cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Crohn’s disease–related single nucleotide polymorphisms are associated with ileal pouch afferent limb stenosis

Ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) is a common surgical treatment for ulcerative colitis. Afferent limb stenosis is an infrequent complication following IPAA, suggesting underlying Crohn’s disease (CD). We hypothesized that CD-related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are associated with afferent limb stenosis. Afferent limb stenosis and CD control group patients were recruited from a prospective institutional inflammatory bowel disease database and associated biobank. Patient demographics, Montreal classification, and medication use were recorded. Ten SNPs associated with stricturing Crohn’s disease were examined in genomic DNA and compared among afferent limb stenosis, stricturing CD, and non-stricturing CD controls. Twenty-seven afferent limb stenosis and 162 CD control group patients (108 stricturing, 54 non-stricturing) were identified. Patients were gender and race matched. Afferent limb stenosis and stricturing CD controls were younger at diagnosis (Montreal A1/A2 vs. A3) compared to non-stricturing CD controls (both p < 0.05). The majority of afferent limb stenosis patients were non-smokers compared to CD controls (74% vs. 36%, p < 0.01) and did not use biologic therapies (4% vs. 37%, p < 0.001). The FUT2 G allele was more frequent in afferent limb stenosis and stricturing CD controls compared to non-stricturing CD controls (both p < 0.05). The NOD2 T allele was more frequent in stricturing CD controls compared to afferent limb stenosis and non-stricturing CD controls (both p < 0.05). Afferent limb stenosis patients are phenotypically similar to stricturing CD controls, but differ with lower smoking rates and lower NOD2 allele frequency. Such differences could contribute to the presentation delay with a stricturing phenotype. Selective SNP assessment may help categorize patients likely to develop afferent limb stenosis.
Relic proto-stellar discs and the origin of luminous circumstellar interaction in core-collapse supernovae

A small fraction of core-collapse supernovae (SNe) show evidence that the outgoing blast wave has encountered a substantial mass ∼1–10 M⊙ of circumstellar matter (CSM) at radii ∼102–103 au, much more than can nominally be explained by pre-explosion stellar winds. In extreme cases, this interaction may power the most luminous, optically energetic SNe yet discovered. Interpretations for the origin of the CSM have thus far centred on explosive eruptions from the star just ∼ years−decades prior to the core collapse. Here, we consider an alternative possibility that the inferred CSM is a relic disc left over from stellar birth. We investigate this hypothesis by calculating the evolution of proto-stellar discs around massive stars following their early embedded phase using a self-similar accretion model. We identify a brief initial gravitationally unstable (‘gravito-turbulent’) phase, followed by a much longer period of irradiation-supported accretion during which less effective non-gravitational forms of angular momentum transport dominate. Although external influences, such as the presence of a wide binary companion, may preclude disc survival in many systems, we find that massive (∼1–10 M⊙) discs can preferentially survive around the most massive stars. Reasons for this perhaps counterintuitive result include (1) the shorter stellar lifetimes and (2) large photoevaporation radii (∼103 au) of very massive stars; (3) suppression of the magnetorotational instability due to the shielding from external sources of ionization and (4) relative invulnerability of massive discs to lower mass stellar collisions and luminous blue variable eruptions. Furthermore, discs with radii ∼102–103 au are picked out by the physics of the embedded stage of accretion and the requisite conditions for subsequent disc survival. The disc mass, radius and scaleheight at core collapse typically result in an ∼10 per cent efficiency for converting the kinetic energy of the exploding star into radiation, potentially producing a total electromagnetic output of ∼1050–1051 erg. We identify two regimes of disc–supernova interaction, which are distinguished by whether the shocked disc radiates its thermal energy before being engulfed by the expanding SN ejecta. This dichotomy may explain the difference between very luminous supernova which show narrow H line emission and those which show no direct evidence for hydrogen-rich CSM interaction. Because very luminous SNe are rare, testing the relic disc model requires constraining the presence of long-lived discs around a small fraction of very massive stars.
Records of Fleas (Siphonaptera) and Other Ectoparasites from Maine

During four 5-day trips to the 3 northern-most Maine counties of Aroostook, Piscataquis, and Somerset, we captured 347 small mammals from which we collected 415 fleas, 36 lice, and 10 larval botfly ectoparasites. Additionally, we located records of fleas from Maine in the Traub collection at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA. From these sources, we establisned new state records of occurrence in Maine for 2 flea species, Conorhinopsylla stanfordi and Orchopeas howardi, and 1 louse species, Neohaematopinus semifasciatus. We herein report 27 new county records for fleas and 3 for botflies. The total number of flea species known to occur in Maine is now 32.
A Proactive Curriculum With Remediation Intervention Tool for Nursing Education Success.

ABSTRACT Mastering the Content is a proactive curriculum whose At-Risk Student Identification Criteria-Based Remediation Interventions Tool leads to nursing student success. The curriculum integrates active learning strategies and problem-solving activities throughout the nursing program to develop clinical judgment. Remediation includes guided metacognitive learning tool construction, individualized student support, and study plans to increase learning and decrease attrition. The curriculum and interventions tool were developed based on evidence gathered from a meta-analysis of research on best practices in basic RN prelicensure program remediation success and one nursing program's successful implementation of best practices.
Mesenchymal Breast Tumors with Fibroblastic and Myofibroblastic Differentiation

The mesenchymal breast proliferations discussed in this chapter are unified by their fibroblastic or myofibroblastic differentiation. Some of them are specific to the mammary stroma (myofibroblastoma, pseudoangiomatous stromal hyperplasia) or are so familiar in the breast (desmoid fibromatosis) that they are recognized by most pathologists. Other tumors are much more common at extramammary soft tissue sites, such as nodular fasciitis, dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor, low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma, myxofibrosarcoma, and low-grade myofibroblastic sarcoma. Nevertheless, these tumors may rarely arise in the breast parenchyma, the skin overlying the breast, the chest wall, or the axilla and thus come to the attention of the breast multidisciplinary team. The following discussion emphasizes both the salient clinicopathologic and molecular genetic findings of these neoplasms as well as their differential diagnostic considerations, specifically tailored to the perspective of a breast pathologist.
The extended family of CD1d- restricted NKT cells: sifting through a mixed bag of TCRs, antigens, and functions

Natural killer T (NKT) cells comprise a family of specialized T cells that recognize lipid antigens presented by CD1d. Based on their T cell receptor (TCR) usage and antigen specificities, CD1d-restricted NKT cells have been divided into two main subsets: type I NKT cells that use a canonical invariant TCR α-chain and recognize α-galactosylceramide (α-GalCer), and type II NKT cells that use a more diverse αβ TCR repertoire and do not recognize α-GalCer. In addition, α-GalCer-reactive NKT cells that use non-canonical αβ TCRs and CD1d-restricted T cells that use γδ or δ/αβ TCRs have recently been identified, revealing further diversity among CD1d-restricted T cells. Importantly, in addition to their distinct antigen specificities, functional differences are beginning to emerge between the different members of the CD1d-restricted T cell family. In this review, while using type I NKT cells as comparison, we will focus on type II NKT cells and the other non-invariant CD1d-restricted T cell subsets, and discuss our current understanding of the antigens they recognize, the formation of stimulatory CD1d/antigen complexes, the modes of TCR-mediated antigen recognition, and the mechanisms and consequences of their activation that underlie their function in antimicrobial responses, anti-tumor immunity, and autoimmunity.
After the Battles – The Veterans’ Battle with the VA

As originally drafted, The Veterans’ Choice of Representation and Benefits Enhancement Act of 2006, allows attorneys to charge for services after the VA rating board at the VARO level has denied a veteran’s initial or reopened claim for VA disability benefits. In effect, the Act allows attorneys to charge for services after a notice of disagreement (NOD) has been filed with the VA Regional Office. As originally drafted, would have allowed all veterans to hire attorneys at any stage of the VA claims adjudication process, especially the initial fact-finding stage. At this stage, a veteran has the rights to present arguments supported by case law and applicable statutes and regulations. However the current Act deters attorneys from getting involved in the initial stages of the VA claims adjudication process, aside from receiving review by a Decision Review Officer, which oftentimes produces negative results.
Counterfactual quantum computation

We present the first demonstration of Jozsa's "counterfactual computation", using an optical Grover's search algorithm. We put the algorithm in a superposition of "running" and "not-running", obtaining information even though the algorithm does not run.
Impact of Operational Practices and Cell Hooding on Total Fluoride Emissions in the Aluminium Smelter Plant of Aluar

EPA Method 14A is one of the most widely used methods for measurement of total fluoride (gaseous and particulate phase expressed as Ft) emissions through roof monitors in aluminium primary smelters. In order to obtain the Ft concentration emitted from the potroom, several cassette arrangements are placed in predetermined locations and later removed from the roof monitor for the analysis of each run.
Methane Production from Lignocellulosic Residues in a Farm Scale System — Two Years' Operating Experience

Biomass is available on farms as agricultural residues or as energy crops. These materials can be converted into methane by anaerobic digestion. The methane can be used to heat farm buildings and to generate electricity for farm usage. This paper describes the design and operation of a system built by the University of Arkansas to produce heat and electricity from native grasses and corn stover. The system utilizes batch reactors to convert 40 tonne of biomass annually into 700 MJ per day. The operating performance and energy and economic analyses of this system are described and discussed.
In search of the origin of VHDL's delta delays

This paper has traced the VHDL architects' journey into the world of delta delay including the original need for zero delay usage that evolved from a misconception that zero delays enhance simulation throughput without any penalty, the subsequent difficulties with the VHDL implementation of zero delay, the adapting of Conlan's BCL model of time into VHDL as delta delay without a clear understanding of the consequences, and the problems that confront VHDL today. This paper has presented a simple solution to the problem that involves the elimination of zero delay usage and the specification of actual component delay values in terms of universal time.
Properties of Microwave Recycled Asphalt Cement Binders

Recycling asphalt concrete pavements are currently limited to about 40% to 60% of recyclable asphalt pavement (RAP) in the mixture, with the remaining material composed of new asphalt and aggregates. The use of microwaves for heating allows the possibility of recycling with 100% RAP material. The effect of microwaves on asphalt cement binders was evaluated using conventional viscosity and penetration tests. The binders were also evaluated using Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC), Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR). Viscosity and penetration testing provided opposing results with each showing slight increases in value after microwaving of the binder. A noticeable change in the molecular size distribution was observed with the GPC with the addition of a recycling agent. An increase in complex shear modulus occurred at high temperatures or low frequencies after microwaving. This increase was more pronounced on severely oxidized or hardened asphalts. The increase in complex shear modulus did not correlate well with measured viscosity and penetration values. The steady-state viscosity values obtained followed the same general trend as the results from conventional viscosity testing.
The Global War on Terror and Automatic License Plate Recognition

En sciences sociales un produit un vaste corpus de recherche concernant la pratique et la politique des Systemes de Surveillance en Circuit Ferme (CCTV). La recherche a cependant neglige les CCTV automatises et informatises. Je m'adresse a ces formes de culture de la surveillance au moyen d'un point de vue institutionnel d'explorer ce qui a ete appele de reconnaissance automatique des plaques d'immatriculation (ALPR). En retracant la maniere dont les plans d'un systeme de surveillance Warzone sont utilises comme une ressource dans les pratiques policieres americaines, je trouve qu'ils ont tous deux impliquent un positionnement geo-des vehicules, l'analyse de l'apparence des vehicules, et en minimisant le travail de l'analyse des plaques d'immatriculation. Je montre comment ces liens sont obscurcies, puis terminera par une discussion de trois implications de ce point de vue institutionnel sur ALPR. Social science has produced a fine body of research on the practices and politics of closed-circuit television (CCTV) surveillance. Automated CCTV systems, however, have been neglected. I address these growing forms of surveillance through an institutional perspective to explore what has been called Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR). By tracing how plans for a war-zone surveillance system are used as a resource in American policing practices, I find that they both involve a geo-positioning of vehicles, analyzing the appearance of vehicles, and minimizing the labor of analyzing license plates. I show how these links are obscured, and then conclude with a discussion of three implications of this institutional perspective on ALPR.
Artesunate-related fever and delayed hemolysis in a returning traveler

Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by an intraerythrocytic parasite, and is commonly seen in developing countries. Approximately 1500 cases of malaria are diagnosed in the United States each year, mostly in travelers and immigrants returning from endemic areas [1]. There are many different regimens used to treat malaria, some of which are not approved in the USA. The side effects of these medications may not be familiar to physicians in the USA. We report a case of a returning traveler from Nigeria presenting with fever and hemolytic anemia caused by a delayed response to artesunate given 3 weeks earlier while in Nigeria. To our knowledge, there are few cases reported in the United States of hemolytic anemia secondary to artesunate therapy [2].
Lateralization in motor facilitation during action observation: a TMS study.

Action observation facilitates corticospinal excitability. This is presumably due to a premotor neural system that is active when we perform actions and when we observe actions performed by others. It has been speculated that this neural system is a precursor of neural systems subserving language. If this theory is true, we may expect hemispheric differences in the motor facilitation produced by action observation, with the language dominant left hemisphere showing stronger facilitation than the right hemisphere. Furthermore, it has been suggested that body parts are recognized via cortical regions controlling sensory and motor processing associated with that body part. If this is true, then corticospinal facilitation during action observation should be modulated by the laterality of the observed body part. The present study addressed these two issues using TMS for each motor cortex separately as participants observed actions being performed by a left hand, a right hand, or a control stimulus on the computer screen. We found no overall difference between the right and left hemisphere for motor-evoked potential (MEP) size during action observation. However, when TMS was applied to the left motor cortex, MEPs were larger while observing right hand actions. Likewise, when TMS was applied to the right motor cortex, MEPs were larger while observing left hand actions. Our data do not suggest left hemisphere superiority in the facilitating effects of action observation on the motor system. However, they do support the notion of a sensory-motor loop according to which sensory stimulus properties (for example, the image of a left hand or a right hand) directly affect motor cortex activity, even when no motor output is required. The pattern of this effect is congruent with the pattern of motor representation in each hemisphere.
The 3-channel Lissajous' trajectory of the auditory brain-stem response. IV. Effects of electrode position in the cat

Abstract Three-channel Lissajous' trajectories (3-CLTs) of the auditory brain-stem response (ABR) were recorded from anesthetized adult cats with 2 different orthogonal and 3 different non-orthogonal recording configurations. Click stimuli were presented monaurally at 70 dB impulse SPL. Planar analysis identified 12 planar segments regardless of electrode configurations. Boundaries, apex latencies, and durations of the planar segments were relatively unchanged by changes in recording locations, in contrast to changes in single-channel ABR peak latencies and amplitudes. The 3-CLT orientation and shape were maintained in voltage-space despite changes in electrode positions, provided that the recording axes remained orthogonal and a simple cosine correction was applied. Non-orthogonal recording axes resulted in 3-CLTs which differed in shape from 3-CLTs recorded from orthogonal recording axes, but had similar planar-segment boundaries and durations. We conclude that the 3-CLT has characteristics which are generator-dependent and unaffected by electrode position if appropriate spatial corrections are applied.
Monosynaptic inhibitory postsynaptic potentials from lateral habenula recorded in dorsal raphe neurons

The inhibitory response evoked in presumably serotonergic dorsal raphe neurons by stimulation of the lateral habenular nucleus was examined in the rat using intracellular recording techniques. Electrical stimulation of the lateral habenula produces a long-lasting hyperpolarization in dorsal raphe neurons having the slow spontaneous firing pattern (0.5-1.5 spikes/sec) and broad action potential (greater than 1 msec) indicative of serotonergic neurons. The hyperpolarizing response is reversed by hyperpolarizing current injection or by increasing intracellular Cl-concentration and is thus an inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) due to conductance increase to Cl-. The mean latency of the IPSP is 7.0 msec, which implies a mean conduction velocity for habenulo-raphe axons of 1.2 m/sec. The latency of the response could be demonstrated to be unaffected by changes in stimulus strength, indicating that the IPSP is monosynaptic, which is in agreement with recent anatomical data. Intracellular horseradish peroxidase labeling of responding neurons shows them to have a morphology typical of serotonergic dorsal raphe neurons.
Generation of phase-locked and tunable continuous-wave radiation in the terahertz regime

Broadly tunable phase-stable single-frequency terahertz radiation is generated with an optical heterodyne photomixer. The photomixer is excited by two near-infrared CW diode lasers that are phase locked to the stabilized optical frequency comb of a femtosecond titanium:sapphire laser. The terahertz radiation emitted by the photomixer is downconverted into RF frequencies with a waveguide harmonic mixer and measurement-limited linewidths at the Hertz level are demonstrated.
Evidence for an extended duration of GABA-mediated excitation in the developing male versus female hippocampus.

γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is as an excitatory neurotransmitter during brain development. Activation of GABAA receptors in neonatal rat hippocampus results in chloride efflux and membrane depolarization sufficient to open voltage sensitive calcium channels. As development progresses, there is a decline in the magnitude of calcium influx subsequent to GABAA receptor activation and the number of cells that respond to GABA with excitation. By the second postnatal week in the rat, GABA action in the hippocampus is predominantly inhibitory. The functional consequences and endogenous regulation of developmental GABA-mediated excitation remains under-explored. Hippocampal neurons in the newborn male and female rat respond to GABAA receptor activation with increased intracellular calcium and are susceptible to GABA-mediated damage – both being indicative of the excitatory nature of GABA. In the present study we observed that by postnatal day 7, only males are susceptible to GABAA agonist-induced damage and respond to GABAA agonist administration with elevated levels of intracellular calcium in cultured hippocampal neurons. By postnatal day 14, GABAA agonist administration was without effect on intracellular calcium in both males and females. The age-related sex difference in the impact of GABAA receptor activation correlates with a sex difference in chloride co-transporter expression. Males have elevated protein levels of pNKCC1 on PN0 and PN7, with no sex difference by PN14. In contrast, females displayed elevated levels of KCC2 on PN7. This converging evidence infers that sex affects the duration of GABAA receptor-mediated excitation during normal hippocampal development, and provides a mechanism by which the effect is mediated. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol, 2007.
Effects of Hypoxia and Toxicant Exposure on Arginine Kinase Function as Measured by 31P-NMR Magnetization Transfer in Living Abalone

Abstract The activity of arginine kinase (AK) was evaluated by saturation transfer NMR in red abalone (Haliotis rufescens) in response to hypoxia, sodium azide (NaN3; an inhibitor of cytochrome c oxidase), or pentachlorophenol (PCP; an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation) exposure. Pseudo-first order rate constants (Kfor) in the forward (ATP forming) reaction direction showed maximal increases from basal values of 0.025 s−1 to 0.095, 0.114, 0.126 s−1 for NaN3 hypoxia, and PCP exposures, respectively. Increases in Kfor were inversely correlated (r2 = 1.00) to declines in ATP concentration in all exposed animals. Flux (the product of Kfor and phosphoarginine concentration) appeared to converge on a common value, from basal flux values of 0.257 mM PA s−1 to 0.703, 0.770, and 0.627 mM PA s−1 for NaN3, hypoxia, and PCP exposures, respectively. It seems likely that all three stresses were equally effective at inhibiting mitochondrial ATP formation, which may account for the similarity in flux increase, possibly to maximal rates of AK-mediated ATP formation. Differences in Kfor are related to declines in ATP concentrations, which appear to be stress specific, and likely indicate additional mechanisms of toxicity for NaN3 and PCP.
Robust Institutions: The Logic of Levy?

Levy (2002) argues that J. M. Buchanan's worst-case philosophy of constitutional political economy and J. W. Tukey's worst-case philosophy of mathematical statistics are analogous. Levy's analogy, however, is problematic. Institutions are only contingently robust. Worst-case political economy is simply best-case thinking in another guise.
Study on Clarification Behavior of Fe2O3/Kerosene Sludge under Strong Coupling of Ultrasonic Stationary Field

Two cofrequency ultrasonic fields were coupled directly by ultrasonic stationary coupling system to clarify Fe2O3/kerosene sludge medium and achieve the separation of Fe2O3/kerosene. Experimental results show that when sound intensity is close to 80% of the cavitation threshold value, stable stationary field can be formed in the sludge medium after the superposition of primary wave and secondary wave in the ultrasonic field. The acoustic radiation force drives Fe2O3 phase to cluster toward the wave node, the Fe2O3 phase above wave amplitude position floats by overcoming the gravity, and the Fe2O3 phase below wave amplitude position subsides so that the suspension effect occurs in the kerosene phase and the clarification and separation of sludge is achieved. When sound intensity is less than 30% of the cavitation threshold value, the suspension effect of ultrasonic field on kerosene phase disappears. In this case, kerosene phase floats on the surface of sludge medium but the separation of Fe2O3/kerosene cannot be realized.
Strengths of ozone fundamentals in the infrared: Variational calculations

Abstract Strengths are calculated for the fundamental vibration-rotation bands of ozone in the infrared adopting a variational method of vibration-rotation analysis. These calculations make use of available ab initio electronic theory to assign algebraic signs for the coefficients in the dipole moment expansion to internal coordinates. Magnitudes of these coefficients are chosen so that they are consistent with available vibrational intensity data.
Features which separate least effective from most effective science teachers

Sixty-one science supervisors identified 321 teachers, 162 most effective and 159 least effective, in their respective districts. Information was then sought concerning age, gender, teaching field(s), number of preparations, amount of preparation, time, semester hours of undergraduate science preparation, quantity of graduate science preparation, type of teacher education programs, number of weeks of NSF workshop experience, and number of workshops elected for participation. Comparisons of the information gathered between least and most effective teachers were made. There were no differences in any categories except for gender, quantity of NSF institute experiences, and elected in-service experiences in excess of a single day's duration. Many of the factors frequently used to differentiate among teachers do not provide any explanation of the differences between least and most effective teachers of science.
Expression of CYP4A isoforms in developing rat placental tissue and rat trophoblastic cell models

Maintaining fatty acid homeostasis during pregnancy is critical for normal fetal development. As an organ that controls nutrient supply from the mother to the fetus, the placenta plays a significant role in guiding fatty acid transfer to the developing fetus. The cytochrome P450 4A (CYP4A) subfamily of metabolizing enzymes is a group of structurally and functionally conserved proteins that are specialized in the omega/omega-1 hydroxylation of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids and their derivatives. To understand the function of the CYP4A system in the placenta and its significance in maintaining fetal fatty acid homeostasis, information about the placental expression of individual CYP4A isoforms is required. In the present study, we have elucidated the temporal and spatial patterns of expression of the four known rat CYP4A isoforms (CYP4A1, CYP4A2, CYP4A3, and CYP4A8) in the junctional and labyrinthine zones of the developing rat chorioallantoic placenta as well as two rat trophoblastic cell lines, HRP-1 and Rcho-1, using semi-quantitative RT-PCR and immunohistochemical analyses. The mRNA from the four rat CYP4A isoforms was detected in the developing rat placenta with CYP4A1 exhibiting the strongest expression (4A1 > 4A2 >> 4A3 approximately equal to 4A8). CYP4A1 was also detected by immunohistochemical staining in the developing rat placenta. We also observed CYP4A1 in both HRP-1 and Rcho-1 cells by RT-PCR, suggesting the utility of these cells as in vitro tools to study the effects of xenobiotics on placental fatty acid metabolism. Establishing the expression of CYP4A isoforms in these tissues and cell models provides a framework for further investigation of their functional and physiological significance in guiding proper fetal development.
Components of displacement adaptation in acquisition and decay as a function of hand and hall exposure

Tests of proprioceptive shift (PS), visual shift (VS), and negative aftereffect (NA) were made during 25-min exposure to 20-D displacement and during a subsequent 30-min dark decay period in two separate experiments. Different groups of subjects explored hallways or viewed their active hand during exposure. VS was greatest in hall exposure, while PS was greatest in hand exposure. Larger VS occurred in the second experiment, where test procedures were modified to minimize a tendency to center the target within the momentary or remembered field of view. Substantial and possibly complete VS decay occurred when the initial level of adaptation was high, but although PS decay was substantial, it was not complete. In all conditions, the sum of VS and PS numerically exceeded the NA, and this difference tended to be largest and significant in the hall exposure. Implications of this effect for the two-component additivity hypothesis are discussed.
Quantum Mechanics on a Space-Time Lattice Using Path Integrals in a Minkowski Metric

A simple model of many-body quantum mechanics governed by completely local interactions in ordinary three-dimensional space is presented. The equations of motion, involving no Euclideanization of time, are elementary extensions of those describing random walks on a square lattice, and are far simpler than those obtained through standard path-integral theory. A quantity is defined in terms of populations of particles on the lattice, whose expectation value is proportional to the square of the multiparticle wave functions associated with the system; for sufficiently microscopic measurement scales, this generalized ‘density’ may take on negative values, thereby circumventing the constraints imposed by Bell's inequality.
Imaging Patterns of Atypical Renal Cell Carcinoma Recurrence: A Pictorial Review:

Poster: "ECR 2010 / C-1347 / Imaging patterns of atypical renal cell carcinoma recurrence- pictorial review." by: "N. Campbell, S. Barrett, H. Stunell, W. Torreggiani; Dublin/IE"
Seasonal and pandemic influenza surveillance considerations for constructing multicomponent systems

Surveillance for influenza is essential for the selection of influenza vaccine components and detection of human infections with novel influenza A viruses that may signal the start of a pandemic. Virologic surveillance provides the foundation from which this information can be obtained. However, morbidity and mortality data are needed to better understand the burden of disease, which, in turn, can provide useful information for policy makers relevant to the allocation of resources for prevention and control efforts. Data on the impact of influenza can be used to identify groups at increased risk for severe influenza-related complications, develop prevention and control policies, and monitor the effect of these policies. Influenza surveillance systems frequently monitor outpatient illness, hospitalizations, and deaths, but selection of influenza surveillance components should be based on the surveillance goals and objectives of the jurisdiction.
Fabrication and characterization of individually addressable vertical- cavity surface-emitting laser arrays and integrated VCSEL / PIN detector arrays

With the emergence of the internet, the demand for high data transmission rates in short haul area networks and fiber-to-the- desktop applications is increasing every year. Densely packed one-dimensional and two-dimensional vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) arrays offer new possibilities for future short haul parallel optical links, free-space optical interconnects at the chip-to-chip, board-to-board, and on-board level. In this paper, we describe the manufacturing process of individually addressable two-dimensional VCSEL arrays, PIN detector arrays, and integrated VCSEL / PIN detector arrays. We also present measurement results of the fabricated devices and comment on the reliability.
Event-related brain potentials and selective attention to acoustic and phonetic cues.

Abstract N 1 and P 3 components of the human event-related potential were recorded from subjects performing a syllable discrimination task which required selective attention to one ear at a time. The N 1 component was enhanced to all stimuli in the attended ear; while the P 3 component was enhanced only to the “target” stimulus in that ear. The results are discussed in terms of hierarchical stages of selective attention.
Assessing the immune status of critically ill trauma patients by flow cytometry.

Background: Unintentional injury or trauma remains the leading cause of death among young adults. About one fifth of these trauma patients require care in an intensive care unit (ICU) because of severity of injuries and comorbidities. Patients hospitalized in an ICU are at increased risk for nosocomial infections, such as urinary tract infections, pneumonia, bacteremia, and wound infections. Many of these patients will develop sepsis or septic shock, and some will progress to multiple organ failure and death. The balance between the proinflammatory and counterinflammatory immune response appears to be a driving factor in this progression. At present, there is no proposed method for the timely detection of the immune status in trauma patients, making rational decisions to use immune-altering therapies difficult. Objective: We demonstrate that flow cytometry, with its capabilities to characterize and/or enumerate (a) leukocyte subtypes, (b) leukocyte activation markers, (c) leukocyte-derived cytokines and microvesicles, and (d) leukocyte function is well suited to monitor the immune status of critically ill trauma patients. Methods: Information for the review was obtained from the extant literature. Discussion: We suggest that flow cytometry is a research method that might aid nurse scientists in investigating the immune status of critically ill patients, the recovery status of conditions such as hemorrhagic shock and tissue injury and the relationship between cancer disease progression and symptoms. Therefore, flow cytometry has the potential to broaden nursing research priority areas so that a comprehensive approach to understanding the cellular response is attained.
Morphometric analysis of the developing optic nerve of the F1 heterotic mouse and its parental strains

During the period of active myelination, the CNS of the F1 hybrid mouse, derived from DBA/2J (D2) and C57BL/6J (B6) parental strains, displays levels of myelin-specific markers which are greater than in either parent. This so-called hypermyelination has been attributed to hybrid vigor or heterosis. Morphometric comparison of the optic nerves of F1 and parental strains revealed that the F1 contains larger myelinated axons and fewer premyelinated axons. These observations suggest that, compared with its parental strains, the F1 hybrid shows an early onset and accelerated rate of myelination.
Pieces of 2d: existence and uniqueness for Barnes–Wall and Ypsilanti lattices

Abstract We give a new existence proof for the rank 2 d even lattices usually called the Barnes–Wall lattices, and establish new results on uniqueness, structure and transitivity of the automorphism group on certain kinds of sublattices. Our proofs are relatively free of calculations, matrix work and counting, due to the uniqueness viewpoint. We deduce the labeling of coordinates on which earlier constructions depend. Extending these ideas, we construct in dimensions 2 d , for d ≫ 0 , the Ypsilanti lattices, which are families of indecomposable even unimodular lattices which resemble the Barnes–Wall lattices. The number ϒ ( 2 d ) of isometry types here is large: log 2 ( ϒ ( 2 d ) ) has dominant term at least r 4 d 2 2 d , for any r ∈ [ 0 , 1 2 ) . Our lattices may be the first explicitly given families whose sizes are asymptotically comparable to the Siegel mass formula estimate ( log 2 ( mass ( n ) ) has dominant term 1 4 log 2 ( n ) n 2 ). This work continues our general uniqueness program for lattices, begun in Pieces of Eight (Adv. in Math. 148 (1999) 75). See also our new uniqueness proof for the E 8 -lattice (J. Number Theory 103 (2003) 77).
The effect of embodied emotive states on cognitive categorization.

Research has uncovered that positive affect broadens cognitive categorization. The motivational dimensional model, however, posits that positive affect is not a unitary construct with only one cognitive consequence. Instead, this model puts forth that there are different positive affects varying in approach motivational intensity. According to this model, only positive affects lower in motivational intensity should broaden cognitive processes, whereas positive affects higher in motivational intensity should narrow cognitive processes. Consistent with these predictions, high approach positive affect has been shown to narrow attention, whereas low approach positive affect has been shown to broaden it (Gable & Harmon-Jones, 2008). High approach positive affect, therefore, might narrow categorization. Two experiments investigated this possibility by having participants respond to cognitive categorization tasks in 3 body postures designed to elicit different levels of approach motivation: reclining backward, which should evoke low approach motivation; sitting upright, which should evoke moderate approach motivation ; and leaning forward, which should evoke high approach motivation. Participants smiled while in each posture in order to experience positive affect. Experiment I provided initial support for the idea that high approach positive affect narrows categorization and low approach positive affect broadens categorization. Experiment 2 replicated these findings with improved smiling instructions. These results extend previous work by showing that the motivational model's predictions hold for basic attentional processes as well as higher level cognitive processes such as categorization.
SIRTF - the Space Infrared Telescope Facility

Abstract The Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) is to be launched by NASA in 2003. SIRTF will be an observatory for infrared astronomy from space with an 85 cm aperture telescope operating at 5.5 K and a 2.5–5 years cryogenic lifetime. SIRTFs three instruments with state of the art detector arrays will provide imaging, photometry, and spectroscopy over the 3–180 μm wavelength range. SIRTF will provide major advances for the study of astrophysical problems from the solar system to the edge of the Universe. SIRTF will complete NASA’s family of Great Observatories and serve as a cornerstone of the Origins program. Over 75% of the observing time will be awarded to the general scientific community through the usual proposal and peer review cycle. SIRTF will demonstrate major advances in technology areas critical to future infrared missions. These include lightweight cryogenic optics, sensitive detector arrays, and a high performance thermal system, combining radiative and cryogenic cooling, which allows the telescope to be launched warm and to cool in space. These thermal advances are enabled by the use of an Earth-trailing solar orbit which carries SIRTF to a distance of ∼0.6 AU from Earth in five years. SIRTF will be launched in April, 2003; thus, by the time this paper is published, SIRTF will be in orbit and returning data. Many more scientific and technical details can be found on the SIRTF home page: sirtf@caltech.edu/SSC/ ; this site will also alert the scientific community to upcoming research opportunities with SIRTF.
The effect of dry heat on the bioavailability of iron in soy flour

Bioavailability of iron in soy flour was investigated by the Hemoglobin Regeneration Efficiency (HRE) procedure in 50 three-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats weighing 250 ±7 g and with a mean hemoglobin level of 12.9 g/dl were randomly assigned to one of five treatment groups: baseline (BL), unheated soy flour (UH), soy flour heated at 225°F for either 10 min (H10), 30 min (H30), or 120 min (H120). The animals were fed diets (46 ppm iron) containing the soy flour for 21 days. HREs of UH, H10, H30, H120 diets were 17.6, 16.8, 17.7 and 16.8%, respectively. Apparent iron absorption from the UH, H10, H30 and H120 diets was 94.7, 94.3, 93.9 and 94.3%, respectively. Serum iron was significantly lower (p<.001) and total iron binding capacity was significantly higher (p<.001) in rats fed the H120 diet. Iron concentrations in the liver, spleen, heart and kidney were significantly lower in rats fed H30 or H120 diets. These results suggest that prolonged heating of soy flour may reduce iron bioavailability and result in depletion of iron stores.
Maternal-fetal conflict: positions and principles.

While maternal-fetal conflict includes a broad range of possible interventions noninterventions and coercive influences ranging from refusal to serve alcohol to a pregnant woman to unwanted medical involvement (Caesarean sections)and a refusal to follow medical instructions: bed rest hospitalization. Where fetal distress indicates a need for a Caesarean section but the 38-weeks-pregnant woman refuses to give her consent for the operation how does the practitioner evaluate the ethically significant features of the situation? First a review of viability and the right to privacy: presumably a viable fetus can survive without the womans body; privacy has provided grounds for terminating a pregnancy of being left alone and patient autonomy is a cornerstone of medical ethics balanced with beneficence the duty to protect or promote the welfare of the patient; where a pregnant woman and viable fetus are viewed as patients conflict ensues. Position 1: The Pregnant Womans Autonomy Has Priority. A position consistent with other health care practices. Position 2: Beneficence Toward the Fetus has Priority. Arguably beneficence toward the patient or at least nonmaleficence always overrides respect for autonomy just as moral obligations are greatest toward those who are most in need. Position 3: Beneficence Toward Both Patients Trumps Respect for the Pregnant Womans Autonomy. Coercive intervention is permissible in cases of well documented complete placenta previa. Then acting on a refusal of treatment would amount to acting on unreliable clinical judgment justifying the physicians resisting the patients exercising a positive right when fulfilling that positive right contradicts the most highly reliable clinical judgment dooms the beneficence-based interests of the fetus and virtually dooms the beneficence-based interests of the pregnant woman. Race and class must never provide the basis for complex clinical judgments yet statistics show they do. Justice requires that equals be treated as equals.
Topological Invariants and Solutions with a High Complexity for Scalar Semilinear PDE

In this paper topological invariants of dynamics of scalar parabolic equations are defined. Conservation of these invariants causes persistence of complex spatially chaotic patterns in the dynamics. It implies, in particular, the existence of extremely many stable essentially different spatially complex solutions of scalar semilinear parabolic, elliptic and hyperbolic equations in the situation when coefficients of equations depend on the spatial variable strongly enough and the domain is large or unbounded, the number of different solutions exponentially depends on the volume of domain. Another implication of the conserved quantities is persistence of complexity of solutions in the dynamics.
569 EPIDEMIOLOGIC EVIDENCE THAT VENTRICULAR SEPTAL DEFECTS OCCUR PARTLY AT RANDOM

To investigate possible reasons for the recent increase in the reported incidence of ventricular septal defects (VSDs) in the U.S., the epidemiology of VSDs was examined. The known risk factors explain few cases. Incidence rates are similar in different countries, races and seasons, and are unrelated to maternal age, birth order, sex and socioeconomic status. Despite identical genes and similar prenatal environments, the concordance rate in identical twins is only about 10%. The reported increase probably reflects more complete case finding rather than a true increase in the occurrence of VSD. The consistency of incidence in differing environments and the frequency of discordance in identical twins call into question the widely accepted multifactorial inheritance hypothesis. Instead, these findings suggest that, in addition to genes and environment, chance plays a major role in the etiology of VSDs. This hypothesis has two major implications for clinical practice: many VSDs are not preventable, and parents need not feel responsible for VSDs in their children.
Observation of Metal-Vacuum-Metal Tunneling, Field Emission, and the Transition Region

We report what we believe are the first observations of metal-vacuum-metal tunneling. A field emitter is brought close to a metal surface and the current-voltage characteristic is measured in three regions: the Fowler-Nordheim region, the intermediate region, and-and the metal-vacuum-metal region.
Energy Efficient Workflow Job Scheduling for Green Cloud

The elastic resource provision, no interfering resource sharing and flexible customized configuration provided by the Cloud infrastructure has shed light on efficient execution of many scientific applications modeled as Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structured workflows. However, the energy cost on running the increasingly deployed Cloud data centers around the globe together with the amount of CO2 emissions have skyrocketed. In order to maintain sustainable Cloud computing facing with ever-increasing problem complexity and big data size, we propose an energy-efficient scientific workflow scheduling algorithm to minimize energy consumption and CO2 emission while satisfying certain Quality of Service (QoS). Our multiple-step resource provision and allocation algorithm applies Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) technology to reduce energy consumption within acceptable performance bounds, and minimize the Virtual Machine (VM) overhead for further reduced energy consumption and higher resource utilization rate. The candidacy of multiple data centers from the energy and performance efficiency perspectives is also evaluated. The simulation results show that our algorithm is able to achieve an average up to 30% of energy savings and increase the resource utilization rate for about 25% leading to higher profit and less CO2 emissions.
Calculation of the multipole potential from an arbitrary localized charge distribution

A method for solving Poisson's equation as a set of finite-difference equations is described for an arbitrary localized charge distribution expanded in a partial-wave representation. The procedure is an extension of the widely used technique developed by Loucks for spherically symmetric charge densities. In the present development, the higher partial-wave components of the density lead to an l dependence in the boundary conditions and the finite-difference equations. The potential components for l>0 can be calculated recursively with the same degree of accuracy and efficiency as for the l=0 case. This procedure requires the additional computational step of evaluating a one-dimensional integral of each density component to determine the multipole moment, required by the boundary condition at large r. Specific modifications required to adapt the Loucks technique for this more general charge density are described, and illustrative results are given for a model density with components rho/sub l/(r)=C/sub l/r/sup l/el-italicr, which can also be treated analytically.