cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Long-term intraarterial chemotherapy infusion of ambulatory head and neck cancer patients.

The complications of percutaneous intraarterial infusion chemotherapy of the head-and-neck-cancer patient has dampened enthusiasm for this approach. A totally implantable infusion pump system circumvents many of these complications and will in the long term enhance the opportunity to expand upon the advantanges of infusion chemotherapy for the benefit of all cancer patients.
Why Do Men Get More Heart Disease Than Women? An International Perspective

Biological, behavioral, and psychosocial contributions to the gender gap in coronary heart disease (CHD) are discussed. Although CHD is the Number 1 cause of death for both sexes in the industrialized world, CHD mortality rates between these countries are larger than those between men and women, suggesting that biological factors are not the sole influences on the gender gap in CHD. Traditional coronary risk factors cannot explain the rapid increase in CHD mortality among middle-aged men in many of the newly independent states of eastern Europe. However, eastern European men score higher on stress-related psychosocial coronary risk factors (e.g., social isolation, vital exhaustion) than men living in the West. Comparisons between the sexes also reveal gender differences in psychosocial and behavioral coronary risk factors, including excessive alcohol consumption and smoking, favoring women. Overall, it appears that men's coping with stressful events may be less adaptive physiologically, behaviorally, and emotionally, contributing to their increased risk for CHD.
From difference to sameness: Gender ideology in sexual science

Sexological ideas about gender similarity and difference have changed dramatically over the course of the last one hundred years. In the nineteenth century, sexologists, like other scientists, focu...
Reverse impact experiments against tungsten rods and results for aluminum penetration between 1.5 and 4.2 km/s

Reverse impact experiments against 0.76 mm diameter L/D = 20 tungsten rods have been conducted with a 38 mm diameter launch tube, two-stage light-gas gun using four 450 kV flash X-rays to measure penetration rates. Techniques for projectile construction, sample placement, alignment, and radiography are described. Data for penetration rate, consumption velocity, and total penetration were obtained for 28 mm diameter 6061-T651 aluminum cylinders at impact velocities between 1.5 and 4.2 km/s. It was found that penetration velocity was a linear function of impact velocity over this velocity range. Above 2 km/s impact velocity, penetration was completely hydrodynamic. There was substantial secondary penetration, and the total penetration increased linearly with impact velocity over the range 1.5 to 2.5 km/s.
Characterization of the isolated perfused mouse brain as a system for neurochemical studies

The preparation of the isolated perfused mouse brain (IPMB) is described along with its electrophysiological, morphological, biochemical and pharmacological properties. Using high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection, the primary metabolite of mammalian central nervous system norepinephrine, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenethyleneglycol (MHPG), was measured in the perfusate at 15-min intervals. The rate of MHPG production was similar to literature values of the rate of norepinephrine turnover in mouse brain. MHPG production rate in the IPMB was blocked by pretreatment with 6-hydroxydopamine and was increased by pretreatment with reserpine.
Effect of roentgenotherapy on urinary 17-ketosteroid excretion in ankylosing spondylarthritis.

FEW studies of urinary 17-ketosteroid excretion have been made in rheumatic disease. Fraser and co-workers (1) found diminished excretion in a 16-year-old female with rheumatoid arthritis. Chou and Wang (2) reported low values in rheumatic fever. In 7 males with rheumatic disease, Forbes and associates (3) found the average excretion to be 7.5 mg. in 24 hours, with a range of 2.7 to 11.5 mg., and in females an average of 4.5 mg. with a range of 1.2 to 7.8 mg. Low excretion is found in malnutrition, anemia, hypothyroidism, panhypopituitarism, Addison's disease, and chronic debilitating diseases (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), whereas high excretion occurs in carcinoma of the adrenal cortex, hyperplasia of the adrenals, masculinizing ovarian tumors, hirsutism of females and in Cushing's syndrome (1, 6,7). Although ankylosing spondylarthritis is a chronic debilitating disease accompanied by malnutrition, anemia, and pronounced muscle wasting in its advanced stage, we have found increased urinary 17-ketosteroid excretion in...
Multipliers and Carleson Measures for \( D(\mu) \)

In this paper, the multipliers of the Dirichlet-type space \( D(\mu) \) associated with a positive measure \( \mu \) on the unit circle are characterized in terms of \( \mu\)-Carleson measures. A geometric description of \( \mu\)-Carleson measures is given for the cases of \( \mu \) being absolutely continuous with an \( A_{2} \) weight, and of \( \mu \) being a finite sum of atoms.
Maternal Employment, Race, and Work Orientation of High School Girls

Socialization by mothers, a key determinant of daughters' work orientation, has generally been thought to operate via positive role-modeling. But socialization also occurs through negative modeling, normative influence, and conditional modeling. Using a sample of Louisville high school senior girls and their mothers, we tested whether the differential presence of these processes helps to explain why higher percentages of black than white women work. Other than negative modeling for black girls whose mothers hold bluecollar jobs, both groups of girls have strong similarities, with conditional positive modeling predominating. To the extent that these racial patterns can be generalized, they predict that expanded economic opportunities for black families will reduce racial differences in rates at which mothers are employed. These and other findings suggest that at least for the near future, current family roles, in which breadwinning is primarily the husband's responsibility, are not likely to be radically altered by married women's increasing propensity to work. In the past, girls who planned both to marry and to work generally viewed working as secondary in importance, and so chose (and had available to them) mostly jobs that offered minimal interference with family obligations. Caplow, Oppenheimer (a), Psathas, Rossi, and Tangri have described these jobs. The small proportion of girls who chose to remain single had greater freedom of occupational choice (Douvan and Adelson; Flanagan et al.; Turner). Adolescent girls in the 1970s have had more choices (e.g., to delay marriage or childbearing), and this trend can only imply marked changes in the American family. In particular, married women are entering
Preparation and properties of hydrogen tris(monohydrogen phosphito) ferrate(III) and hydrogen tris(monohydrogen phosphito) chromate(III)

Abstract The preparation, and, spectral and magnetic properties of hydrogen tris(monohydrogen phosphito) ferrate(III) and hydrogen tris(monohydrogen phosphito) chromate(III) are described. Infrared spectral properties of the complexes show the presence of considerable dissymmetry in these complexes. The magnetic moment of the complexes, at 294 K, have been found to be anomolously high.
Bending and flexibility of kinetoplast DNA.

We have evaluated the extent of bending at an anomalous locus in DNA restriction fragments from the kinetoplast body of Leishmania tarentolae using transient electric dichroism to measure the rate of rotational diffusion of DNA fragments in solution. We compare the rate of rotational diffusion of two fragments identical in sequence except for circular permutation, which places the bend near the center in one case and near one end of the molecule in the other. Hydrodynamic theory was used to conclude that the observed 20% difference in rotational relaxation times is a consequence of an overall average bending angle of 84 +/- 6 degrees between the end segments of the fragment that contains the bending locus near its center. If it is assumed that bending results from structural dislocations at the junctions between oligo(dA).oligo(dT) tracts and adjacent segments of B DNA, a bend angle of 9 +/- 0.5 degrees at each junction is required to explain the observations. The extent of bending is little affected by ionic conditions and is weakly dependent on temperature. Comparison of one of the anomalous fragments with an electrophoretically normal control fragment leads to the conclusion that they differ measurably in apparent stiffness, consistent with a significantly increased persistence length or contour length in the kinetoplast fragments.
The cyclic stress-strain response of polycrystalline, pseudoelastic Cu-14.5 wt pct Al-3 wt pct Ni alloy

Limited results on the fatigue of pseudo-elastic material indicate that, as a class, these materials should have truly outstanding fatigue properties. To check this, the mechanisms of cyclic deformation and fracture have been studied in Cu−Al−Ni chosen because its transformation behavior is well understood. Since this alloy is notoriously brittle, pulsating compression fatigue tests were carried out in polycrystalline material. The details of the stress-induced martensite behavior were studied byin situ video observations. The alloy was found to undergo cyclic hardening and failure eventually occurred by multiple nucleation of cracks at grain boundaries, by a mechanism similar in principle to that which occurs in regular metals cycled at high plastic strains. The Coffin-Manson law was obeyed.
Teaching the teacher program to assist nurse managers to educate nursing staff in Ecuadorian hospitals

Summary Continuing education for hospital staff nurses is a concern worldwide. Current research shows that continuing education among nurses can positively affect patient outcomes ( O’Brien, T., Freemantle, N., Oxman, A, et al., 2002. Interactive continuing education workshops or conferences can improve professional practice and patient outcomes. Journal of Evidence Based Nursing. 26 (5) ). Seeing a need for improved patient outcomes among hospitals in Ecuador, we conducted a teaching the teacher program to assist nurse managers to carry-out continuing education in their hospital system. This teaching the teacher program was established through the collaboration between one College of Nursing in Utah, USA and a large healthcare system in Guayaquil, Ecuador. The collaboration has been ongoing for five years, 2003 to present. Initial projects included classes for the nursing staff including technical skills, life-saving techniques, and nursing process and assessment. Collaborators from the US and Ecuador believed that in order to maximize the improvement of nursing care in the hospital system it was necessary to turn attention on the nurse managers and not just the staff nurses. This would allow for meaningful ongoing learning beyond the one-time classroom setting. Continuing education is not common in Ecuadorian hospitals as it is in the United States. The purpose of this paper is to describe the project and provide initial evaluative data on the response to the curriculum; including evidence of managers using the teaching principles they were taught. The underlying aim of the project was to achieve a sustainable impact by teaching the leaders of each unit how to be more effective teachers. In May 2007, a two-day “teaching the teacher” workshop was developed with the needs of the managers in mind. The participants in the course included the chief nursing officer and leaders of various units of the hospital. In May 2008 a follow-up class was taught, along with an evaluation by a verbal and written survey with open ended questions and an observation of an actual class being taught by the participants.
The Respiratory Chain Components of Higher Plant Mitochondria

TIGHTLY COUPLED MITOCHONDRIA HAVE BEEN PREPARED FROM A VARIETY OF PLANT SOURCES: white potato (Solanum tuberosum), Jerusalem artichoke (Heliantus tuberosus), cauliflower buds (Brassica oleracea), and mung bean hypocotyls (Phaseolus aureus). Mitochondria with no appreciable coupling were also prepared from skunk cabbage spadices (Symplocarpus foetidus).Room temperature difference spectra show that these mitochondria are very similar in the qualitative and quantitative composition of their electron carriers. The different cytochromes are present in the amounts of 0.1 to 0.3 mmumole per mg of mitochondrial protein. The molar ratios of the different electron carriers are, on the average: 0.7:0.7:1.0:3 to 4:10 to 15 respectively for cytochrome aa(3), cytochromes b, cytochromes c, flavoproteins, and pyridine nucleotides.From low temperature difference spectra carried out under particular experimental conditions, it can be deduced that these mitochondria contain 3 b cytochromes whose alpha bands are located at 552, 557, and 561 mmu, and 2 c cytochromes, one of which, a c(1)-like cytochrome, is firmly bound to the mitochondrial membrane. Cytochrome oxidase can be optically resolved into its 2 components a and a(3).For all kinds of mitochondria, the rates of oxidation of succinate are similar as well as the turnover of cytochrome oxidase (50-70 sec(-1)), regardless of the metabolic activities of the tissues. The number of mitochondria per cell appears to be the controlling factor of the intensity of tissue respiration.
The provisional fixed partial denture

A discussion of the rationale and requirements of the provisional restoration in fixed prosthetic dentistry has been presented. The imporatnce of this phase of restorative densitry and a survey of techniques for making interim restorations were gleaned from a review of the literature. A method for the fabrication of a provisional fixed partial denture using an acrylic resin interocclusal record was described and illustrated.
Hormones as long-term error signals for the sympathetic nervous system: importance of a new perspective.

SUMMARY 1. A hormonal-sympathetic reflex model for long-term control of arterial pressure is presented. It is hypothesized that the hormonal-sympathetic reflex regulates arterial pressure during chronic dietary salt loading by decreasing sympathetic tone. This sympathetic response is mediated by an increase in plasma vasopressin (AVP) and a decrease in plasma angiotensin (AngII). 2. Three new models of neurogenic salt-dependent hypertension are presented. All models are theoretically based on an impaired hormonal-sympathetic reflex. 3. In the first model, sympathetic responsiveness is ‘clamped’ by long-term α-adrenergic blockade with prazosin. Prazosin treated rats exhibit marked salt-dependent hypertension despite normal suppression of the renin-angiotensin system. 4. In the second model, the ability of the central nervous system to respond to salt-induced changes in AVP and AngII concentrations was prevented by long-term administration of antagonists selective for the AVP-V1 and AT1. This ‘clamp’ of the afferent hormonal signal resulted in salt-dependent hypertension identical in magnitude to that observed in prazosin treated rats. 5. In the third model, the long-term arterial pressure responses to increasing dietary salt were examined in sino-aortic denervated (SAD) rats. SAD rats exhibited salt-dependent hypertension, of lesser magnitude than that observed with ‘clamped’ afferent and efferent pathways of the hormonal-sympathetic reflex. 6. A primary role for hormonal ‘error signals’ is presented and the impact this perspective has on past and future investigations of central mechanisms of long-term arterial pressure regulation is discussed.
Assessment of quality of life in head and neck cancer patients

UNLABELLED Seventy-five consecutive patients were selected to evaluate a disease-specific quality-of-life questionnaire (UW QOL). The new test was compared to two established equality of life evaluation tools, the Karnofsky scale and the Sickness Impact Profile (SIP). Each test was administered on three separate occasions: (1) several days preoperatively; (2) immediately postoperatively; and (3) 3 months postoperatively. The Karnofsky scale is relatively crude and lacks the ability to measure subtle changes. The SIP is a detailed questionnaire that is quite sensitive to change. However, due to its length, the SIP is inefficient and expensive to administer, and patient non-compliance is often a problem. The three questionnaires were compared according to the following factors: Acceptability: 97% of the patients favored the UW QOL scale compared with the SIP because it was more concise and easier to complete. VALIDITY VALIDITY indicates the ability of the test under investigation to measure what it was intended to measure. Using the SIP as a gold standard, the UW QOL scale demonstrated an average criterion validity of 0.849, whereas the Karnofsky average criterion validity was 0.826. Reliability: Reliability is a measurement of the reproducibility of the data. The UW QOL questionnaire scored > 0.90 on reliability coefficients versus 0.80 for the Karnofsky and 0.87 for the SIP scale. Responsiveness: Responsiveness is the ability of the test to measure clinical change. The UW QOL scale faired better than the Karnofsky and the SIP scale in detecting change. The UW QOL scale is comparable to the Karnofsky and SIP scales when tested for validity and reliability. It was the preferred test format of 97% of patients and provided the greatest responsiveness to clinical change.
NMR Studies of the Interaction of Catechol and Ascorbic Acid with the Crown Ether

Abstract Various crown ethers have been electropolymerized onto a platinum electrode for the determination of catechol and catecholamines by static potentiometry and potentiometric-flow injection analysis(FIA). The response mechanism of this modified electrode was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis(ESCA). However, these studies were not conclusive with respect to possible mechanisms, and, therefore, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies were carried out on similar soluble crown ethers to determine the mode of interaction. As the crown ether resonances were shifted to higher fields by the added catechol in D2O but not d6-DMSO, it is postulated that the crown ether and catechol associate via interactions between hydrophobic surfaces. Hydrophilic ascorbic acid showed no NMR shifts which is consistent with its lack of potentiometric response. The EDAX and ESCA results indicated that there was also an...
Radiation effects and anelastic loss in germanium-doped quartz.

5-MHz resonators were fabricated from germanium-doped cultured quartz and were $^{60}\mathrm{Co}$ irradiated at room temperature. The quartz has a relatively low aluminum-impurity concentration, 0.5 ppm, and the aluminum is lithium compensated. Oscillator frequency offsets \ensuremath{\Delta}f/f and resonator anelastic loss spectrum ${Q}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1}$ were measured and show an increase and subsequent decrease as a function of dose, known as radiation bleaching. At low irradiation levels, \ensuremath{\Delta}f/f decreases with increasing dose, reaches at 50 krad a minimum of -4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}7}$, reverses and increases with additional dose, and at 1 Mrad it recovers to -1.2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}7}$. (1 rad\ensuremath{\equiv}100 ergs/g.) These values are surprisingly large in comparison with other lithium-compensated high-quality quartz. Resonator irradiation induces a ${Q}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1}$ peak centered at 246 K, which also bleaches with radiation. At 246 K the Q value is 2.25\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{6}$, decreases with irradiation, reaches at 50 krad a minimum of 0.65\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{6}$, and recovers at 350 krad to 1.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{6}$. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements show Al hole, and germanium C and A centers, Ge(C)-Li and Ge(A)-Li, neutral defects of a trapped electron localized on a substitutional Ge site and stabilized by an adjacent ${\mathrm{Li}}^{+}$ ion. All three EPR spectra also radiation bleach at doses above 50 krad. This strongly suggests that the Ge(C)-Li defect is associated with the 246-K loss peak. The activation energy of the ${Q}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1}$ peak is E=0.22 eV, the corresponding relaxation time ${\ensuremath{\tau}}_{0}$=8\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}13}$ sec, and the peak anneals at 555 K.
Treatment of Recurrent Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Skin With Cetuximab

Background Squamous cell carcinoma of the skin (SCCS) is rarely encountered by medical oncologists owing to success of local therapies. When advanced SCCS requires systemic palliation, treatment with conventional chemotherapy, such as cisplatin, is often precluded by a patient's age or medical comorbidities. Cetuximab is a human and mouse chimeric antibody against epidermal growth factor receptor, a tyrosine kinase receptor richly expressed by SCCS cells, including lymph node metastases. This drug, approved for treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the upper aerodigestive tract as well as colorectal cancer, is well tolerated. Toxic effects include acneiform rash and diarrhea. Preclinical data suggest that epidermal growth factor receptor is important in SCCS carcinogenesis. Observations Herein, we report 2 cases of elderly patients with extensive, in-transit recurrence of SCCS who have been treated with palliative cetuximab. The drug was well tolerated, with the exception of acneiform rash requiring dose reduction in 1 patient. Both patients had excellent responses to cetuximab: the first patient had complete response by week 16 of treatment and the second a near-complete response by week 12. In both cases, initial response to cetuximab was evident by week 4 of therapy. Conclusions To our knowledge, these are the first reported cases of cetuximab use in patients with SCCS. The encouraging responses justify the prospective study of cetuximab in SCCS.
Model management 2.0: manipulating richer mappings

Model management is a generic approach to solving problems of data programmability where precisely engineered mappings are required. Applications include data warehousing, e-commerce, object-to-relational wrappers, enterprise information integration, database portals, and report generators. The goal is to develop a model management engine that can support tools for all of these applications. The engine supports operations to match schemas, compose mappings, diff schemas, merge schemas, translate schemas into different data models, and generate data transformations from mappings. Much has been learned about model management since it was proposed seven years ago. This leads us to a revised vision that differs from the original in two main respects: the operations must handle more expressive mappings, and the runtime that executes mappings should be added as an important model management component. We review what has been learned from recent experience, explain the revised model management vision based on that experience, and identify the research problems that the revised vision opens up.
Manufacturing Power: The Organizational Revival of the National Association of Manufacturers, 1941–1945

In the years following World War II, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) regained the political effectiveness it had lost during the New Deal. This article analyzes NAM's resurgence within the context of the rising popularity and political strength of organized business in the postwar period. It argues that NAM's success is only partly explained by external factors, such as the policies of Truman administration and divisions among labor organizations. NAM's renewed ability to shape national affairs resulted from an internal transformation that vastly improved its administrative capacity, and from a change in its public relations and labor policies. These efforts came to fruition when NAM proved able to dominate the proceedings of the 1945 Labor-Management Conference.
A Bayesian account of independent evidence with applications

A Bayesian account of independent evidential support is outlined. This account is partly inspired by the work of C. S. Peirce. I show that a large class of quantitative Bayesian measures of confirmation satisfy some basic desiderata suggested by Peirce for adequate accounts of independent evidence. I argue that, by considering further natural constraints on a probabilistic account of independent evidence, all but a very small class of Bayesian measures of confirmation can be ruled out. In closing, another application of my account to the problem of evidential diversity is also discussed.
Descent methods for convex essentially smooth minimization

Consider the problem of minimizing a convex essentially smooth function over a polyhedral set. For the special case where the cost function is strictly convex, we propose a feasible descent method for this problem that chooses the descent directions from a finite set of vectors. When the polyhedral set is the nonnegative orthant or the entire space, this method reduces to a coordinate descent method which, when applied to certain dual of linearly constrained convex programs with strictly convex essentially smooth costs, contains as special cases a number of well-known dual methods for quadratic and entropy (either −logx orx logx) optimization. Moreover, convergence of these dual methods can be inferred from a general convergence result for the feasible descent method. When the cost function is not strictly convex, we propose an extension of the feasible descent method which makes descent along the elementary vectors of a certain subspace associated with the polyhedral set. The elementary vectors are not stored, but generated using the dual rectification algorithm of Rockafellar. By introducing an ∈-complementary slackness mechanism, we show that this extended method terminates finitely with a solution whose cost is within an order of ∈ of the optimal cost. Because it uses the dual rectification algorithm, this method can exploit the combinatorial structure of the polyhedral set and is well suited for problems with a special (e.g., network) structure.
Software faults: a quantifiable definition

An important aspect of developing models relating the number and type of faults in a software system to a set of structural measurement is defining what constitutes a fault. By definition, a fault is a structural imperfection in a software system that may lead to the system's eventually failing. A measurable and precise definition of what faults are makes it possible to accurately identify and count them, which in turn allows the formulation of models relating fault counts and types to other measurable attributes of a software system. Unfortunately, the most widely used definitions are not measurable--there is no guarantee that two different individuals looking at the same set of failure reports and the same set of fault definitions will count the same number of underlying faults. The incomplete and ambiguous nature of current fault definitions adds a noise component to the inputs used in modeling fault content, If this noise component is sufficiently large, any attempt to develop a fault model will produce invalid results. In this paper, we base our recognition and enumeration of software faults on the grammar of the language of the software system. By tokenizing the differences between a version of the system exhibiting a particular failure behavior, and the version in which changes were made to eliminate that behavior, we are able to unambiguously count the number of faults associated with that failure. With modern configuration management tools, the identification and counting of software faults can be automated.
An intelligent system for customer targeting: a data mining approach

We propose a data mining approach for market managers that uses artificial neural networks (ANNs) guided by genetic algorithms (GAs). Our predictive model allows the selection of an optimal target point where expected profit from direct mailing is maximized. Our approach also produces models that are easier to interpret by using a smaller number of predictive features. Through sensitivity analysis, we also show that our chosen model significantly outperforms the baseline algorithms in terms of hit rate and expected net profit on key target points.
Simulation results with ZEPLIN II

Abstract Monte Carlo simulation studies of light collection have been performed for the ZEPLIN II central detector. Attenuation, transmission and reflection, and absorption are carefully considered for the simulation. Approximately 3.61 photoelectrons per keV can be obtained with the detector geometry which is currently being built, not including considerations of optical transparencies of fine metallic meshes in the detector. It is also found that the PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene) confinement for liquid xenon, coupled with a highly reflective bottom copper plate, improves both the light collection efficiency and the energy resolution.
Communication failures: an insidious contributor to medical mishaps.

Purpose To describe how communication failures contribute to many medical mishaps. Method In late 1999, a sample of 26 residents stratified by medical specialty, year of residency, and gender was randomly selected from a population of 85 residents at a 600-bed U.S. teaching hospital. The study design involved semistructured face-to-face interviews with the residents about their routine work environments and activities, the medical mishaps in which they recently had been involved, and a description of both the individual and organizational contributory factors. The themes reported here emerged from inductive analyses of the data. Results Residents reported a total of 70 mishap incidents. Aspects of "communication" and "patient management" were the two most commonly cited contributing factors. Residents described themselves as embedded in a complex network of relationships, playing a pivotal role in patient management vis-a-vis other medical staff and health care providers from within the hospital and from the community. Recurring patterns of communication difficulties occur within these relationships and appear to be associated with the occurrence of medical mishaps. Conclusion The occurrence of everyday medical mishaps in this study is associated with faulty communication; but, poor communication is not simply the result of poor transmission or exchange of information. Communication failures are far more complex and relate to hierarchical differences, concerns with upward influence, conflicting roles and role ambiguity, and interpersonal power and conflict. A clearer understanding of these dynamics highlights possibilities for appropriate interventions in medical education and in health care organizations aimed at improving patient safety.
K-ABC Stability in a Preschool Sample: a Longitudinal Study

Stability of K-ABC performance over a 2-year in terval with 25 nonhandicapped preschool children was examined. Global scale stability coefficients (corrected for restriction in range) for Time 1 testing (age 4) and Time 3 testing (age 6) were: MPC = .77; SEQ = .73; SIM = .76; ACH = .80. Subtest stability coefficients ranged from .53 to .75 for the Time 1/Time 3 comparisons. Repeated measures analyses of variance revealed significant increases in mean SIM scores from age 4 and 5 to age 6, and a significant decrease in mean ACH score from age 4 to ages 5 and 6. Overall, results indicated a high level of stability for both global scale scores and subtest scores. Less stability was indicated for profile patterns (SIM > SEQ, SIM < SEQ SIM = SEQ) and subtest strengths and weaknesses with this sample of non handicapped preschool children tested at ages 4, 5, and 6.
Cryogenic Thermal Modeling and Experimental Validation of a Novel Heat Sink for Helium Gas Cooled Superconducting Devices

Terminations are an essential part of any superconducting cable system since they maintain the cryogenic environment for the HTS superconductor by intercepting the heat leak from the ambient into the cryogenic system. Due to phase change high pressurization effects and asphyxiation hazards, the use of liquid cryogens on shipboard power systems is unacceptable. Hence, cable terminations, represented by a gaseous helium cooled heat sink, are developed for this specific purpose. A κ-e turbulent model, discretized using the finite-element method, is used here to study the characteristics of the heat sink in turbulent flow regime. The model is successfully validated with an extensive set of experimental data covering a wide range of Reynolds numbers at various inflow temperatures conditions. Furthermore, the model is used to study the heat sink characteristics such as pressure drop and temperature rise under various coolant flow conditions and heat influxes. The model results are scalable and can be used to design and optimize larger heat sinks with turbulent flow regime.
Tumor suppressor genes in the TGF-beta signaling pathway?

Loss of response to TGF-βs may be an important step in the development and progression of cancer. Recent studies show that receptors and proteins involved in TGF-β signaling may act as tumor suppressors.
Viscoelastic response of human skin to low magnitude physiologically relevant shear.

Percutaneous implants are a family of devices that penetrate the skin and all suffer from the same problems of infection because the skin seal around the device is not optimal. Contributing to this problem is the mechanical discontinuity of the skin/device interface leading to stress concentrations and micro-trauma that chronically breaks any seal that forms. In this paper, we have quantified the mechanical behavior of human skin under low-magnitude shear loads over physiological relevant frequencies. Using a stress-controlled rheometer, we have performed isothermal (37°C) frequency response experiments between 0.628 to 75.39rad/s at 0.5% and 0.04% strain on whole skin and dermis-only, respectively. Step-stress experiments of 5 and 10Pa shear loads were also conducted as were strain sweep tests (6.28rad/s). Measurements were made of whole human skin and skin from which the epidermis was removed (dermis-only). At low frequencies (0.628 to 10rad/s), the moduli are only slightly frequency dependent, with approximate power-law scaling of the moduli, G′ ~ G″ ~ ωβ, yielding β = 0.05 for whole skin and β = 0.16 for dermis-only samples. Step-stress experiments revealed three distinct phases. The intermediate phase included elastic “ringing” (damped oscillation) which provided new insights and could be fit to a mathematical model. Both the frequency and step stress response data suggests that the epidermis provides elastic rigidity and dermis provides viscoelasticity to the whole skin samples. Hence, whole skin exhibited strain hardening while the dermis-only demonstrated stress softening under step-stress conditions. The data obtained from the low magnitude shear loads and frequencies that approximate the chronic mechanical environment of a percutaneous implant should aid in the design of a device with an improved skin seal.
Back gate bias method of threshold voltage control for the design of low voltage CMOS ternary logic circuits

Key building blocks – simple ternary inverter, positive ternary inverter and negative ternary inverter have been designed for operation at a low voltage – ±1 V in 2 μm, n-well standard CMOS process and simulated in SPICE3 for use in the design of ternary logic circuits. The back-gate bias method has been used in conjunction with the width/channel (W/L) ratio of MOSFETs to generate the desired dc voltage transfer characteristics and transition region adjustment around midway between high and low logic levels.
Participative management in Northern Mexico: a study of maquiladoras

This study examined the relationship between participative management and the effectiveness (performance and employee turnover) of fifty-four maquilndorrrs, production facilities in Northern Mexico. Although Mexicos culture has been characterized as high in power-distance–a value that is incongruent with participative management, our findings showed that participative management in maquiladoras was associated with lower turnover and enhanced performance. We interpreted these results as suggesting that participative management practices may not be sensitive to the culture of Northern Mexico and, hence, may be successfully transported to that region.
A tunable support vector machine assembly classifier for epileptic seizure detection

Automating the detection of epileptic seizures could reduce the significant human resources necessary for the care of patients suffering from intractable epilepsy and offer improved solutions for closed-loop therapeutic devices such as implantable electrical stimulation systems. While numerous detection algorithms have been published, an effective detector in the clinical setting remains elusive. There are significant challenges facing seizure detection algorithms. The epilepsy EEG morphology can vary widely among the patient population. EEG recordings from the same patient can change over time. EEG recordings can be contaminated with artifacts that often resemble epileptic seizure activity. In order for an epileptic seizure detector to be successful, it must be able to adapt to these different challenges. In this study, a novel detector is proposed based on a support vector machine assembly classifier (SVMA). The SVMA consists of a group of SVMs each trained with a different set of weights between the seizure and non-seizure data and the user can selectively control the output of the SVMA classifier. The algorithm can improve the detection performance compared to traditional methods by providing an effective tuning strategy for specific patients. The proposed algorithm also demonstrates a clear advantage over threshold tuning. When compared with the detection performances reported by other studies using the publicly available epilepsy dataset hosted by the University of BONN, the proposed SVMA detector achieved the best total accuracy of 98.72%. These results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed SVMA detector and its potential in the clinical setting.
Studies on lifetime measurements and collisional processes in an inductively coupled argon plasma using laser induced fluorescence

Abstract Lifetimes of excited atoms and ions in an inductively coupled argon plasma are obtained by the laser excited fluorescence technique, and quantum efficiencies are calculated for each species. Thermally assisted fluorescence is measured in order to explain the decrease in quantum efficiency with the existence of other excited levels of the same element near the laser excited level. Finally, a discussion is given on the possible collisional population processes.
Letter by Prutkin Regarding Article, “Janeway Lesions: An Old Sign Revisited”

I read with interest the description by Khanna et al1 of a patient, aged 20 years, with infective endocarditis and Janeway lesions. The authors, however, misattribute the eponym to Theodore Janeway, when it was his father, …
Steady incision of Grand Canyon at the million year timeframe: A case for mantle-driven differential uplift

Abstract The Grand Canyon region provides an excellent laboratory to examine the interplay between river incision, magmatism, and the geomorphic and tectonic processes that shape landscapes. Here we apply U-series, Ar–Ar, and cosmogenic burial dating of river terraces to examine spatial variations in incision rates along the 445 km length of the Colorado River through Grand Canyon. We also analyze strath terrace sequences that extend to heights of several hundred meters above the river, and integrate these with speleothem constrained maximum incision rates in several reaches to examine any temporal incision variations at the million-year time frame. This new high-resolution geochronology shows temporally steady long-term incision in any given reach of Grand Canyon but significant variations along its length from 160 m/Ma in the east to 101 m/Ma in the west. Spatial and temporal patterns of incision, and the long timescale of steady incision rule out models where geomorphic controls such as climate oscillations, bedrock strength, sediment load effects, or isostatic response to differential denudation are the first order drivers of canyon incision. The incision pattern is best explained by a model of Neogene and ongoing epeirogenic uplift due to an eastward propagating zone of increased upper mantle buoyancy that we infer from propagation of Neogene basaltic volcanism and a strong lateral gradient in modern upper mantle seismic structure.
The use of feather meal as a replacement for fish meal in the diet of Oreochromis niloticus fry

Abstract Four diets were developed in which equal weights of hydrolyzed feather meal (F) replaced equal weights of fish and meat and bone (FMB) meal in the following percentages: 0/100, 33/66, 66/33 and 100/0 (F/FMB). Each diet was proffered ab libitum to two replicate groups of 60 fry (mean wet weight 12·3 ± 0·3 mg) for 42 days. Survival was not significantly different among treatments (> 93%). The individuals fed 0/100, 33/66 and 66/33 (F/FMB) did not differ significantly in median or mean weight gain, however, individuals fed 100/0 (F/FMB) were significantly smaller than those fed all other diets at days 21 and 42. The growth of Oreochromis niloticus fry was not compromised by replacement of up to 66% of fish meal and meat and bone meal (9·9% of the total diet) with feather meal. Feeding feather meal as a sole source of animal protein, however, appears to result in a decrease in weight gain and associated growth parameters.
Matrix Assisted Pulsed Laser Evaporation of Dexamethasone Thin Films

We have demonstrated deposition of dexamethasone thin films via matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE). Infrared analysis revealed that dexamethasone thin films deposited by MAPLE and by drop casting had a similar absorbance spectra. AFM imaging of the MAPLE-deposited dexamethasone thin film revealed 2–10 µm punctuate ring-like structures. Deposited dexamethasone was tested for positive bioactivity by treating primary microglia cells with lipopolysacchride and measuring nitric oxide (NO) production. The successful deposition of dexamethasone thin films can be used on neural implants to prevent tissue injury and inflammatory response.
Modeling Sensorimotor Learning with Linear Dynamical Systems

Recent studies have employed simple linear dynamical systems to model trial-by-trial dynamics in various sensorimotor learning tasks. Here we explore the theoretical and practical considerations that arise when employing the general class of linear dynamical systems (LDS) as a model for sensorimotor learning. In this framework, the state of the system is a set of parameters that define the current sensorimotor transformation—the function that maps sensory inputs to motor outputs. The class of LDS models provides a first-order approximation for any Markovian (state-dependent) learning rule that specifies the changes in the sensorimotor transformation that result from sensory feedback on each movement. We show that modeling the trial-by-trial dynamics of learning provides a substantially enhanced picture of the process of adaptation compared to measurements of the steady state of adaptation derived from more traditional blocked-exposure experiments. Specifically, these models can be used to quantify sensory and performance biases, the extent to which learned changes in the sensorimotor transformation decay over time, and the portion of motor variability due to either learning or performance variability. We show that previous attempts to fit such models with linear regression have not generally yielded consistent parameter estimates. Instead, we present an expectation-maximization algorithm for fitting LDS models to experimental data and describe the difficulties inherent in estimating the parameters associated with feedback-driven learning. Finally, we demonstrate the application of these methods in a simple sensorimotor learning experiment: adaptation to shifted visual feedback during reaching.
Nonlinear charge control in direct injection gasoline engines

Abstract This paper develops a nonlinear charge controller for gasoline direct injection engines. The problem is to control the electronic throttle and the EGR valve to achieve the desired intake manifold pressure and the EGR flow. The control design is based on a variant of a Lyapunov design procedure, the so called Speed-Gradient approach. This methodology is reviewed, the controller for the electronic throttle and the EGR. valve is derived in conjunction with an observer for the EGR flow, stability of the closed loop system is rigorously analyzed and experimental results demonstrating controller performance are reported.
Sinoaortic baroreceptor reflex arc modulation of nociception in spontaneously hypertensive and normotensive rats

Spontaneously hypertensive rats of the Okamoto-Aoki strain (SHR) and normotensive rats of the Wistar-Kyoto strain (WKY) were assessed in hot-plate and flinch-jump analgesimetric assays. SHRs manifested longer latencies than WKYs to both paw-lick and jump in response to painful thermal stimulation in the hot-plate assay, but SHRs had lower flinch and jump thresholds than WKYs to electric shock stimulation in the flinch-jump assay. Bilateral sinoaortic deafferentation did not alter response latencies of either SHRs or WKYs in the hotplate assay, but significantly lowered flinch and jump thresholds of both SHRs and WKYs in the flinch-jump assay. These findings are discussed in terms of baroreceptor reflex arc modulation of endogenous pain-regulatory systems and motor control.
Branched-chain ketoacid dehydrogenase activity and growth of normal and mutant human fibroblasts: The effect of branched-chain amino acid concentration in culture medium

We investigated changes in cell growth and branched chain ketoacid dehydrogenase (BCKD) activity by varying the concentrations of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) in culture medium of diploid fibroblasts from humans with normal BCKD and with impaired enzyme function. For logarithmic growth the two cell populations required similar minimal concentrations (0.05mm) for each of leucine, isoleucine, and valine tested together. At confluency (saturation density) mutant cells grew less well to the extent of 30 to 40% in the highest concentrations of BCAAs that could be tested, 20.8mm. BCKD activity was not changed by growth of normal or mutant cells in the absence of BCAAs. This enzyme activity was increased in normal but not mutant cells by growth in 20.8mm BCAAs. These studies suggest the following: (1) BCKD mutant fibroblasts in culture slow their growth rate in response to high concentrations of BCAAs; (2) the growth disadvantage for mutant cells in high concentrations of BCAAs may be useful to select for enzyme normal hybrids derived when cells with two different mutations affecting BCKD are fused; (3) the increase of BCKD activity in normal but not mutant cells grown in high concentrations of BCAAs can distinguish these phenotypes more precisely in humans; and (4) the mechanism of BCKD stimulation in normal cells grown in high concentrations of BCAAs remains to be explained but can be pursued further with the cell culture conditions described.
Well-developed mass transfer in axial flows through randomly packed fiber bundles with constant wall flux

Abstract An analysis of the effects of fiber packing on mass transfer coefficients for axial fluid flow through fiber bundles with uniform wall flux in the well-developed limit is presented. The finite element method is used to solve the governing momentum and conservation of mass equations. The effective mass transfer coefficient depends strongly on fiber packing. Randomly packed fiber bundles have much lower mass transfer coefficients than regularly packed fiber bundles. Mass transfer rates are controlled by the lowest fiber packing regions through which most of the flow occurs.