neurologic diseases in patients with DNA repair gene mutations result from the accumulation of DNA damage

The classic model for neurodegeneration due to mutations in DNA repair genes holds that DNA damage accumulates in the absence of repair, resulting in the death of neurons. This model was originally put forth to explain the dramatic loss of neurons observed in patients with xeroderma pigmentosum neurologic disease, and is likely to be valid for other neurodegenerative diseases due to mutations in DNA repair genes. However, in trichiothiodystrophy (TTD), Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome (AGS), and Cockayne syndrome (CS), abnormal myelin is the most prominent neuropathological feature. Myelin is synthesized by specific types of glial cells called oligodendrocytes. In this review, we focus on new studies that illustrate two disease mechanisms for myelin defects resulting from mutations in DNA repair genes, both of which are fundamentally different than the classic model described above. First, studies using the TTD mouse model indicate that TFIIH acts as a co-activator for thyroid hormone-dependent gene expression in the brain, and that a causative XPD mutation in TTD results in reduction of this co-activator function and a dysregulation of myelin-related gene expression. Second, in AGS, which is caused by mutations in either TREX1 or RNASEH2, recent evidence indicates that failure to degrade nucleic acids produced during S-phase triggers activation of the innate immune system, resulting in myelin defects and calcification of the brain. Strikingly, both myelin defects and brain calcification are both prominent features of CS neurologic disease. The similar neuropathology in CS and AGS seems unlikely to be due to the loss of a common DNA repair function, and based on the evidence in the literature, we propose that vascular abnormalities may be part of the mechanism that is common to both diseases. In summary, while the classic DNA damage accumulation model is applicable to the neuronal death due to defective DNA repair, the myelination defects and brain calcification seem to be better explained by quite different mechanisms. We discuss the implications of these different disease mechanisms for the rational development of treatments and therapies.
The Computation of Convergent Lower Bounds in Quantum Mechanical Eigenvalue Problems

A computational approach guaranteeing convergent lower bounds to eigenvalues of a wide class of Schrodinger operators is introduced. After motivating the necessary strategy in the simple two-particle case, a variant of Fox’s intermediate Hamiltonian construction is presented for complex atoms, together with the necessary convergence criteria. Computational features of Fox’s method are discussed in the context of sparse matrix strategies that can utilize the algebraic structure of the resulting matrices to advantage.
Surgical intervention for urolithiasis: does it result in long-term medical complications?

The association of shock wave lithotripsy (SWL) and hypertension is a controversial subject. This Commentary discusses the article by Denberg et al. , which found an association between new-onset hypertension and SWL, but not ureteroscopy. Ureteroscopy has improved significantly since its introduction and now plays a role as a primary initial treatment for stone disease.
Indoor microbial communities: Influence on asthma severity in atopic and nonatopic children

Background Allergic and nonallergic asthma severity in children can be affected by microbial exposures. Objective We sought to examine associations between exposures to household microbes and childhood asthma severity stratified by atopic status. Methods Participants (n = 196) were selected from a cohort of asthmatic children in Connecticut and Massachusetts. Children were grouped according to asthma severity (mild with no or minimal symptoms and medication or moderate to severe persistent) and atopic status (determined by serum IgE levels). Microbial community structure and concentrations in house dust were determined by using next-generation DNA sequencing and quantitative PCR. Logistic regression was used to explore associations between asthma severity and exposure metrics, including richness, taxa identification and quantification, community composition, and concentration of total fungi and bacteria. Results Among all children, increased asthma severity was significantly associated with an increased concentration of summed allergenic fungal species, high total fungal concentrations, and high bacterial richness by using logistic regression in addition to microbial community composition by using the distance comparison t test. Asthma severity in atopic children was associated with fungal community composition ( P = .001). By using logistic regression, asthma severity in nonatopic children was associated with total fungal concentration (odds ratio, 2.40; 95% CI, 1.06-5.44). The fungal genus Volutella was associated with increased asthma severity in atopic children ( P = .0001, q = 0.04). The yeast genera Kondoa might be protective; Cryptococcus species might also affect asthma severity. Conclusion Asthma severity among this cohort of children was associated with microbial exposure, and associations differed based on atopic status.
THE ECONOMICS OF CIGARETTE TAXATION: LESSONS FOR GEORGIA

The author analyzes the effects of the cigarette excise tax increase that Georgia enacted in 2003 and of a possible future increase. He finds that Georgia businesses won't be hurt much and that the regressive effect of the tax is offset by improved health for low-income smokers who quit because of the hike.
Impact of Prostate Cancer Diagnosis on Noncancer Hospitalizations Among Elderly Medicare Beneficiaries With Incident Prostate Cancer

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to analyze the impact of cancer diagnosis on noncancer hospitalizations (NCHs) by comparing these hospitalizations between the precancer and postcancer periods in a cohort of fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries with incident prostate cancer. METHODS A population-based retrospective cohort study was conducted using the SEER-Medicare linked database for 2000 through 2010. The study cohort consisted of 57,489 elderly men (aged ≥ 67 years) with incident prostate cancer. NCHs were identified in 6 periods (t1-t6) before and after the incidence of prostate cancer. Each period consisted of 120 days. For each period, NCHs were defined as inpatient admissions with primary diagnosis codes not related to prostate cancer, prostate cancer-related procedures, or bowel, sexual, and urinary dysfunction. Bivariate and multivariate comparisons on rates of NCHs between the precancer and postcancer periods accounted for the repeated measures design. RESULTS The rate of NCHs was higher during the postcancer period (5.1%) compared with the precancer period (3.2%). In both unadjusted and adjusted models, elderly men were 37% (odds ratio [OR], 1.37; 95% CI, 1.32, 1.41) and 38% (adjusted OR, 1.38; 95% CI, 1.33, 1.46) more likely to have any NCHs during the postcancer period compared with the precancer period. CONCLUSIONS Elderly men with prostate cancer had a significant increase in the risk of NCHs after the diagnosis of prostate cancer. This study highlights the need to design interventions for reducing the excess NCHs after prostate cancer diagnosis among elderly men.
Does Christianity Work? What we would Need to Validate Smith's Approach

In "Why Christianity Works," Christian Smith (2007) called for an increased attention to emotions as a means of accounting for religious commit ment. Using Christianity as an example, he presented what he called a phenom enological account of how Christians emotionally experience life through the core categories of their religion: God, love, sin/confession, grace, transcendence, and morality in community. He did not deny the worth of looking at "broad social and cultural forces to explain major religious trends" (p. 166). But he claimed that Christianity's persistence over 2,000 years cannot be explained by such extemal matters alone. Something internal must also be going on. In his essay, he asked "What is it about Christianity itself that makes the faith tradition work?" (p. 167). He then suggested a number of routes by which the emotional resonance of core Christian concepts might contribute to an answer. Though I don't personally find the persistence of Christianity-or any other religion-particularly problematic, I do agree that sociologists have given less weight to religion's emotional side. Survey research too frequently identifies indi vidual religiosity with people's propositional beliefs, and even ethnographers too often focus on the odder views held by whatever "natives" are under discussion. Smith's own book on the religious and spiritual lives of American teenagers (Smith 2005) is full of such stuff, excellently presented. I hear Smith now argu ing for supplementing this, and I applaud. I emphasize this supplementarity, for I do not read Smith as denying the worth of current work in the field. I read him wanting to explain the continued plausibility of religion, using Christianity to illustrate his argument. To phrase his quest in terms he does not use, I detect a wish to expand Peter Berger's (1967) concept of "plausibility structures" beyond its original institutional and cognitive foci to include sources of emotional plausibility. Theological ideas, he seems to be saying, can be sources of this emotional plausibility, beyond their intellectual
Evaluation of a pheromone collar on canine behaviors during transition from foster homes to a training kennel in juvenile Military Working Dogs

Abstract The purpose of this double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study was to determine if the use of a pheromone collar was beneficial in reducing the stress of young Military Working Dogs (MWDs) transitioning from foster care into the training kennel at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. Although the MWD is bred and trained to be robust and resilient, stark changes in environment and lifestyle can be a shock and lead to deleterious physiological and psychological effects, especially in young developing dogs. To evaluate the potential efficacy and utility of a pheromone collar on the dogs' behaviors during transition, each MWD that returned from foster between October 2014 and February 2015 was randomly assigned to either a placebo or treatment pheromone collar. Collars were worn for 4 weeks. Three behavioral assessments were performed before collar placement, then again at weeks 3 and 5 of the study, as well as 1 performance evaluation at week 3. The data were analyzed to determine if use of the pheromone collar had any effect on stress-related behaviors or performance. The results suggest that there was no reduction in observed behavioral signs of stress between the placebo and treatment groups. Further research should focus on a multimodal approach to mitigation of stressors.
ELECTROMAGNETIC TRANSIENT STUDY ON INTERPHASE POWER CONTROLLER

By use of EMTP an electromagnetic model for the interphase power co ntroller(IPC)is built. The overvoltage on the IPC at connection and disconnect ion during grounding faults are calculated in detail. The results show that desp ite good current-limiting characteristic, the surge overvoltages on the tuned I PC during connection and disconnection are too high to be used in practice. Com paratively, the overvoltages on the untuned IPC are much lower, and short-circu it current can be limited evidently. The latter is preferable in practice.
Demonstrating demand for family planning: creating a supportive environment through operations research.

The role played by operations research (OR) in sub Saharan Africa is explored in this book chapter on OR and family planning (FP). Most OR studies undertaken in the 1980s focused on demonstrating that FP services are feasible and acceptable. Of the 26 OR projects conducted between 1980-89 65% concerned innovative 1st time delivery systems and 35% with improving existing systems. Or has been an important means of introducing new models in Africa. It has been instrumental in providing a backdrop for the development of national FP programs. Future directions for those countries just beginning to show interest in FP might involve pilot demonstration projects which are useful when there are supply side barriers to FP service delivery. Feasibility studies are still acceptable but lack innovation. As programs grow nationally there is room for developing synergistic approaches to AIDs prevention and FP promotion. When management skills have been developed good management information systems (MIS may consume what OR has done. OR differs from MIS in being able to focus in on a particular problem in an experimental way. The selection of a field trial or modeling approaches depends on the level of program expansion and contraceptive prevalence in Africa and the OR experiences in FP programs in Asia and Latin America. Topics of discussion are the uses and applications of OR a review of the experiences in sub Saharan Africa dissemination of findings and the future of OR in Africa. In the review of experiences it is pointed out that OR was conducted with the goal of influencing policy and creating commitment to FP program development and in this context service delivery models were developed and field tested or even a retesting of Asian and Latin American models. Projects were initiated in both urban and rural areas; universities were instrumental in legitimizing innovative service delivery as research. Risk protection was thus given to managers when FP was a sensitive topic and data could be used to support expansion of successful projects. Columbia Universitys OR program conducted feasibility and acceptability studies of community based distribution (CBD) in 7 sub Saharan countries and some of these are reviewed. A supportive policy environment is crucial. Technical assistance has been primarily in program development and management. This assistance must be provided in steps along the way. OR facilitated the expansion or replication in 66% of Columbias projects. Even partial results have been helpful in fostering policy amplification and impact.