cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Prescription errors before and after introduction of electronic medication alert system in a pediatric emergency department.

Objectives Prescription errors occur frequently in pediatric emergency departments (PEDs).The effect of computerized physician order entry (CPOE) with electronic medication alert system (EMAS) on these is unknown. The objective was to compare prescription errors rates before and after introduction of CPOE with EMAS in a PED. The hypothesis was that CPOE with EMAS would significantly reduce the rate and severity of prescription errors in the PED. Methods A prospective comparison of a sample of outpatient, medication prescriptions 5 months before and after CPOE with EMAS implementation (7,268 before and 7,292 after) was performed. Error types and rates, alert types and significance, and physician response were noted. Medication errors were deemed significant if there was a potential to cause life-threatening injury, failure of therapy, or an adverse drug effect. Results There was a significant reduction in the errors per 100 prescriptions (10.4 before vs. 7.3 after; absolute risk reduction = 3.1, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.2 to 4.0). Drug dosing error rates decreased from 8 to 5.4 per 100 (absolute risk reduction = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.8 to 3.4). Alerts were generated for 29.6% of prescriptions, with 45% involving drug dose range checking. The sensitivity of CPOE with EMAS in identifying errors in prescriptions was 45.1% (95% CI = 40.8% to 49.6%), and the specificity was 57% (95% CI = 55.6% to 58.5%). Prescribers modified 20% of the dosing alerts, resulting in the error not reaching the patient. Conversely, 11% of true dosing alerts for medication errors were overridden by the prescribers: 88 (11.3%) resulted in medication errors, and 684 (88.6%) were false-positive alerts. Conclusions A CPOE with EMAS was associated with a decrease in overall prescription errors in our PED. Further system refinements are required to reduce the high false-positive alert rates.
New approaches to cell kinetics in human tumors

Both clinical and laboratory evidence indicate that local control rates for many experimental and clinical human tumors decrease with protraction of the overall duration of radiation therapy. A likely basis for this is tumor cell repopulation during treatment. Such observations have stimulated interest in tumor kinetics, and a number of techniques have evolved to increase the potential for meaningful clinical study of the proliferative behavior of tumors. This review discusses the clinical and experimental evidence for proliferation during treatment, describes two potential approaches--accelerated fractionation and inhibition of proliferation--that could be employed in attempting to overcome such intratreatment proliferation, explores both past and newer, evolving methods available for measuring tumor cytokinetics, and discusses how such kinetic information could be used in the future to tailor therapy to a tumor's individual characteristics.
Board-level multiterminal net routing for FPGA-based logic emulation

We consider a board-level routing problem applicable to FPGA-based logic emulation systems such as the Realizer System [Varghese et al. 1993] and the Enterprise Emulation System [Maliniak 1992] manufactured by Quickturn Design Systems. Optimal algorithms have been proposed for the case where all nets are two-terminal nets [Chan and Schlag 1993; Mak and Wong 1995]. We show how multiterminal nets can be handled by decomposition into two-terminal nets. We show that the multiterminal net decomposition problem can be modeled as a bounded-degree hypergraph-to-graph transformation problem where hyperedges are transformed to spanning trees. A network flow-based algorithm that solves both problems is proposed. It determines if there is a feasible decomposition and gives one whenever such a decomposition exists.
Lightweight Memory Management for High Performance Applications in Consolidated Environments

Linux-based operating systems and runtimes (OS/Rs) have emerged as the environments of choice for the majority of HPC systems. While Linux-based OS/Rs have advantages such as extensive feature sets and developer familiarity, these features come at the cost of additional system overhead. In contrast to Linux, there is a substantial history of work in the HPC community focused on lightweight OS/Rs that provide scalable and consistent performance for HPC applications, but lack many of the features offered by commodity OS/Rs. In this paper, we propose to bridge the gap between LWKs and commodity OS/Rs by selectively providing a lightweight memory subsystem for HPC applications in a commodity OS/R where concurrently executing a diverse range of workloads is commonplace. Our system HPMMAP provides lightweight memory performance transparently to HPC applications by bypassing Linux's memory management layer. Using HPMMAP, HPC applications achieve consistent performance while the same local compute nodes execute competing workloads likely to be found in HPC clusters and “in-situ” workload deployments. Our approach is dynamically configurable at runtime, and requires no resources when not in use. We show that HPMMAP can decrease variance and reduce application runtime by up to 50 percent when executing a co-located competing commodity workload.
Translating Research Discoveries Into Clinical Tests

In the past decade, mutations in many genes have been discovered to underlie the myriad of inherited renal and other genetic diseases. Once these genes are identified as etiologic in a disease, the development of a clinical test becomes possible. However, clinical tests are not yet available for all identified disease genes. Why is that? This article discusses the many factors that influence making such a test available and describe the common challenges that are encountered during translation of a test into clinical use.
“Information-friction” and its impact on minimum energy per communicated bit

Just as there are frictional losses associated with moving masses on a surface, what if there are frictional losses associated with moving information on a substrate? We propose to model these losses as proportional to “bit-meters” i.e., the product of mass of information (i.e., the number of bits) and the distance of information transport. For communication across a binary input AWGN channel decoded by decoders implemented using a simple circuit model, we derive unavoidable lower bounds on bit-meters for decoding computation. These bounds are translated into limits on energy consumption in decoding under the information-friction model. Using these lower bounds we show that the total (transmit + decoding) energy-per-bit must diverge to infinity as the target error probability is lowered.
Selective activation of material property changes in photostructurable glass ceramic materials by laser photophysical excitation

Abstract We propose a novel approach to material processing: one that implements laser photoexcitation in a direct-write scheme to establish initial excitation states in a protean material that enables the regulation of a particular phase transformation pathway. The effect of regulating the phase transformation process is the controlled alteration of a specific material property. As a test of the concept, we have investigated a class of photostructurable glass ceramics (PSGCs) of the lithium aluminosilicate family. By controlling the incident laser irradiance (i.e., the material exposure), we can affect the material solubility, optical transmission, and material hardness following the phase transformation process. To further enhance the fidelity of the laser photo-induced reaction process, we have developed a scheme that permits the controlled delivery of laser photons during complex motion patterning maneuvers.
Chlamydia Trachomatis: Common Misperceptions and Misunderstandings

Responsible for more than three million infections each year in the United States Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) poses a public health problem of epidemic proportions. Unequivocal evidence of sexual transmission makes CT both the most commonly reported bacterial sexually transmitted disease (STD) in the US and the nation’s most commonly reported bacterial infection. Chlamydial infections are easy to cure. However because the infections so frequently go untreated the CT epidemic has brought with it serious complications ranging from epididymitis and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) to ectopic pregnancy infertility and chronic pelvic and genital pain. Treating these complex often chronic medical problems and their psychological sequelae is costly both in financial and human terms. In the US alone it is estimated that annual CT-related expenditures exceed $1.5 billion. Moreover with 75% of these costs devoted to treating the sequelae of initially uncomplicated cervical infections racial disparities in the prevalence and treatment of this easy-to-cure lower genital tract infection could be responsible for much of the excess reproductive morbidity among Black American women. (excerpt)
Memory development: New questions and old

Abstract There is no unique offset of infantile amnesia, no single developmental moment at which memory-relevant encoding begins. Whether a childhood experience is later remembered (in some sense) depends on both the nature of the experience itself and the paradigm being used to determine whether it is in fact remembered. The papers in this issue of Developmental Review illustrate that point for various ingenious non-verbal memory paradigms, but the same principle applies to explicit verbal recall.
Why Does the North Brazil Current Regularly Shed Rings but the Brazil Current Does Not

Abstract Both the North Brazil Current (NBC) and the Brazil Current (BC) are western boundary currents (WBCs) that separate from the western Atlantic coast. The NBC retroflects and sheds several rings per year (at the retroflection region), whereas the BC rarely sheds rings near its separation point. Traditionally, the difference between these two WBCs has been attributed to the Malvinas Current (MC), whose momentum flux opposes the poleward momentum flux of the BC, thus preventing rings shedding at the point where the current leaves the coast. Even in the absence of the MC, rings from the separating BC would have never been regularly generated because of the relatively large slant of the coastline relative to the zonal direction. Using the recently proposed theory of Zharkov and Nof, it is demonstrated that the large inclination of the coastline between 20° and 45°S (approximately 50°) lies within the regime that does not allow the BC a continuous shedding of rings. In contrast, the inclination of the co...
Curcumin is a Modulator of Bilayer Material Properties

Curcumin (1,7-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1,6-heptadiene-3,5-dione) is the major bioactive compound in turmeric (Curcuma longa) with antioxidant, antiinflammatory, anticarcinogenic, and antimutagenic effects. At low muM concentrations, curcumin modulates many structurally and functionally unrelated proteins, including membrane proteins. Because the cell membranes' lipid bilayer serves as a gate-keeper and regulator of many cell functions, we explored whether curcumin modifies general bilayer properties using channels formed by gramicidin A (gA). gA channels form when two monomers from opposing monolayers associate to form a conducting dimer with a hydrophobic length that is less than the bilayer hydrophobic thickness; gA channel formation thus causes a local bilayer thinning. The energetic cost of this bilayer deformation alters the gA monomer dimer equilibrium, which makes the channels' appearance rate and lifetime sensitive to changes in bilayer material properties, and the gA channels become probes for changes in bilayer properties. Curcumin decreases bilayer stiffness, increasing both gA channel lifetimes and appearance rates, meaning that the energetic cost of the gA-induced bilayer deformation is reduced. These results show that curcumin may exert some of its effects on a diverse range of membrane proteins through a bilayer-mediated mechanism.
Overexpression of Protein Kinase C-ε in the Mouse Epidermis Leads to a Spontaneous Myeloproliferative-Like Disease

Protein kinase C (PKC)-e, a Ca 2+ -independent, phospholipid-dependent serine/threonine kinase, is among the PKC isoforms expressed in mouse epidermis. We reported that FVB/N transgenic mouse lines that overexpress (8- or 18-fold) PKC-e protein in basal epidermal cells and cells of the hair follicle develop papilloma-independent squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) elicited by 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene initiation and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate-promotion or by repeated ultraviolet radiation exposures. The susceptibility to the development of SCC was proportional to the level of expression of the PKC-e transgene. We now report that PKC-e FVB/N transgenic mice (line 215) that overexpress in epidermis ∼18-fold PKC-e protein more than their wild-type littermates spontaneously develop a myeloproliferative-like disease (MPD) in 100% of PKC-e transgenic mice. The MPD was characterized by an excess of neutrophils and eosinophils, resulting in invasion of almost all vital organs of the mouse by 6 months of age. On gross examination these mice present with splenomegaly, hepatomegaly, and severe lymphadenopathy. Examination of the bone marrow revealed almost complete effacement by neutrophils, eosinophils, and their precursors. Furthermore, the spleen and lymph nodes were enlarged and exhibited marked extramedullary hematopoiesis. Complete pathological analysis of the second PKC-e transgenic mouse (line 224) that expresses approximately eightfold PKC-e protein more than their wild-type littermates revealed no remarkable findings in any of the affected organs as seen in line 215. However, peripheral blood analyses of PKC-e transgenic mice indicated significant increases of neutrophils in the circulating blood in both PKC-e transgenic lines. To determine whether there was an imbalance of cytokines in PKC-e transgenic mice (line 215), resulting in aberrant myelopoiesis, we analyzed 17 cytokines in the peripheral blood. This analysis indicated that interleukin-5, interleukin-6, and granulocyte-colony stimulating factor were up-regulated as a function of age. The transgene PKC-e was not detected in any of the affected organs (bone marrow, liver, spleen, lung) We suggest that overexpression of PKC-e in the epidermis may lead to the induction of specific cytokines that may, in a paracrine mechanism, perturb normal hematopoiesis in bone marrow resulting in a granulocytic skew toward that of neutrophils and eosinophils. The susceptibility of PKC-e transgenic mice to the induction of SCC and the spontaneous development of MPD are unrelated.
Imaging of venous thromboemboli with labeled platelets

Prevention and optimal treatment of venous thromboembolism requires techniques that can: (1) monitor patients at high risk; (2) promptly detect thromboemboli; (3) follow the course of patients during treatment. Multiple techniques have been introduced to assist in these tasks. Some have not been well validated. Others, while established as of substantial value, have limitations with respect to specificity, sensitivity, patient access, patient acceptability, or risk. The dynamic nature of venous thromboembolism makes it unlikely that any one procedure will satisfy all diagnostic needs. Platelets labeled with 111In (111In-P) have promise as a useful addition to the existing diagnostic armamentarium. Because 111In-P are incorporated into forming and growing thromboemboli, and can provide a gamma camera image, they offer certain potential advantages versus other techniques. However, to establish the clinical value and proper use of the 111In-P technique, additional investigations are needed to determine the impact of thrombus location, age, anticoagulant therapy, and imaging technique and timing upon in vivo visualization of thromboemboli.
Classification of Forested Histosols in Southeast Alaska

Organic soils are an important substrate for cycling carbon between terrestrial and atmospheric pools. The degree of decomposition of organic soil material influences the physical and chemical characteristics that control the carbon cycles in these soils. Although organic soils are abundant in southeast Alaska, little information is available on the state of decomposition or variability within organic soil mapping units. Determination of physical (fiber content) and chemical (sodium pyrophosphate extract color, SPEC) decomposition is used to classify organic soils and subsequently establish map units. The purpose of this study is to provide physical and chemical decomposition data to better characterize and classify forested organic soils in southeast Alaska and to improve our understanding of the distribution of fiber within these soils. Fiber content and pyrophosphate color were determined on 115 samples from 23 organic soils from throughout the Tongass National Forest. These samples show that complexes of hemic and sapric suborders mapped in the Tongass Soil Survey are dominantly hemic. Some fiber analyses differ considerably from statements in descriptions of established series in the Tongass Soil Survey. Physical decomposition of the fibers is in the hemic range, but chemical decomposition indicated by SPEC is sapric due to accumulation of soluble organic matter by water movement down steep slopes as well as in situ decomposition. Suborder classes provide a means to incorporate appropriate decomposition levels into existing soil series.
Diagnostic dilemmas in orbital inflammatory disease.

Orbital inflammatory disease (OID) broadly describes a variety of pathologic processes and clinical presentations. OID may be idiopathic or may be secondary to a systemic inflammatory disease, retained foreign body, or infectious disease. OID includes the spectrum of bacterial or fungal infections, diffuse inflammation of multiple tissues (e.g., sclerosing orbititis or diffuse anterior OID), and preferential involvement of specific orbital structures (e.g., orbital myositis or optic perineuritis). Mimics of OID include congenital orbital mass lesions or orbital neoplastic disease such as lymphoma or rhabdomyosarcoma. The ultimate diagnosis and treatment plan relies on a careful history and detailed clinical examination followed by the judicious use of ancillary diagnostic testing and a comprehensive treatment plan. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the spectrum of diseases known as OID, with emphasis on specific diagnostic challenges in the evaluation and management of patients with ...
Burns of the female breast: a long term study

Abstract Burns to the nipple area in female children were examined a minimum of 14 years after injury. Breast mound development had occurred in all the cases studied, confirming that the conservative management practised in this group of patients was a safe technique. The factors resulting in breast distortion are analysed and the management of this problem is discussed. Mistakes resulting from poorly planned surgery to the anterior axillary fold are reported.
Factors affecting capture of corn rootworm beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) at traps baited with nonpheromonal attractants

Adult western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, and northern corn rootworm, D. barberi Smith and Lawrence, were captured at white and yellow sticky traps and at traps made from plastic vials that contained a mixture of a toxicant and a feeding stimulant. Over 18 d, capture of western corn rootworm was up to 100 times greater at traps baited with estragole or p -methoxycinnamonitrile ( p -MCN) than at unbaited traps; baits of eugenol produced 3- to 50-fold increases in capture of northern corn rootworm. Addition of indole to baits containing estragole or p -MCN had little effect on capture at sticky traps but reduced numbers of both species caught in vials. Daily temperature-activity indices, based on bi-hourly temperatures and on actograph data from a previously published study, explained 26% (female) and 50% (male) of day-to-day variation in capture for western corn rootworm but only about 8% for northern corn rootworm. Lesser proportions of daily variation in capture were explained by raw temperature data and by measurements of wind, humidity, and numbers of beetles on plants. When traps were baited with 5, 50, or 500 mg of the attractants, catch of northern corn rootworm on sticky traps increased with the amount of eugenol, but catch of western corn rootworm in vials declined with increases in amount of attractant. Dose of attractant had relatively little effect on capture of western corn rootworm on sticky traps or northern corn rootworm in vials. Both species were captured primarily around midday, except that large numbers of northern corn rootworm (particularly males) were also captured on warm nights.
Sex- and age-specific trends in antibiotic resistance patterns of Escherichia coli urinary isolates from outpatients

Background Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most common infections treated in ambulatory care settings, however the epidemiology differs by age and sex. The incidence of UTI is far greater in females than males, and infection in pediatric patients is more often due to anatomical abnormalities. The purpose of this research was to describe age- and sex-specific trends in antibiotic susceptibility to common urinary anti-infectives among urinary isolates of Escherichia coli from ambulatory primary care patients in a regional health maintenance organization.
Prospective, before-after cohort study to assess the efficacy of laser therapy on hypertrophic burn scars.

IntroductionHypertrophic burn scars produce significant morbidity, including itching, pain, stiffness, and contracture. Best practices for management continue to evolve. Lasers have recently been added to treatment algorithms, but indications and efficacy have not been fully defined. We studied the
Regulations of macrophage-mediated tumor cell killing by prostaglandins: Comparison of the effects of PGE2 and PGI2

Abstract Mouse resident peritoneal macrophages stimulated in vitro by purified bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) produced both prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2 ) and prostaglandin I 2 (PGI 2 ), the latter detected as its stable metabolite, 6-keto PGF 1α . Maximum production, induced in each case by 1 ng/ml purified LPS, was in the range of 10 −7 M for PGI 2 and 3 × 10 −8 M for PGE 2 . A quantitatively similar increase in intracellular levels of macrophage cyclic AMP (measured on a whole cell basis), with a similar duration of effect, was stimulated by PGE 2 and PGI 2 ; however, only PGE 2 had a negative regulatory effect on macrophage activation for tumor cell killing. These data confirm that more than a whole cell increase in the concentration of cyclic AMP is needed to shut off nonspecific tumor cell killing mediated by LPS-activated resident peritoneal macrophages.
Models of metamorphic timing: an experimental evaluation with the pond-dwelling salamander Hemidactylium scutatum (Caudata: Plethodontidae)

Amphibian larvae vary tremendously in size at metamorphosis and length of larval period. We raised pond-dwelling four-toed salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum) larvae to test two models that predict a larva’s age and size at metamorphosis. The Wilbur-Collins model proposes that the developmental rate of a larva responds to changes in growth rate in an adaptive manner throughout the larval period, and that metamorphosis can be initiated after a minimum size has been reached. The Leips-Travis or fixed-rate model states that developmental rate is set early in the larval period, perhaps by early growth rate or food availability and their positive correlation with developmental rate, and that changes in growth rate during the larval period affect size at metamorphosis, but have no effect on the age of an individual at metamorphosis. A modified version of the Wilbur-Collins model suggests that a larva’s developmental rate becomes fixed about two-thirds of the way through the larval period, with changes in growth rate after that point only affecting size at metamorphosis. Larvae were raised on eight different feeding regimes which created two constant and six variable growth histories. Growth history did significantly affect size at metamorphosis. However, an a posteriori statistical test revealed a group of seven and an overlapping group of six treatments with indistinguishable lengths of larval period, indicating a general picture of a fixed developmental rate regardless of growth history. This result is unique among similar studies on invertebrates, fish, and frogs. There was no association between early growth or food level and development rates. Neither the Wilbur-Collins nor the Leips-Travis fixed-rate models were supported. The invariable developmental rate of Hemidactylium and recent osteological evidence from the literature suggest that larvae begin the process of metamorphosis as soon as they hatch, probably a trait selected for by strong predation pressure in the aquatic environment. A variety of different approaches (ecological, developmental, phylogenetic) are necessary to fully evaluate the adaptive nature of the timing of transitions between life cycle stages.
Gravity currents propagating over periodic arrays of blunt obstacles: Effect of the obstacle size

Abstract Gravity currents are considered that propagate over a series of identical ribs with square cross sections. Both large-eddy simulations and a shallow-water approach are applied to assess the influence of rib height and Reynolds number. The simulations elucidate the physical mechanisms governing the time-dependent evolution of the drag force, which are dominated by the formation of a recirculation region immediately downstream of each rib, in conjunction with a supercritical, jet-like flow region above and behind the rib, and an upstream propagating hydraulic jump that forms as a result of the interaction between the gravity current and the neighboring rib immediately downstream. The corresponding shallow-water analysis yields fair agreement, indicating that simplified models can provide useful information for the present class of flows.
Concerns and coping with HIV: comparisons across groups.

To develop scales measuring major concerns about being HIV-positive and how people would cope with diagnosis, items were selected from the Ways of Coping Scale (Folkman et al., 1986) and generated by county health department HIV counsellors. Psychometric scale development involved two diverse samples of HIV test clients. Study I (health department, N=272) yielded five Concerns with HIV scales and nine Coping with HIV scales. Factor structures did not differ between gay/bisexual men, heterosexual women or heterosexual men. In Study II (private non-profit gay-identified community HIV clinic, N=227), LISREL confirmatory factor analyses cross-validated the Study I factor structures with no notable differences found. Some mean differences between genders and by sexual orientation were explained by different numbers of HIV-positive people known. Concern and Coping with HIV Scales (CCHIVS) are discussed for HIV/AIDS research and clinical use.
The advantages of SMRT sequencing

Of the current next-generation sequencing technologies, SMRT sequencing is sometimes overlooked. However, attributes such as long reads, modified base detection and high accuracy make SMRT a useful technology and an ideal approach to the complete sequencing of small genomes.
Investigation of Contact Stiffness and Contact Damping for Magnetic Storage Head-Disk Interfaces

As the areal density of magnetic disk storage continues to increase and head-disk spacing decrease, contact between the recording slider and the rotating media becomes imminent. In order to predict contact forces, fly-height modulations, and off-track motions, dynamic models are typically used. A critical element of these models is the contact stiffness and damping arising from the interfacial interaction between the slider and the disk. In this paper, we review different models for predicting contact stiffness based on roughness and layered media and then we report experimental data of both contact stiffness and contact damping of typical head-disk interfaces. It is found that the contact stiffness models (based on roughness alone), over-predict the contact stiffness of actual head-disk interfaces by as much as an order of magnitude. Also, it is found that the contact damping ratio is typically few percent and its behavior is substrate dependent. In addition, the effects of a molecularly thin lubricant and humidity on contact stiffness and damping were experimentally investigated and no significant effects were found.Copyright © 2006 by ASME
Community Amenity Measurement for the Great Fly-Over Zones.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an alternative operationalization of amenities that does not privilege certain kinds of natural resources and climatic conditions and that can be used for assessing the quality of life in small towns. The amenity inventory presented here extends previous literature by including a broad range of amenities (natural resource, indoor and outdoor built recreational facilities, public and private services, and downtown amenities). The community level of analysis and small town focus are also unique. The inventory uses both secondary data from public sources and primary data that can be gathered by researchers or community residents. Therefore, in addition to the scholarly contribution of the inventory, the process of defining and assessing community amenities may be a valuable tool for building interpersonal relationships within communities, generating community spirit, and developing strategies for enhancing the local quality of life.
Fuel/Time Optimal Control of Flexible Space Structures: A Frequency Domain Approach

This paper considers the design of open-loop fuel/time optimal controllers for flexible space struc tures using a frequency domain approach. The control system consists of a time-delay filter whose output signal is the optimal control profile when it is subject to a step input. A constrained parameter optimization problem is formulated to minimize a weighted combination of fuel consumed and total maneuver time for a rest-to-rest maneuver. The parameters to be optimized for are the delays of a time-delay filter. The number of switches of the fuel/time optimal control profile is shown to be a function not only of number of flexible modes but also of the weighting parameter, which is illustrated via numerical examples.
Quantization of interacting fields

Abstract It is shown that the canonical quantization scheme does not lead to a unique formulation of quantum field theory because of the freedom to make time dependent unitary transformations involving a (classical) Boson field, before quantization. As examples, alternative formulations of both non-relativistic and relativistic quantum electrodynamics, in agreement with the correspondence principle, are given. These yield an S -matrix which is free of all divergences, at least to the second order.
Vitamin D deficiency in veterans with chronic spinal cord injury.

Chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) is associated with osteopenia, increasing the prevalence of long-bone fractures. Although disuse may be the primary cause of osteopenia, identification of any additional mechanisms of bone loss may lead to potential therapeutic interventions. We investigated the relationships of serum calcium (Ca), phosphorus (PO4), albumin, alkaline phosphatase (Alk P), and parathyroid hormone (PTH) with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in 100 subjects with chronic SCI and 50 control subjects. in a subgroup of 50 subjects with SCI and 50 control subjects, we correlated these parameters with serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25(OH)2D]. Mean ages for the group with SCI and the controls were the same. In subjects with SCI, the duration of injury was 20 +/- 1 years (mean +/- SD). Thirty-two of 100 subjects with SCI, as compared with eight of 50 controls, had serum 25(OH)D levels less than the normal range (chi2 = 4.36, P < .05). In subjects with SCI, a negative correlation was demonstrated between serum 25(OH)D and PTH (r = .29, P < .005). Mean serum 1.25(OH)2D levels were significantly elevated in subjects with SCI as compared with controls (61 +/- 21 v 46 +/- 18 pg/mL, P < .0005). Twenty of 50 subjects with SCI had serum 1.25(OH)2D levels greater than 62 pg/mL, as compared with 10 of 50 controls (chi2 = 4.76 P < .05). A positive correlation was found between serum PTH and 1,25(OH)2D in subjects with SCI and controls (r = .41, P < .005 and r = .30, P < .05, respectively). Twelve subjects with SCI had serum PTH levels greater than the normal range. In this high-serum PTH subgroup, serum 15(OH)D concentration was significantly lower (P < .05) and serum 1,25(OH)2D and Alk P concentrations were significantly higher (P < .005 and P < .05, respectively) as compared with the subgroup with serum PTH values within the normal range. In subjects with SCI, 17 had a serum Ca concentration less than 8.5 mg/dL. In persons with SCI, depressed levels of serum 25(OH)D, as well as other factors, may result in forces inclined to reduce the serum calcium concentration. A state of mild secondary hyperparathyroidism may result, thus increasing the conversion of serum 25(OH)D to 1.25(OH)2D. These data suggest that in chronic SCI subjects, as in the general population, secretion of PTH and the increase of circulating 1.25(OH)2D are subject to control by negative-feedback mechanisms. Higher levels of serum PTH would be expected to accelerate bone resorption of a skeleton already regionally osteoporotic as a consequence of the bone mineral loss due to acute immobilization.
Childless Elders in Assisted Living: Findings from the Maryland Assisted Living Study

We compared data drawn from a random sample of 399 current assisted living residents and a subsample of 222 newly admitted residents for two groups: childless residents and residents with children. The percentage of childless residents (26%) in our study was slightly higher than U.S. population estimates of childless individuals aged 65 years and older (20%). In the overall sample, the two groups differed significantly by age, race, and women's years of education. The childless group was slightly younger, had a higher percentage of African American residents, and had more years of education than the group with children. In the subsample, we looked at demographic, functional, financial, and social characteristics and found that childless residents reported fewer diagnoses of dementia and fewer visits from a relative but more reported paying less money per month for assisted living and having private insurance than residents with children. As childlessness among older adults continues to increase, it will b...
Which Method Is Better for Developing Freight Planning Models at Seaports—Neural Networks or Multiple Regression?

Ports are the primary generators of freight traffic in the United States. Seaport operations will require operational and infrastructure changes to maintain the growth of international cargo operations. Truck and rail trip generation and modal split models will provide transportation planners and public agencies with valuable information for prioritizing funds for roadway upgrade projects and port infrastructure modifications. Two methods are presented for developing freight trip generation models—regression analysis and back-propagation neural networks. These models are applied in predicting the levels of cargo truck traffic moving inbound and outbound at seaports. For the Port of Miami, the back-propagation neural network model was more accurate than the regression analysis model. However, the neural network model requires a sizable database. A second application of the back-propagation neural networks approach developed a truck trip generation model and a truck-rail modal split model for the Port of Ja...
Preventing Bacterial Respiratory Tract Infections Among Persons Infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus

Bacterial respiratory tract infections occur frequently in persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and may be caused by a wide variety of pathogens. Pneumonia is the most commonly diagnosed respiratory infection in HIV-infected persons and is more common in those persons than in non-HIV-infected ones. HIV-infected persons have a much higher risk of pneumococcal disease than do noninfected controls, and disease may occur relatively early in the course of HIV infection. While mortality associated with the disease does not seem to be high among HIV-infected persons, there is a higher rate of recurrence of the disease in that population. Risk factors for pneumococcal disease in HIV-infected persons are not well characterized. Though efficacy data are limited, the 23-valent polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine is recommended for use early in the course of HIV infection. There are no data suggesting that HIV-infected persons should be revaccinated routinely. Antiretroviral agents may enhance the immunologic response to the polysaccharide vaccine. Prophylactic antibiotics may have a role in preventing recurrences of severe bacterial respiratory infections, and intravenous immunoglobulin may be useful in preventing serious bacterial infections in HIV-infected children. HIV-infected persons are also at greater risk for serious infections with Haemophilus influenzae than are non-HIV-infected persons. Vaccination against H. influenzae type b (Hib) is recommended for HIV-infected children but not for adults. Antimicrobial drug-resistant strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae and H. influenzae have become more prevalent recently and consequently have impacted on strategies for prevention and treatment of those infections.
Measuring the Kinetics of Restriction Endonucleases with Single Molecule Resolution

We have developed a simple assay for observing the cleavage of DNAs with single molecule sensitivity. DNAs are attached to a surface at one end using a digoxigenin-antibody link and to a magnetic micro bead at the other end via a biotin-streptavidin link. The DNAs are stretched by applying fluid drag and magnetic forces. The exact time of cleavage of individual DNAs is recorded with video microscopy by observing the time of disappearance of each bead. We are using our technique to measure the kinetics of two type II restriction endonucleases, EcoRI and NdeI. With our kinetic data, we hope to elucidate the target site search mechanisms of these enzymes.
3D printing of biomimetic microstructures for cancer cell migration.

To understand the physical behavior and migration of cancer cells, a 3D in vitro micro-chip in hydrogel was created using 3D projection printing. The micro-chip has a honeycomb branched structure, aiming to mimic 3D vascular morphology to test, monitor, and analyze differences in the behavior of cancer cells (i.e. HeLa) vs. non-cancerous cell lines (i.e. 10 T1/2). The 3D Projection Printing system can fabricate complex structures in seconds from user-created designs. The fabricated microstructures have three different channel widths of 25, 45, and 120 microns wide to reflect a range of blood vessel diameters. HeLa and 10 T1/2 cells seeded within the micro-chip were then analyzed for morphology and cell migration speed. 10 T1/2 cells exhibited greater changes in morphology due to channel size width than HeLa cells; however, channel width had a limited effect on 10 T1/2 cell migration while HeLa cancer cell migration increased as channel width decreased. This physiologically relevant 3D cancer tissue model has the potential to be a powerful tool for future drug discoveries and cancer migration studies
Molecular thermal telemetry of free-ranging adult Drosophila melanogaster.

The expression of two temperature-sensitive reporter genes, hsp70 and an hsp70-LacZ fusion, in free-ranging adult Drosophila melanogaster indicates that natural thermal stress experienced by such small and mobile insects may be either infrequent or not severe. Levels of the heat-shock protein Hsp70, the major inducible Hsp of Drosophila, were similar in most wild Droso- phila captured after warm days to levels previously reported for unstressed flies in the laboratory. In a transgenic strain transformed with an hsp70-LacZ fusion (i.e., the structural gene encoding bacterial β-galactosidase under control of a heat shock promoter), exposure to temperatures ≥32°C in the laboratory typically resulted in β-galactosidase activities exceeding 140 mOD450 h–1µg–1 soluble protein. Flies caged in sun frequently had β-galactosidase activities in excess of this level, whereas flies caged in shade and flies released and recaptured on cool days did not. Most flies (>80%) released on warm, sunny days had low β-galactosidase activities upon recapture. Although the balance of recaptured flies had elevated β-galactosidase activities on these days, their β-galactosidase activities were <50% of levels for flies caged in direct sunlight or exposed to laboratory heat shock. These data suggest that even on warm days most flies may avoid thermal stress, presumably through microhabitat selection, but that a minority of adult D. melanogaster undergo mild thermal stress in nature. Both temperature-sensitive reporter genes, however, are limited in their ability to infer thermal stress and demonstrate its absence.
Alternative models of person-environment fit: Prediction of morale in three homes for the aged

The notion of congruence or P-E fit has been suggested as a fruitful theoretical scheme for the understanding of the impact of environments on the well-being of older people (French et al., 1974; Kahana, 1975). Alternative models have been proposed for understanding the type of congruence which results in the most positive outcomes. Such models have differential implications for intervention to enhance well-being of the aged. This paper represents an initial effort to put these alternative theoretical models to an empirical test. Data for this study came from 124 interviews at three homes for the aged. In order to overcome methodological problems posed by conventional approaches, a procedure which measures incongruence in terms of non-linear transformations of difference scores was used. Congruence models examined included non-directional, one-directional, and two-directional models. The findings point to the importance of P-E fit in the arenas of congregation, impulse control, and segregation. In contrast, personal and/or environmental characteristics rather than fit were found to be more important along the dimensions of affective expression and institutional control in explaning morale.
Syllable durations of preword and early word vocalizations.

The continuity in development of syllable duration patterns was examined in 7 young children as they progressed from preword to multiword periods of vocalization development. Using a combination of...
Reduced Reflection in polycrystalline silicon thin films through ion implantation induced surface textures and deposition of silver nanostructures

This work investigates a novel method to enhance light trapping within polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin films for photovoltaic applications. The method combines the use of hydrogen ion implantation for creation of surface textures in poly-Si thin films and the deposition of silver nanostructures on the textured surface. Poly-Si thin films were prepared by solid phase crystallization of amorphous silicon (a-Si) layer deposited on a SiO2/Si substrate. The a-Si was annealed at various temperatures 600 -1050 °C for 48 hours to grow grains of different size in p-Si, as confirmed by x-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. These samples were then implanted with 20-keV hydrogen ions to a dose of 1017/cm2, and some with an additional implant with 90-keV argon ions to a dose 5×1015 /cm2. Following implantation, these samples were annealed in an Ar ambient at different temperatures. Surface blistering effects were observed using an optical microscope. Optical specular reflection measurements in the spectral range 400-1100 nm indicated that the reflectance of the samples with higher blistering had decreased remarkably from 40% to 10%. Lastly, the poly-Si samples with various textures were deposited with silver thin film followed by annealing in nitrogen ambient for forming Ag nanostructures on textured poly-Si surfaces. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was used to image the surface structures. The formation of Ag nanoparticles on the poly-Si surface, with textures created by implantation followed by low-temperature annealing (e.g., 400 °C), can significantly reduce light reflection as opposed to the case with Ag nanoparticles formed on an un-textured, poly-Si surface.
The carbohydrate structure of DEFB126, the major component of the cynomolgus Macaque sperm plasma membrane glycocalyx.

Based on the amino-acid sequence of the macaque epididymal secretory protein, ESP 13.2 (Q9BEE3/AJ236909), it has now been classified as β-defensin DEFB126. DEFB126 is one of the five β-defensins with genes that are clustered along chromosome 20pl3, and all five proteins have an extended carboxy terminus that continues beyond the 6-cysteine β-defensin core region. This 60-amino acid carboxyl tail extension of the DEFB126 molecule is extraordinarily rich in threonine and serine (40%), many of which appear to be likely candidates for having O-glycosylation. DEFB126 has been shown to coat the entire surface of cynomolgus macaque sperm as they move through the corpus/caudal region of the epididymis. It is a major glycocalyx barrier to the external environment and is retained until the completion of capacitation. Sperm exposed to fluorescein-conjugated poly-L-lysine or Alexa488-histone showed a very uniform fluorescent labeling pattern over the entire sperm surface, almost identical to that observed with anti-DEFB126 Ig label. Sperm surface components that were released following treatment with caffeine/cAMP (in vitro capacitation) were blotted and probed with three different lectins which are known to recognize terminal sialic acid residues, and all three recognized the 35 kDa DEFB126 band. Neuraminidase treatment of sperm shifted the molecular weight of DEFB126 from 34–36 kDa to approximately 38–40 kDa and removed or greatly inhibited sialic acid-specific lectin recognition. O-Glycanase treatment alone was ineffective at removal of the oligosaccharides, but prior treatment with neuraminidase was sufficient to enable the O-glycanase treatment to effectively change the apparent molecular weight to 10 kDa, confirming that a major portion of the molecular mass is associated with the carbohydrate portion. Western blots of neuraminidase-treated DEFB126 showed strong recognition with a number of lectins that identify β-galactose and also lectins that recognize the N-acetylgalactosamine-serine/threonine, the proposed connection site of O-glycosylation. All of the lectins that recognized DEFB126 on Western blots were used to fluorescently probe sperm. The fluorescent patterns that were observed with poly-L-lysine, Alexa488-histone, sialic acid-specific lectins, and galactose-specific lectins showed even distributions over the entire sperm surface and the patterns were identical to sperm labeled with anti-DEFB126 Ig, and all but the antibody did not recognize neuraminidase-treated sperm.
An ultrastructural investigation of pathological alterations induced by Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid in seedlings of soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merrill

Abstract An ultrastructural investigation of seedling soybean root tissue infected by the charcoal rot fungus indicated that during the initial stages of pathogenesis, the fungus appears to be restricted mostly to the intercellular spaces and that penetration of interior cell walls occurred as a result of both mechanical pressure and chemical softening. Subsequently, the middle lamella disintegrates, the plasmalemma is separated from the cell wall, the cytoplasm becomes highly vesiculated and the mitochondria disorganized. In later stages of pathogenesis, the fungus becomes intracellular and recognizable cytoplasmic organelles disappear.