cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Assembly Controlled by Shape

To research the impact of the shape on the assembly of the natural objects (protein, virus, bacteria, living cells) the polymer microcapsules with similar surface chemistry and different by shape (spherical, cubical and tetrahedral) had been synthesized. It was found that the energetically favourable face-to-face attachment of anisotropic microcapsules drives the formation of stable and compacted assembly while isotropic microcapsules assembly is mobile and chain-like structures with a point like a contact area. The difference in assembling behaviour of anisotropic (cubic, tetrahedral) and isotropic (spherical) microparticles is related to the fact that the interfacial hydrophobic energies between the anisotropic microparticles are 6-4 orders of magnitude higher than that for the isotropic microparticles due to the significantly higher contact area of anisotropic microparticles. Such mimicking of the natural objects by polymer microcapsules and research their interaction driven by shape explains the arrangements of isotropic and anisotropic cells in bacteria and its mobility.
Non-Asymptotic Analysis of Block-Regularized Regression Problem

Given a linear multivariate regression problem with a block sparsity structure on the regression matrix, one popular approach for estimating its unknown parameter is block-regularization, where the sparsity of different blocks of the regression matrix is promoted by penalizing their $\ell_{\infty}-$ norms. The main goal of this work is to characterize the properties of this estimator under high-dimensional scaling, where the growth rate of the dimension of the problem is comparable to or even faster than that of the sample size. In particular, this work generalizes the existing non-asymptotic results on special instances of block-regularized estimators to the case where the unknown regression matrix has an arbitrary number of blocks each with a potentially different size. When the design matrix is deterministic, a sharp non-asymptotic rate is derived on the element-wise error of the proposed estimator. Furthermore, it is proven that the same error rate approximately holds for the block-regularized estimator when the design matrix is randomly generated, provided that the number of samples exceeds a lower bound. The accuracy of the proposed estimator is illustrated on several test cases.
Gene expression profiling of lichenoid dermatitis immune-related adverse event from immune checkpoint inhibitors reveals increased CD14+ and CD16+ monocytes driving an innate immune response.

BACKGROUND Cancer patients receiving antibodies abrogating immune checkpoint pathways may develop a diverse array of immune-related adverse events (irAEs), of which lichenoid dermatitis (LD) is the most common. The mechanism driving the emergence of these irAEs remain understudied, underscoring a critical need to determine the unique gene expression profiles and immune composition in LD-irAE. METHODS LD-irAE (n = 3) and benign lichenoid keratosis (BLK) control (n = 3) were profiled with NanoString nCounter PanCancer Immune Profiling Panel interrogating the mRNA levels of 770 genes. Immunohistochemical (IHC) studies (n = 14 samples) for CD14, CD16, T-Bet, Gata-3, and FoxP3 were further evaluated using Aperio digital image analysis. RESULTS The LD-irAE showed downregulation of 93 mRNA transcripts (P < 0.05) and upregulation of 74 mRNA transcripts (P < 0.04) including toll-like receptor (TLR) 2 and TLR4 (P < 0.05). CD14+ and CD16+ monocytes quantified by IHC (H-score) were higher in LD-irAE than in the BLK control (P < 0.05). The immune composition of LD-irAE exhibited higher numbers of T-Bet+ (Th1) cells compared with Gata-3+ (Th2) cells (P = 0.016) and lower numbers of FoxP3 (T regulatory) cells (P = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS LD-irAE exhibited activation of CD14/TLR innate immune response with increased CD14+ and CD16+ monocytes compared with BLK control. CD14/TLR signaling may drive the development of LD-irAE.
High Energy Density Ion Beam from a Focusing Shaped Target in the Radiation Pressure Regime

We report the focusing of a shaped thin target by a circular-polarized laser pulse at 1022 W/cm2 intensity, to a low-emittance, quasi-monoenergetic proton beam. The target shape is designed to be simultaneously deformed and focused into a cubic micron spot by the radiation pressure during its acceleration. A simple model reminiscent of geometric optics of the ions is developed. The model predicts the self-consistent dynamics of the nanostructured thin target, as well as the targets shape that is necessary for focusing without aberrations. Three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations show that the focal length and the final energy are in good agreement with the scaling laws obtained from the geometric optics model. Extensive scans of the laser and target parameters identify the stable propagation regime where the Rayleigh-Taylor (RT)-like instability is suppressed. Stable focusing is found at different laser powers (from petawatt to multi-petawatt). Focused proton beam with number density of order 1023 cm−3 and energy density up to 2×1013 J/cm3 at the focal point is observed in simulation with laser power 35 PW.
Lung cancer screening patient–provider discussion: Where do we stand and what are the associated factors?:

Objective:The primary objective of this study was to estimate the percentage of individuals possibly eligible for lung cancer screening that report having discussed screening with a health care pro...
Dietary protein reduction improves the energetic and amino acid efficiency in lactating sows

Strategies to mitigate the environmental impact of swine production are essential to contribute to the sustainability of the swine industry. Our work has focussed on the area of dietary crude-protein (CP) reduction with crystalline amino acid (CAA) supplementation to create diets containing a near ‘ideal’ amino acid (AA) balance, and to assess the environmental impact of feeding these diets to lactating sows. Additionally, with an increasing availability of CAA at competitive costs relative to feed-ingredient proteins, precise prediction of requirements of the less traditionally limiting AA such as histidine, isoleucine, leucine, phenylalanine and valine are ever more relevant. Prediction of AA requirements using modelling approaches is dependent on accurate estimates of AA efficiency of utilisation for milk-protein production. Aggressive reduction in dietary CP and CAA supplementation to improve dietary AA balance minimises urea-nitrogen (N) synthesis, N excretion and ammonia emission, without compromising lactation performance. Improving dietary AA balance increases energy, global N and AA efficiency of utilisation for milk production, and, in some cases, increases true milk protein and casein yield in peak lactation. The mechanisms by which enhanced AA balance improves nutrient efficiency include potentially increased extraction rate of AA by the mammary gland and reduced heat production. Individual AA efficiencies are dynamic, and, thus, estimating their maximum biological efficiency value (MBEV) is of critical importance for accurate prediction of AA requirements. We have estimated MBEV for each individual AA. Future dietary formulations using reduced CP diets to minimise N excretion and ammonia emission will require AA requirements based on MBEV estimates.
Carrier dynamics of intermediate sub-bandgap transitions in ZnTeO

The incorporation of electronic states in the bandgap, with high radiative efficiency, provides a means for optical up/down conversion and for tuning the carrier lifetime of a material. Such intermediate states in highly mismatched alloys have recently received much attention due to their potential for an efficient solar energy conversion. Understanding the carrier dynamics and pathways for the charge transfer of sub-bandgap transitions is critical for understanding energy conversion processes. In this work, time-resolved photoluminescence of ZnTeO is reported, revealing electron relaxation from the conduction band to the intermediate band and the carrier transfer between intermediate states and the conduction band utilizing two time-delayed optical excitations. This work demonstrates the utility of time-resolved techniques for characterizing energy conversion mechanisms in intermediate band materials, and the ability to use intermediate states to intentionally alter carrier lifetimes in materials for applications such as ultrafast scintillation.
Do Medicare's Patient-Reported Outcome Measures Collection Windows Accurately Reflect Academic Clinical Practice?

Abstract Background The Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) mandates collection of patient–reported outcome measures (PROMs) for eligible total hip and total knee arthroplasty (THA and TKA) procedures during specific time periods that may not be attainable within routine academic practice. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected PROM data from a 2017 cohort of primary THA and TKA patients who completed the Patient–Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-10 global health survey in preoperative or postoperative time periods. The primary outcome was completion rates of Patient–Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-10 per the CJR collection periods (90-0 days preoperative and 270-365 days postoperative) compared to an extended postoperative collection period of 270-396 days. Bivariate analysis and logistic regression were used to analyze the association between survey completion rates and patient characteristics. Results Of the 860 primary THAs and TKAs in 2017, 725 (84.3%) had preoperative surveys completed 90-0 days before surgery. Among the 725 patients, 215 (29.7%) completed postoperative surveys within the CJR timeline of 270-365 days. Completion increased by 120 additional surveys (+16.5%) in the additional postoperative time period of 270-396 days (P .05 for all covariates). Conclusion In an academic clinical practice, completion rates of postoperative PROMs as part of routine clinical practice within the CJR mandated period was low for THA and TKA patients. CJR may consider additional time beyond 365 days to improve PROM completion rates.
Cyber Warfare and the Jus Ad Bellum Challenges: Evaluation in Light of the Tallinn Manual on the International Law Applicable to Cyber Warfare

This article aims to explore the applicability of the international law on the use of force (jus ad bellum) on cyber warfare, and the main issues and challenges that are raised from such application. Mainly, the issues reviewed by this paper are what cyber-attacks qualify as uses of force? Under what circumstances can self-defense measures take place in response to cyber-attacks? The paper analyzes the contribution of the Tallinn Manual on the International Law Applicable to Cyber Warfare to these challenges.
Flexibly Accounting for Exposure Misclassification With External Validation Data

Measurement error is common in epidemiology, but few studies use quantitative methods to account for bias due to mismeasurement. One potential barrier is that some intuitive approaches that readily combine with methods to account for other sources of bias, like multiple imputation for measurement error (MIME), rely on internal validation data, which are rarely available. Here, we present a reparameterized imputation approach for measurement error (RIME) that can be used with internal or external validation data. We illustrate the advantages of RIME over a naive approach that ignores measurement error and MIME using a hypothetical example and a series of simulation experiments. In both the example and simulations, we combine MIME and RIME with inverse probability weighting to account for confounding when estimating hazard ratios and counterfactual risk functions. MIME and RIME performed similarly when rich external validation data were available and the prevalence of exposure did not vary between the main study and the validation data. However, RIME outperformed MIME when validation data included only true and mismeasured versions of the exposure or when exposure prevalence differed between the data sources. RIME allows investigators to leverage external validation data to account for measurement error in a wide range of scenarios.
Viewing the Playwright Through a Different Lens: Miller’s Fiction and How It Connects to His Life and Drama

Although best known as a dramatist, Miller was also a skilled writer of fiction with a successful novel and three published volumes of stories. This is an aspect of his writing we hear too little about as it gets overshadowed by his plays. There have been several studies that usefully consider the relation between the fiction of Tennessee Williams and his drama, but little has been done with Miller’s prose. Put into the right framework, his published fiction, written over a period of 73 years, ranging from 1932 to 2005, effectively illustrates those central Miller concerns regarding identity and commitment, guilt and responsibility, hope, and individual potential. This overview and analysis of his fiction, including uncollected pieces, explained in context against Miller’s life and corresponding drama, illustrates the endemic quality of Miller’s intrinsic humanism. Even more interesting is that Miller achieves this in different ways in his stories than he does in his plays and introduces us to interesting new characters who offer intriguing reflections on several of those dramatic characters we thought we knew so well, suggesting new ways of looking at and understanding Miller’s career as a whole.
Puss Caterpillar (Larva), Southern Flannel Moth (Adult), Megalopyge opercularis (J. E. Smith 1797) (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Zygaenoidea: Megalopygidae)

The southern flannel moth is an attractive small moth that is best-known because of its larva, the puss caterpillar, which is one of the most venomous caterpillars in the United States. This 12-page fact sheet was written by Donald W. Hall and published by the UF Department of Entomology and Nematology, January 2013. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in976
The effect of an upwind non-attainment area on ozone in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains

Abstract The climate, topography, high population and associated emissions of California pose unique challenges in attaining the ozone (O3) National Ambient Air Quality Standard. California's Sierra Nevada Mountains are situated east, and downwind of, the San Joaquin Valley (SJV), which has some of the worst air quality in the US. This work reports surface and vertical O3 observations over the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the SJV from 1998 to 2018. Over this period, the O3 concentrations observed on highly polluted days (95th percentile) decreased, primarily because of summertime emission reductions. Analysis of surface site diurnal data highlights the impacts that the SJV has on the Sierra Nevada Mountains, particularly at lower elevations. O3 typically remains higher overnight at mountain sites, compared to SJV sites, and as a result mountain sites can have high cumulative exposure to O3. Evidence of local and transport effects on O3 trends across the Sierra Nevada Mountains is presented through examining of the timing of O3 exceedances and correlations with different surface sites and with O3 aloft. The data indicate a strong regional influence of emissions from the SJV over the Sierra Nevada Mountains and aloft up to 3 km.
Caught between art and science: the Women, Peace and Security agenda in United Nations mediation narratives

This article was selected as the runner-up for the 2018 Enloe Award. The committee commented: “This article provides a solid and nuanced account of UN mediation processes around the WPS agenda, dra...
Biochar amendment of stormwater bioretention systems for nitrogen and Escherichia coli removal: Effect of hydraulic loading rates and antecedent dry periods.

Abstract Bioretention systems improve stormwater infiltration and water quality; however, limited total nitrogen (TN) and fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) removal is observed in sand-based bioretention media. In this study, the fate of nitrogen and E. coli in bioretention systems was investigated through batch and column studies using sand media, with and without biochar addition. Variables investigated included biochar characteristics, hydraulic loading rate (HLR) and antecedent dry period (ADP). Total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and E. coli removals were significantly higher in biochar-amended columns due to biochar’s high cation exchange capacity and specific surface area. TAN adsorption resulted in increased nitrification during the ADP when aerobic conditions developed. Moisture content data revealed that saturated conditions prevailed toward the bottom of biochar-amended columns for several days, favoring denitrification and TN removal. Biochar amended columns also showed more stable TAN, DOC and E. coli effluent concentrations under varying HLR and ADP.
Synaptic Plasticity Dynamics for Deep Continuous Local Learning (DECOLLE)

A growing body of work underlines striking similarities between biological neural networks and recurrent, binary neural networks. A relatively smaller body of work, however, discusses similarities between learning dynamics employed in deep Artificial Neural Network and synaptic plasticity in spiking neural networks. The challenge preventing this is largely caused by the discrepancy between the dynamical properties of synaptic plasticity and the requirements for gradient backpropagation. Learning algorithms that approximate gradient backpropagation using locally synthesized gradients can overcome this challenge. Here, we show that synthetic gradients enable the derivation of Deep Continuous Local Learning (DECOLLE) in spiking neural networks. DECOLLE is capable of learning deep spatio-temporal representations from spikes relying solely on local information. Synaptic plasticity rules are derived systematically from user-defined cost functions and neural dynamics by leveraging existing autodifferentiation methods of machine learning frameworks. We benchmark our approach on the event-based neuromorphic dataset N-MNIST and DvsGesture, on which DECOLLE performs comparably to the state-of-the-art. DECOLLE networks provide continuously learning machines that are relevant to biology and supportive of event-based, low-power computer vision architectures matching the accuracies of conventional computers on tasks where temporal precision and speed are essential.
Trees and the “Unthought Known”: The Wisdom of the Nonhuman (or Do Humans “Have Shit for Brains”?)

Drawing on Richard Powers’s Pulitzer-winning novel The Overstory (2018), this article explores the limits of human wisdom (or why humans persist in denying what we know about the earth, especially what we knew as children) and wisdom’s bounty within the wider world, unknown, untapped, unprotected, and disrespected, with a particular focus on trees. It asks how people (the author included but especially white westerners) have come to disbelieve the intelligence of the nonhuman and, as a consequence, resist the ecological disaster wrought by our cherished obliviousness, and it argues for tree knowledge as a reasonable Christian claim, despite warnings that such claims reflect heresy. Influenced by Powers and Lewis Rambo, the essay asks about conversion—what will it take to convert us?—and suggests that pastoral theology’s responsibilities include an embrace of seeing more through fiction and trees.
Impact of supplemental individual verbal defense on confidence, engagement, and performance in a team-based learning therapeutics course.

Abstract Background and purpose Team-based learning (TBL) has been successfully applied to multiple healthcare education disciplines. A primary tenet of TBL is the development of solutions leveraging the collective knowledge of a team rather than the individual competency of any one student. In an effort to enhance individual student accountability, an individual verbal defense (IVD) format was implemented in a multi-campus TBL-based pharmacotherapeutics course. The study sought to investigate the use of TBL-IVD embedded within a traditional TBL format on student engagement, teaching style preferences, and exam performance compared to a TBL-only format. Educational activity and setting In this cross-sectional study, second-year pharmacy students enrolled in a pharmacotherapeutics course during fall 2019 completed an 11-item survey. The survey was designed to assess TBL-IVD on student engagement and teaching style preference. Free-response qualitative feedback was solicited to assess positive-negative themes related to the activity. Aggregate exam performance for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) related content was compared to historical exam data to assess the impact on student performance. Findings The majority of students (72%, n = 54) preferred the TBL-IVD compared to a TBL-only format. Students reported higher engagement with TBL-IVD (84%, n = 63). Correct exam responses for CAP related content were higher in the TBL-IVD group (67% vs. 55%, P Summary The study demonstrates the addition of IVD can enhance student perceptions, confidence, and performance within a large, multi-campus, TBL-based pharmacotherapeutics course.
Perineal Groove in a Neonate With Increased Maternal Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein

Perineal groove is a likely underreported congenital defect that usually occurs in females, characterized by the presence of a sulcus coursing between the genitalia and the anus. We present the case of a neonate with this defect and discuss its clinical implications and relationship to the mother ’s sequential screen. Int J Clin Pediatr. 2020;9(4):110-115 doi: https://doi.org/10.14740/ijcp383
What happened to quinacrine non-surgical female sterilization?

Abstract Quinacrine sterilization (QS) is a nonsurgical female method used by more than 175,000 women in over 50 countries. With FDA approval, QS is expected to be used by hundreds of millions of women. The negative international health consequences of the results of a 2-year rat study in 2010 by Cancel et al. in Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology (RTP) (56:156–165) are incalculable. S1C(R2) was ignored in this study, including the fundamental concept of maximum tolerated dose (MTD), which resulted in the use of massive doses (up to 35 times the MTD) which killed many of the rats and destroyed the uterus of survivors. The design of this rat study was built on the false assertion that this study mimics what happens in women. Cancel et al. (2010), concludes it “seems most likely” that genotoxicity was a major factor in the carcinogenicity observed, prompting the FDA to halt further research of QS. In RTP, McConnell et al. (2010), and Haseman et al. (2015), using the authors’ data, definitively determined the carcinogenicity to be secondary to necrosis and chronic inflammation. Decisions made in the design, conduct, analysis, interpretation and reporting in this study lack scientific foundation. This paper explores these decisions.
Pond: the oceanstore prototype

OceanStore is an Internet-scale, persistent data store designed for incremental scalability, secure sharing, and long-term durability. Pond is the OceanStore prototype; it contains many of the features of a complete system including location-independent routing, Byzantine update commitment, push-based update of cached copies through an overlay multicast network, and continuous archiving to erasure-coded form. In the wide area, Pond outperforms NFS by up to a factor of 4.6 on readintensive phases of the Andrew benchmark, but underperforms NFS by as much as a factor of 7.3 on writeintensive phases. Microbenchmarks show that write performance is limited by the speed of erasure coding and threshold signature generation, two important areas of future research. Further microbenchmarks show that Pond manages replica consistency in a bandwidth-efficient manner and quantify the latency cost imposed by this bandwidth savings.
Fixing Boundary-Layer Transition on Supersonic Wind-Tunnel Models

In order to reduce or eliminate scale effects of supersonic windtunnel models, it often is important to fix transition to turbulent flow, in the boundary layer of the model, b}^ some artificial method. A systematic series of wind-tunnel tests was conducted to study the use of single-element and distributed roughness for this purpose, and to determine the character of roughnesses which would promote transition with minimum collateral effect on the flow. Curves are presented showing critical roughness height as a function of Mach and Reynolds Numbers; also presented are schlieren photographs showing the effect of Reynolds Number, roughness height, and angle of attack on the transition point. The models used for the study are a family of cone-ogive-cylinders with a fineness ratio of 10.6.
REPAD: An empirical model of pitch angle distributions for energetic electrons in the Earth's outer radiation belt

We have recently conducted a statistical survey on pitch angle distributions of energetic electrons trapped in the Earth's outer radiation belt, and a new empirical model was developed based upon survey results. This model—relativistic electron pitch angle distribution (REPAD)—aims to present statistical pictures of electron equatorial pitch angle distributions, instead of the absolute flux levels, as a function of energy, L shell, magnetic local time, and magnetic activity. To quantify and facilitate this statistical survey, we use Legendre polynomials to fit long-term in situ directional fluxes observed near the magnetic equator from three missions: CRRES, Polar, and LANL-97A. As the first of this kind of model, REPAD covers the whole outer belt region, providing not only the mean and median pitch angle distributions in the area but also error estimates of the average distributions. Preliminary verification and validation results demonstrate the reliable performance of this model. Usage of REPAD is mainly to predict the full pitch angle distribution of fluxes along a given magnetic field line, or even on a given drift shell, based upon one single unidirectional or omnidirectional flux measurement anywhere on that field line. This can be particularly useful for data assimilation, which usually has large tolerance on data errors. In addition, relatively small variations in pitch angle distributions measured at L shell between ~ 4 and 5 justify the assumption of fixed pitch angle distributions at GPS equatorial crossings (L ~ 4.2) used in our previous studies.
Inhibition of muscle protein synthesis by alcohol is associated with modulation of eIF2B and eIF4E

The present study examined potential mechanisms for the inhibition of protein synthesis in skeletal muscle after chronic alcohol consumption. Rats were maintained on an alcohol-containing diet for ...
Academic library leadership in the digital age

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on academic library leadership in the digital age. Primarily, the goals are to identify: first, the top five major challenges facing academic library leadership; second, the top five most important leadership skills required for effective academic library leadership; and finally, the top five best ways to develop these academic library leadership skills. Design/methodology/approach – A survey was conducted to elicit responses from individuals who hold senior library leadership positions in American academic libraries throughout the USA. The participants were identified through several means: the web sites of the ALA and its divisions; the web sites of American universities; referrals; and the author’s professional contacts. To simplify the survey research process, e-mails including the survey research questions were sent to potential participants. In all, 38 invitations (n=38) were sent out to large and medium-size academic libraries throughout the USA. Over...
Creative Inquiry and Scholarship: Applications and Implications in a Doctoral Degree

The doctoral dissertation is defined as an original contribution to a field. By definition, this makes the dissertation a creative product, and the result of a creative process. The creative process of doctoral work has historically not been highlighted. The same is true for education as a whole. While there is an increasing call for greater creativity in education, they remain aspirational. In this article we describe the underlying premises and some of the practices of a doctoral degree that has been designed with the intention of foregrounding the creative process.
Comparative prognostic value of clinical risk indexes, resting two-dimensional echocardiography, and dipyridamole stress thallium-201 myocardial imaging for perioperative cardiac events in major nonvascular surgery patients

The relative prognostic value of widely accessible resting two-dimensional echocardiographic ventricular function data has not been compared with recognized clinical and scintigraphic risk markers in patients who are unable to exercise before major nonvascular surgery. To this end, 53 consecutive patients aged 67 ± 13 years undergoing preoperative evaluation (intraabdominal, 23%; orthopedic, 30%; thoracic, 9%; other, 38%) for known or suspected coronary artery disease were followed up to evaluate the prognostic value of these studies for the perioperative cardiac events (cardiac death [n = 4], myocardial infarction [n = 2], unstable angina [n = 3], and pulmonary edema [n = 8]) that occurred in 13 of the 53 patients (25%). Dipyridamole thallium-201 myocardial redistribution defects occurred in 15 (28%) patients. Resting echocardiographic left ventricular dysfunction was present in 21 (40%) patients. Multivariate analysis of clinical, echocardiographic, and scintigraphic risk predictors revealed that cardiac events were not predicted by clinical variables, including Goldman class or score. Cardiac events were independently predicted only by the presence of significant left ventricular dysfunction on resting two-dimensional echocardiography (p < 0.042) and dipyridamole thallium-201 defect redistribution (p < 0.026). A dipyridamole-induced reversible thallium-201 perfusion defect was predictive of subsequent cardiac death or myocardial infarction (p < 0.02), whereas left ventricular dysfunction on resting echocardiography was predictive of perioperative pulmonary edema (p < 0.023). We conclude that stress thallium-201 perfusion imaging and resting two-dimensional echocardiography provide independent prognostic information in patients undergoing major nonvascular surgery who are at significant risk for ischemic cardiac events and who are unable to perform standard exercise stress tests. Clinical risk indexes were not predictive of cardiac events in these patients when analyzed in combination with noninvasive risk assessment.
David Lyons on utilitarian generalization

We have now examined two versions of UG — that proposed by David Lyons, and a new version derived from his. Both were found to be extensionally nonequivalent to AU, but both were also found to be unacceptable moral theories (Lyons' version generated counter-intuitive prescriptions, and the derived version failed to generate any prescriptions at all in an important range of cases). Naturally, these results cannot be taken to show that no satisfactory form of UG will be forthcoming. But at least some of the conditions to be met by future proposals are now clear: any successful version of the theory must interpret the ‘generalized performance’ of an action to include only the actions of agents who face similar ranges of alternatives, and (in some cases) must select as relevant a description of the action which does not refer, either explicitly or implicitly, to the actions of other agents. Reflection shows that the same remarks hold true, mutatis mutandis, for rule utilitarianism as well: unless the rules are formulated with extreme care in these respects, they may yield unacceptable recommendations, or else fail to recommend any action at all in the very cases they are designed to resolve.17
A note on the Aitken nuclei and ion flow measurements in the lower stratosphere

In the light of new measurements of small aerosol particles in the lower stratosphere, some of the old investigations—which were only published in part in scientific journals—are reviewed and compared. The discussion focuses on whether the Aitken nuclei (AN) size distribution up to 20 km can be described by Junge’s or log-normal density functions and under what circumstances one can find a bimodal distribution of these particles. The ion flow in correlated to the stratospheric pollution (intercept with the jet aircraft, volcanic activity) and is, in mean, directly proportional to the aircraft altitude in the undisturbed lower stratosphere.
Multiple unfused passive sensors for operating in busy indoor environments

We report on progress in using multiple passive sensors to allow a mobile robot to operate successfully in a people populated unstructured indoor environment. The robot locates, follows and approaches people using rotating pairs of passive pyro-electric sensors to determine range and heading of candidate people, using fixed pyro-electric sensors to locate rapidly moving people, and passive touch sensors to avoid local obstacles. The sensors feed directly into behavioral modules, rather than undergo a fusion process. Work is underway to integrate vision in a similar manner.
Morphological processing of diagnostic radar images

This paper briefly describes the filed of diagnostic radar imaging, and discusses how the techniques of mathematical morphology may be brought to bear on the various forms of data commonly used in it, to accomplish different types of tasks. These tasks include tests of data quality, analyses of clutter and radar parameters, and analyses of scattering centers and the mechanisms that give rise to them. Examples are given of morphological processing that can be performed on raw or reconstructed phase history data, on high resolution range profiles, on single magnitude images or sequences of images, and on images based on the image domain phase. New results are described which suggest that the image phase itself may carry useful information about scattering mechanism types. As this paper shows, mathematical morphology provides a little-utilized, yet rich set of tools for the analysis of shape-related phenomena in diagnostic imaging radar data.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The Molecular Volcano: Abrupt CC l 4 Desorption Driven by the Crystallization of Amorphous Solid Water

The desorption kinetics of molecular beam deposited ultrathin films of CC${\mathrm{l}}_{4}$ and amorphous solid water (ASW) are studied. Overlayers of ASW impede CC${\mathrm{l}}_{4}$ desorption until the onset of crystallization, whereupon the CC${\mathrm{l}}_{4}$ desorbs abruptly. The abrupt desorption occurs through connected pathways that are formed in the water overlayer during the nucleation and growth of crystalline ice from ASW. The onset of the abrupt desorption corresponds to the threshold for dynamic percolation. As the crystallization proceeds, the number of connected pathways rapidly increases, giving rise to the episodic release of CC${\mathrm{l}}_{4}$.
Parallels between Community Oriented Policing and the War on Terrorism: Lessons Learned

As local law enforcement agencies shift towards a terrorism prevention strategy, they must develop programs, policies, and initiatives. Rather than create entirely new efforts, tactics and strategies from community policing may be customized and adopted to facilitate this strategy shift. These tactics, which could be easily modified to increase terrorism preparedness, include: community and gang intelligence systems, early warning systems, linkages between police and other city agencies, and crime analysis strategies. The lessons learned from the community policing literature, such as the importance of federal funding, the co‐production of safety, the development of multi‐jurisdictional task forces, and the role of the community, are presented.
Call for papers special issue: Technical documentation programs

WITH the half-life of an engineering education today being between five and ten years, many industrial organizations are concerned with the technical proficiency and vitality of their engineering employees.
Ethylene polymerization by novel highly active iron/acetyl(imino)pyridyl complex

Novel iron-based complex and ace- tyl(imino)pyridine iron(II) chloride (1 and 2) have been successfully synthesized and characterized. The behavior of the complex/methylaluminoxane (MAO) for ethylene polymerization was investigated and compared with 2,6-Bis(imino)pyridyl iron(II) chloride (3 and 4)/MAO. The results show that the new ace- tyl(imino)pyridine iron(II) chloride/MAO catalytic sys- tems were highly active for ethylene polymerization. Polyethylene from those polymerization systems has a bimodal molecular weight distribution (MWD).
Perioperative management of traumatic brain injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major public health problem and the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Despite the modern diagnosis and treatment, the prognosis for patients with TBI remains poor. While severity of primary injury is the major factor determining the outcomes, the secondary injury caused by physiological insults such as hypotension, hypoxemia, hypercarbia, hypocarbia, hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia, etc. that develop over time after the onset of the initial injury, causes further damage to brain tissue, worsening the outcome in TBI. Perioperative period may be particularly important in the course of TBI management. While surgery and anesthesia may predispose the patients to new onset secondary injuries which may contribute adversely to outcomes, the perioperative period is also an opportunity to detect and correct the undiagnosed pre-existing secondary insults, to prevent against new secondary insults and is a potential window to initiate interventions that may improve outcome of TBI. For this review, extensive Pubmed and Medline search on various aspects of perioperative management of TBI was performed, followed by review of research focusing on intraoperative and perioperative period. While the research focusing specifically on the intraoperative and immediate perioperative TBI management is limited, clinical management continues to be based largely on physiological optimization and recommendations of Brain Trauma Foundation guidelines. This review is focused on the perioperative management of TBI, with particular emphasis on recent developments.
Impacts of epistemic (bias) uncertainty on structural identification of constructed (civil) systems

The primary goal of this paper is to discuss the state-of-the-art related to the structural identification (St-ID) of constructed systems, and to point out the most pressing needs for research and applications. As a subset of the system identification concept, St-ID aims to develop representative mathematical models of manufactured (mechanical) and constructed (civil) structural systems through the correlation of experimentally measured inputs and outputs. While the concept of St-ID has matured over the past three decades and it is widely and reliably applied to manufactured systems, St-ID for constructed systems remains in its infancy and has enjoyed only sparse implementation in practice, and generally only for signature structures. The authors believe that this delayed progress is principally the result of a lack of appreciation for the inherent distinctions between constructed systems and their manufactured counterparts. Through this paper the authors hope to clearly convey the unique challenges associated with the St-ID of constructed systems and motivate researchers from engineering mechanics to join in the investigation of these issues and to ultimately aid in advancing the art of St-ID of constructed systems.
The measurement of IgG anti-IgG antibody in rheumatoid arthritis.

Abstract Serum IgG anti-IgG antibody was measured in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteo-arthritis and in healthy young adults. The antibody was isolated by immunoadsorption and evaluated by titration with latex particles. After establishing the method's specificity for IgG anti-IgG, its reproducibility and a means for converting titer to IgG concentration, IgG anti-IgG was found in greatest amounts in rheumatoid arthritis when compared with two other groups. The concentration of IgG anti-IgG, however, was consistently lower in our study than in studies by other workers. This discrepancy appears to be related to our procedure, namely dilution of serum prior to exposure to immunoadsorption, the latter tending to dissociate immune complexes (removal of IgG antigen from IgG anti-IgG antibody). The eluate obtained in this manner contains antibody IgG freed of IgG antigen, as manifested by mainly 7 S IgG, rather than 7 S IgG admixed with complexes of higher sedimentation coefficients. The method reported in this article, therefore, appears to measure IgG anti-IgG antibody with a greater degree of accuracy than previously reported techniques.
Hypoglycemia in IDDM

Hypoglycemia causes substantial morbidity and some mortality in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). It is often the limiting factor in attempts to achieve euglycemia. The prevention or correction of hypoglycemia normally involves both dissipation of insulin and activation of glucose counterregulatory systems. Among the latter, glucagon plays a primary role initially, whereas epinephrine is not critical, although it becomes critical when glucagon is deficient. Growth hormone and cortisol play demonstrable roles in recovery from prolonged hypoglycemia. Glucose autoregulation may be involved in defense against severe hypoglycemia. With respect to pathophysiology, counterregulatory systems are involved in at least five clinical glucoregulatory syndromes. Defective glucose counterregulation is associated with, and best attributed to, combined deficiencies of the glucagon and epinephrine responses to plasma glucose decrements. Almost assuredly in concert with hypoglycemia unawareness, it results in a markedly increased frequency of severe hypoglycemia, at least during intensive therapy of IDDM. Defined as a night to morning increase in plasma glucose concentration, the dawn phenomenon is thought to result from dissipation of insulin plus the effects of nocturnal growth hormone secretion. Despite a sound rationale, the clinical relevance of the Somogyi phenomenon has been recently questioned. The clinical impression of altered glycemic thresholds for symptoms, i.e., patients with poorly controlled IDDM suffer symptoms of hypoglycemia at relatively high plasma glucose levels, whereas those with very well-controlled IDDM often tolerate subnormal glucose levels, has received experimental support. Clearly, hypoglycemia in IDDM is a problem that needs to be solved. Numerous issues need to be addressed through both basic and clinical research.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Formation of the Cores of the Outer Planets

The formation of the giant planets seems to be best explained by accretion of planetesimals to form massive cores, which in the case of Jupiter and Saturn were able to capture nebular gas. However, the timescale for accretion of such cores has been a problem. Accretion in the outer solar system differs qualitatively from planetary growth in the terrestrial region, as the larger embryo masses and lower orbital velocities make bodies more subject to gravitational scattering. The planetesimal swarm in the outer nebula may be seeded by earlier-formed large bodies scattered from the region near the nebular “snow line.” Such a seed body can experience rapid runaway growth undisturbed by competitors; the style of growth is not oligarchy, but monarchy.
Behavioral theories and the problem of compliance

Abstract Capsule presentations are given of the 5 major theoretical approaches to compliance research (Biomedical; Behavioral — Operant and Social Learning; Communication; Rational Decision — Health Belief and Reasoned Action; Self-Regulative Systems) and brief summaries made of their respective contributions and deficits. Suggestions are made for integrating the Biomedical, Behavioral and Rational Decision models into the Self-Regulative Systems Model. The advantages for doing so include completeness of understanding and improved interventions; better integration of the natural history of illness with the individual's perception, understanding, and strategies for coping with illness; recognition of the separate contributions of automatic (habitual) and deliberative (reasoned) determinants of compliance; and the possibility of taking into account the uniqueness of individual understanding of illness and individual patterns of coping with illness. It is also suggested that the self-regulative approach helps to organize insights into the differences between compliance to behavioral measures for prevention and compliance to behavioral measures for cure.
Treatment of chronic granulomatous disease with nonmyeloablative conditioning and a T-cell-depleted hematopoietic allograft.

Background The treatment of chronic granulomatous disease with conventional allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation carries a high risk of serious complications and death. We investigated the feasibility of stem-cell transplantation without ablation of the recipient's bone marrow. Methods Ten patients, five children and five adults, with chronic granulomatous disease underwent peripheral-blood stem-cell transplantation from an HLA-identical sibling. We used a nonmyeloablative conditioning regimen consisting of cyclophosphamide, fludarabine, and antithymocyte globulin. The allograft was depleted of T cells to reduce the risk of severe graft-versus-host disease. Donor lymphocytes were administered at intervals of 30 days or more after the transplantation to facilitate engraftment. Results After a median follow-up of 17 months (range, 8 to 26), the proportion of donor neutrophils in the circulation in 8 of the 10 patients was 33 to 100 percent, a level that can be expected to provide normal host d...
Hubble Space Telescope on-line telemetry archive for monitoring scientific instruments

A major milestone in an effort to update the aging Hubble Space Telescope (HST) ground system was completed when HST operations were switched to a new ground system, a project called "Vision 2000 Control Center System CCS)", at the time of the third Servicing Mission in December 1999. A major CCS subsystem is the Space Telescope Engineering Data Store, the design of which is based on modern Data Warehousing technology. In fact, the Data Warehouse (DW) as implemented in the CCS Ground System that operates and monitors the Hubble Space Telescope represents, the first use of a commercial Data Warehouse to manage engineering data. By the end of February 2002, the process of populating the Data Warehouse with HST historical telemetry data had been completed, providing access to HST engineering data for a period of over 12 years with a current data volume of 2.8 Terabytes. This paper describes hands-on experience from an end user perspective, using the CCS system capabilities, including the Data Warehouse as an HST engineering telemetry archive. The Engineering Team at the Space Telescope Science Institute is using HST telemetry extensively for monitoring the Scientific Instruments, in particular for · Spacecraft anomaly resolutions · Scientific Instrument trending · Improvements of Instrument operational efficiency The overall idea is to maximize science output of the space observatory. Furthermore, the CCS provides a powerful feature to build, save, and recall real-time display pages customized to specific subsystems and operational scenarios. Engineering teams are using the real-time monitoring capabilities intensively during Servicing Missions and real time commanding to handle anomaly situations, while the Flight Operations Team (FOT) monitors the spacecraft around the clock.