cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Temozolomide for Recurrent Low-grade Spinal Cord Gliomas in Adults

BACKGROUND. There is no standard therapy for surgery- and radiotherapy-resistant, recurrent, low-grade spinal cord gliomas. Therefore, a retrospective study of temozolomide (TMZ) in adults with recurrent low-grade spinal cord gliomas with a primary objective of determining progression-free survival (PFS) was performed. METHODS. Twenty-two patients (11 men and 11 women) aged 20 years to 55 years (median, 35 years) with recurrent spinal cord gliomas (World Health Organization grade 2 astrocytoma in 19 patients and oligoastrocytoma in 3 patients) were treated. All had previously been treated with surgery and involved-field radiotherapy. Thirteen patients underwent repeat surgery. All patients were chemotherapy–naive. TMZ was administered at a dose of 150-200 mg/m2/day for 5 consecutive days every 4 weeks (operationally defined as a single cycle). Neurologic and neuroradiographic evaluations were performed every 8 weeks. RESULTS. All patients were evaluable for toxicity and response. A total of 266 cycles of TMZ (median, 14 cycles; range, 2 cycles-24 cycles) was administered. TMZ-related toxicity included constipation (9 patients, 1 with grade 3), lymphopenia (9 patients, 1 with grade 3), fatigue (7 patients, 1 with grade 3), neutropenia (6 patients, 2 with grade 3), and thrombocytopenia (6 patients, 2 with grade 3). Four (18%) patients demonstrated a partial radiographic response, 12 (55%) demonstrated stable disease, and 6 (27%) had progressive disease after 2 cycles of TMZ. Time to tumor progression ranged from 2 months to 28 months (median, 14.5 months). Survival ranged from 4 months to 39 months (median, 23 months). PFS at 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, and 24 months was 64%, 64%, 41%, and 27%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS. TMZ demonstrated modest efficacy with acceptable toxicity in this cohort of adult patients with recurrent low-grade spinal cord gliomas. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Glycosaminoglycan-mimetic biomaterials. 3. Glycopolymers prepared from alkene-derivatized mono- and disaccharide-based glycomonomers.

Mono- and disaccharide-containing glycopolymers were synthesized by two different free-radical processes, and their ability to act as heparan sulfate glycomimetics in promoting the binding of Fibroblast Growth Factor-2 (FGF-2) to its receptor (FGFR-1) was evaluated using an in vitro cell-based assay. Cyanoxyl (•OC⋮N)-mediated polymerization of acrylamide with alkene-derivatized mono- and disaccharides including sulfated or nonsulfated N-acetyl-d-glucosamine is described. The results of this approach are compared to those obtained via the classical ammonium peroxodisulfate (APS)/N,N,N‘,N‘-tetramethylethylenediamine (TMEDA) initiating system and confirm the capacity of cyanoxyl-mediated polymerization to generate a variety of glycopolymers with high saccharide contents and low polydispersity indexes. In vitro assays demonstrate that specific glycopolymers can potentiate FGF-2/FGFR-1 binding interactions.
Mechanisms of seismic quiescences

In the past decade there have been major advances in understanding the seismic cycle in terms of the recognition of characteristic patterns of seismicity over the entire tectonic loading cycle. The most distinctive types of patterns are seismic quiescences, of which three types can be recognized:post-seismic quiescence, which occurs in the region of the rupture zone of an earthquake and persists for a substantial fraction of the recurrence time following the earthquake,intermediate-term quiescences, which appear over a similar region and persist for several years prior to large plate-rupturing earthquakes, andshort-term quiescences, which are pronounced lulls in premonitory swarms that occur in the hypocentral region hours or days before an earthquake. Although the frequency with which intermediate-term and short-term quiescences precede earthquakes is not known, and the statistical significance of some of the former has been challenged, there is a need, if this phenomena is to be considered a possibly real precursor, to consider physical mechanisms that may be responsible for them. The characteristic features of these quiescences are reviewed, and possible mechanisms for their cause are discussed. Post-seismic quiescence can be readily explained by any simple model of the tectonic loading cycle as due to the regional effect of the stress-drop of the previous principal earthquake. The other types of quiescence require significant modification to any such simple model. Of the possibilities considered, only two seem viable in predicting the observed phenomena, dilatancy hardening and slip weakening. Intermediate-term quiescences typically occur over a region equal to or several times the size of the rupture zone of the later earthquake and exhibit a relationship between the quiescence duration and size of the earthquake: they thus involve regional hardening or stress relaxation and agree with the predictions of the dilatancy-diffusion theory. Short-term quiescences, on the other hand, are more likely explained by fault zone dilatancy hardening and/or slip weakening within a small nucleation zone. Because seismicity is a locally relaxing process, seismicity should follow a behaviour known in rock mechanics as the Kaiser effect, in which only a very slight increase in strength, due to dilatancy hardening or decrease in stress due to slip weakening, is required to cause quiescence. This is in contrast to other precursory phenomena predicted by dilatancy, which require large dilatant strains and complete dilatancy hardening.
Repeat bathymetric surveys at 1-metre resolution of lava flows erupted at Axial Seamount in April 2011

At frequently active submarine volcanoes, it is difficult to distinguish between new and pre-existing lava flows. A combination of high-resolution bathymetric surveys taken before and after an eruption at Axial Seamount in 2011 allows detailed mapping of the 2011 lava flows, and highlights the tendency of new flows to mimic older ones.
A Theoretical Analysis of Finitely Deforming f.c.c. Crystals in the Sixfold Symmetry Position

An exhaustive analysis of finite plastic straining of f.c.c. crystals in the sixfold, tensile symmetry position is presented. Classical Taylor hardening and the 'simple theory' of finite-distortional latent hardening serve, in turn, as a basis for the theoretical studies. For prescribed axial loading, wherein each theory permits a variety of strain-rates and axis rotations, a quasi-energetic postulate is found that constrains (or partially constrains) the solution to that which appears physically most likely: axis stability accompanied by axisymmetric deformation. The two theories are contrasted with one another, with positive-definite hardening rules (which are briefly considered), and with diverse empirical evidence that defines the essential features of finite deformation and latent hardening of f.c.c. crystals in a variety of single- and multiple-slip orientations. It appears that only the simple theory, augmented by a minimum-work postulate, is consistent with this diverse evidence.
Lateral transport in a fluidized‐packed bed: Part I. Solids mixing

A theory was developed to relate the average velocity of a fluidized particle to the fluidizing gas velocity and the minimum fluidization velocity. The development of this relationship was based on a model for particle movement caused by gas bubbles rising through the fluidized bed. The diffusivity for lateral solids mixing in a fluidized-packed bed can then be determined from the average particle velocity and the diameter of the fixed packing by the random walk theory.
DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR CUYO, ARGENTINA*

ABSTRACT A geographical development strategy is proposed for a two-province government-organized planning region in western Argentina known as Cuyo. Variables which measure economic activity and housing quality are used to classify combinations of departments (counties) as leading or lagging regions. The nodal organization of Cuyo aids in the identification of probable investment centers, and indicates their functional relationships to lagging regions. There are viable investment centers in Cuyo. Increased investment in these urban areas should reduce extreme economic concentration, and create growth and employment opportunity nearer to depressed areas.
Ecotone Effects on Seagrass and Saltmarsh Habitat Use by Juvenile Nekton in a Temperate Estuary

While considering important juvenile fish habitats individually, both seagrass and saltmarsh are often highly connected with other subtidal and intertidal habitats. As a result, juvenile fishes and crustaceans may utilize multiple habitats across tidal, diel, or seasonal cycles in a manner that makes interhabitat proximity an important driver of fish distribution and community composition. In this context, we examined the importance of seagrass (Zostera marina and Halodule wrightii) and saltmarsh (Spartina alterniflora) habitat characteristics in driving fish and crustacean catch rates and community composition in a temperate, polyhaline-euhaline, estuary. We found that habitats with highly connected seagrass and saltmarsh vegetation exhibited higher average catch rates of many recreationally and commercially valuable fish and crustacean species, as well as overall nekton catch rates and Shannon diversity (H), than habitats composed of either seagrass or saltmarsh habitat alone. Nekton-habitat associations varied temporally, showing strong seasonal trends which were potentially indicative of temporal shifts in relative habitat value. Catch rates of numerous recreationally and commercially targeted species were correlated with patch-scale variables, particularly seagrass canopy height, water temperature, and depth; however, regression analysis indicated that habitat type was more powerful in predicting overall nekton catch rates and Shannon diversity (H). We conclude that emergent properties (i.e., those operating at 10–100s m) are important drivers of nekton distributions among and within habitats. Considering the spatial and temporal scales at which humans are encroaching on estuarine ecosystems, our findings highlight the need for investigating organism-habitat associations at expanded spatial scales, as well as the need to adopt fishery and coastal management plans that consider habitat characteristics at multiple spatial scales to account for interhabitat connectivity.
The solar wind interaction with Venus: A comparison of Galileo and Pioneer Venus observations

The rudimentary measurements of the instruments on Pioneer Venus over a 14-year span have provided a strong framework for the interpretation of the observations with a more sophisticated instrument package during the Galileo Venus flyby in February 1990. In some cases the Galileo results provided independent confirmation of earlier inferences. In other cases completely new data were obtained. Nevertheless, because of limitations of the instruments and the trajectory and thermal restraints some outstanding questions were not addressed. Much has been learned but there is still much more to do.
Apparel sizing solutions for an ageing problem

The purpose of this study was to evaluate apparel sizing needs of women 65 years or older. Girth, vertical, width and length body measurements were taken from a computerized Body Graph Measuring Device placed on 104 participants. Findings showed significant differences between sample, and PS 42–70 and commercial basic pattern measurements in three of four sizing systems identified. In all differences, 65-plus measurements were larger. Bust girth, abdominal extension and base of armscye girth measurements with height were acceptable sizing predictors for bodice, skirt and sleeve, respectively.
Religiosity and Altruism Among African American Males: The Catholic Experience

America has come to develop two contrasting perceptions of African American male religiosity in the post-civil rights period. The press for racial inclusion throughout the Kennedy/Johnson era has forged the association of African American male religious involvement with political engagement (Arp & Boeckelman, 1997; Peterson, 1992). The urban image emerging in the post-Reagan climate endows him with a nonreligious quality, in that it depicts an individual who is nihilistic and antisocial. These two images are clearly contradictory. To the degree that religious involvement is prevalent among African American men and has positive effects, the latter image is called into question. So too is the former image, to the extent that diminishing concern for others is becoming characteristic of urban life. What, then, is the current state of African American male religiosity, and how does it affect his sense of wellbeing and other-directness? This article reviews the literature suggesting that religiosity varies across subgroups in society and can have two broad effects on the individual: It can shape one's attitudes and behaviors toward oneself, and it can shape one's attitudes and behaviors toward others. The level of religiosity and altruism (measured by reported
SEROTYPE REPLACEMENT OF VERTICALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES THROUGH PERFECT VACCINATION

Strain replacement occurs when after a vaccination campaign one (or more) strains decline in prevalence while another strain (or strains) rise in prevalence. Differential effectiveness of the vaccine is the widely accepted and the most important mechanism which leads to this replacement effect. Recent theoretical studies have suggested that strain replacement may occur even if the vaccine is perfect, that is, the vaccine is completely effective with respect to all strains present. It has already been shown that perfect vaccination, along with a trade-off mechanism, such as co-infection or super-infection, lead to strain replacement. In this paper, we examine the hypothesis that strain replacement with perfect vaccination occurs only with trade-off mechanisms which allow a strain with a lower reproduction number to eliminate a strain with a higher reproduction number in the absence of vaccination. We test this hypothesis on a two-strain model with vertical transmission. We first show that vertical transmission as a trade-off mechanism can lead to dominance of a strain with suboptimal reproduction number. Based on the hypothesis we expect, and we show, that strain replacement occurs with vertical transmission.
Growth rate of CdS by vapor transport in a closed ampoule

Vapor transport of CdS in a closed ampoule due to a temperature gradient was investigated. Comparisons between the theoretical and experimental growth rate for the following conditions were made: (1) with and without the presence of Ar gas, (2) convective contribution to the growth rate in the vertical and horizontal configurations, and (3) the effect of starting material composition on the growth rate. It was found that Cd reacts with fused silica ampoules and causes the contamination of CdS samples.
Evolution of NOx Abatement Techniques Through Combustor Design for Heavy-Duty Gas Turbines

The role played by oxides of nitrogen in the formation of photochemical smog has been known for many years. However, because of the relatively small fraction of power generated by gas turbines, there were no significant attempts at limiting gas turbine NO /SUB x/ emissions in the United States until about 15 years ago. This paper outlines General Electric's experience with NO /SUB x/ abatement techniques from then until the present.
Fluctuating Kluver-Bucy syndrome in a child with epilepsy due to bilateral anterior temporal congenital malformations.

Abstract An 11-year-old boy with epilepsy due to congenital bilateral anterior temporal lobe malformations presented with fluctuating Kluver–Bucy syndrome (KBS). Since the age of 2, he had experienced clusters of three or four daily complex partial seizures over 2–3 days in a month, followed by a seizure-free interval of 3–4 weeks. During the seizure-free period, the patient exhibited hyperorality, sniffing, irritability alternating with placidity, anxiety, unsolicited sexual gestures, and unusual calmness after eating. KBS features escalated up to the onset of the seizure cluster, and remitted after the seizures. Brain MRI revealed bilateral anterior temporal cortical dysplasia with enlarged and dysmorphic amygdalar–hippocampal complex. Brain [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography PET showed bilateral anterior and mesial temporal hypometabolism. Video/EEG monitoring revealed independent right and left temporal lobe seizures. This is the first reported case of KBS due to congenital bitemporal malformations. Also, KBS behavior phenotype in this patient fluctuated, with escalation during the seizure-free period and remission induced by the monthly seizure cluster. This fluctuating pattern could represent forced normalization.
Sustained effect of orally administered isosorbide dinitrate on exercise performance of patients with angina pectoris.

The efficacy of oral isosorbide dinitrate was evaluated in nine hospitalized patients with chronic angina pectoris and positive maximal bicycle exercise tests. Patients were randomized double-blind to receive either 20 mg of isosorbide dinitrate or placebo on successive days after a control maximal upright bicycle exercise test. On each day hourly exercise tests were performed for 4 hours after drug administration to an end point of fatigue or angina pectoris. Mean systolic blood pressure 4 hours after the administration of isosorbide dinitrate was 25 mm Hg less than the control value ( P P P
Role of clock genes in gastrointestinal motility

Biological rhythms coordinate the timing of our internal bodily functions. Colonic motility follows a rhythm as well: most people will have a bowel movement in the morning and rarely during the night. Recent work provides a potential mechanism for this observation: the mouse colon possesses a functional circadian clock as well as a subset of rhythmically expressed genes that may directly impact on colonic motility. Furthermore, measures of colonic motility such as the colonic tissue contractile response to acetylcholine, stool output, and intracolonic pressure changes vary as a function of the time of day, but these variations are attenuated in mice with disrupted clock function. These laboratory findings are supported by clinical observations. Gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea or constipation are prevalent among shift workers and time-zone travelers, both of which are conditions associated with disruptions in biological rhythms. This review will discuss new insights into the role of clock genes in colonic motility and their potential clinical relevance.
Spatial and diurnal features of the Jovian equatorial anomaly

Abstract This paper outlines a time-dependent model of the Jovian ionosphere with electrodynamic drift to study the spatial and temporal features of the Jovian equatorial anomaly. Two sinusoidal drift velocity models are considered—Model 1, akin to that in the terrestrial ionosphere and Model 2, having opposite phase. The drift velocity amplitude is taken to be 100 m s−1. In either model, we obtain an equatorial anomaly which persists throughout the day unlike its terrestrial counterpart, which disappears after midnight. The crest of ionization is centered around 7–8 degrees latitude in either model as compared with about 15 degrees for the terrestrial anomaly. The Rm index attains a maximum value of 2.6 in the afternoon in Model 2. The peak electron density at the equator minimizes before midnight in Model 1, but after sunrise in Model 2. There is no “noon biteout” like that found in the terrestrial equatorial ionosphere. The height of the peak electron density roughly follows the drift velocity pattern. Comparison with experimental data indicates that drift velocity amplitudes far exceeding 100 m s−1 would be required to produce the observed Jovian equatorial anomaly.
Animal models for primary sclerosing cholangitis.

Since the aetiopathogenesis of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) in humans remains undefined, investigators have studied a variety of animal models to gain insights into immunopathogenetic mechanisms associated with obliterative fibrous cholangitis of intra- and extra-hepatic bile ducts. To date, no animal model has been developed that exhibits all of the attributes of PSC. Rodent models instigated by bacterial cell components or colitis are promising because they may help to explain the strong association between PSC and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Other models of direct injury to biliary epithelia, peribiliary vascular endothelia or portal venous endothelia indicate that inflammation, chemokines and cytokines can produce diffuse sclerosis of bile ducts. Models of toxic, infectious or intra-luminal injury of the biliary tract also exhibit focal biliary sclerosis mediated by inflammation and cytokines. The histopathology of several models suggests a sequence of events beginning with secretion of proinflammatory cytokines by activated hepatic macrophages followed by peribiliary infiltration with CD4 and CD8 T cells with a T helper 1 phenotype. These results strongly suggest co-ordinated, pathogenetic roles for both the innate and adaptive immune responses. However, the stimuli that initiate and perpetuate peribiliary fibrosis remain unknown. Interestingly, several models are also associated with the development of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies that react in a perinuclear and cytoplasmic pattern similar to that observed in patients with ulcerative colitis and/or PSC. Finally, models of extra-hepatic biliary obstruction continue to provide important information about the pathogenesis of portal fibrosis and secondary biliary cirrhosis that occurs in PSC and other diseases with obstruction of bile flow. Future studies in either existing or new animal models should advance our understanding of the pathogenesis of PSC, the major prerequisite for the development of effective therapies.
Ceramic Via Wafer-Level Packaging for MEMS

We will present a novel approach to wafer level packaging for micro-electro-mechanical systems. Like most common MEMS packaging methods today, our approach utilizes a wafer bonding process between a cap wafer and a MEMS device wafer. However, unlike the common methods that use a silicon or glass cap wafer, our approach uses a ceramic wafer with built-in metal-filled vias, that has the same size and shape as a standard 150 mm silicon wafer. This ceramic via wafer packaging method is much less complex than existing methods, since it provides hermetic encapsulation and electrical interconnection of the MEMS devices, as well as a solderable interface on the outside of the package for board-level interconnection. We have demonstrated successful ceramic via wafer-level packaging of MEMS switches using eutectic gold-tin solder as well as tin-silver-copper solder combined with gold thermo-compression bonding. In this paper, we will present the ceramic via MEMS package architecture and discuss the associated bonding and assembly processes.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Dynamics of Plains Cottonwood (Populus deltoides) Forests and Historical Landscape Change along Unchannelized Segments of the Missouri River, USA

Construction of six large dams and reservoirs on the Missouri River over the last 50–75 years has resulted in major landscape changes and alterations in flow patterns, with implications for riparian forests dominated by plains cottonwood (Populus deltoides). We quantified changes in land cover from 1892–1950s and the 1950s–2006 and the current extent and age structure of cottonwood forests on seven segments (two reservoir and five remnant floodplain) comprising 1127 km (53 %) of the unchannelized upper two-thirds of the Missouri River. Riparian forest area declined by 49 %; grassland 61 %; shrubland 52 %; and sandbar habitat 96 %; while agricultural cropland increased six-fold and river/reservoir surface area doubled from 1892 to 2006. Net rates of erosion and accretion declined between the 1892–1950s and 1950s–2006 periods. Accretion exceeded erosion on remnant floodplain segments, resulting in declines in active channel width, particularly in 1950s–2006. Across all study segments in 2006, most cottonwood stands (67 %) were >50 years old, 22 % were 25–50 years old, and only 10 % were <25 years old. Among stands <50 years old, the higher proportion of 25–50 year old stands represents recruitment that accompanied initial post-dam channel narrowing; while declines in sandbar and shrubland area and the low proportion of stands <25 years old suggest declines in geomorphic dynamism and limited recruitment under recent river management. Future conservation and restoration efforts should focus both on limiting further loss of remnant cottonwood stands and developing approaches to restore river dynamics and cottonwood recruitment processes.
Predicting solubility and permeation properties of organic solvents in Viton glove material using Hansen's solubility parameters

A model based on a combination of the solubility parameters of Hansen and the polymer solution theory of Flory–Rehner was used to predict the solubility and permeation properties of organic solvents in Viton polymeric glove material. To test the validity of the model, weight gain data were collected for 32 organic solvents versus Viton. Samples were exposed for periods of 2 to 12 weeks until each glove sample had achieved a stable, equilibrium weight. Using a nonlinear least-squares regression, the three-dimensional solubility parameter was determined for Viton to be as follows: dispersion = 15.38, polar = 10.49, and hydrogen bonding = 2.47. Breakthrough times, lag times, and steady-state permeation rates for the solvents verses Viton were also determined and combined with results obtained from the literature. A high level of correlation was observed between the model and the properties evaluated. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 93: 2688–2698, 2004
The fundamentals of biocarbon formation at elevated pressure: From 1851 to the 21st century ☆

Abstract In 1851, Violette reported studies of wood carbonization in sealed glass tubes which endured considerable pressure at elevated temperatures and evoked unusual pyrolysis chemistry that led to very high charcoal yields. Despite the priority and promise of Violette’s work, his experiments were never reproduced and his findings forgotten. In this paper, we describe experiments that closely reproduce those of Violette and confirm many of his prescient observations. We employ small steel tubing bomb reactors rated to pressures above 13.9 MPa (2000 psig) at 400 °C that are heated quickly in a fluidized sand bath. Gas analysis is accomplished by an Agilent micro-GC and the charcoal product is subject to proximate analysis. Carbonization occurs at much lower temperatures than customary at atmospheric pressure. In the case of Avicel cellulose, the experimental fixed-carbon yield of charcoal exceeds the theoretical value derived from thermochemical equilibrium calculations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that a pyrolysis process has produced a cellulosic char whose yield attained or exceeded its thermochemical equilibrium value.
Total colpocleisis with high levator plication for the treatment of advanced pelvic organ prolapse.

Abstract Objectives: Our purpose was (1) to report long-term objective and subjective outcome data after total colpocleisis with high levator plication and (2) to compare operative morbidity of total colpocleisis in patients with prior versus concurrent hysterectomy. Study Design: The medical records of patients who underwent total colpocleisis with high levator plication between August 1, 1988, and December 31, 2000, were retrospectively reviewed. Patient characteristics, operative data, and objective outcome measures including pelvic organ prolapse staging measurements were obtained from subject records. Subjective outcome measures were obtained by a standardized telephone survey. A t test was used to compare continuous variables between patients who underwent prior versus concurrent hysterectomy. The Fisher exact test was used to test for association between patient group and each categorical variable. Results: During the 12-year study period, 92 subjects underwent total colpocleisis with high levator plication. Of the 92 subjects, 90 (97.8%) underwent concurrent operations and 37 (40.2%) underwent simultaneous hysterectomy. With objective cure defined as absence of prolapse to the hymen, 90 subjects (97.8%) were objectively cured after a median follow-up of 12 months (range, 0-64 months). Of 62 subjects available for telephone follow-up, 56 (90.3%) reported being satisfied or very satisfied with how the surgery cured their prolapse after a median follow-up of 24 months (range, 13-161 months). Concurrent hysterectomy was associated with statistically significant increases in absolute change in hematocrit (9.5% without vs 11.9% with hysterectomy) and transfusion requirement (12.7% without vs 35.1% with hysterectomy). There was no significant difference in surgical complications between groups. Conclusion: Total colpocleisis is an effective operation for the treatment of advanced pelvic organ prolapse. Concurrent hysterectomy is associated with higher blood loss and transfusion requirements. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2003;189:121-6.)
Nuclear Factor 90 Mediates Activation of the Cellular Antiviral Expression Cascade

Viral infection triggers a cascade of interferon response genes, but the mechanisms that prime such innate antiviral defenses are poorly understood. Among candidate cellular mediators of the antiviral response are the double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-binding proteins. Here we show that a C-terminal variant of the ubiquitous dsRNA-binding protein, nuclear factor 90 (NF90ctv), can activate the interferon response genes in the absence of viral infection. NF90ctv-expressing cells were infected with the syncytium-inducing HIV-1 strain NL4-3 and were shown to inhibit viral replication. To gain insight into this mechanism of protection, we analyzed the expression profiles of NF90ctv-positive cells as compared with parental cells transduced with the empty vector. Of the 5600 genes represented on the expression arrays, 90 displayed significant (4-fold or more) changes in mRNA levels in NF90-expressing cells. About 50% are known interferon α/β-stimulated genes. The microarray expression data were confirmed by quantitati...
Fractures of the medial end of the clavicle

Much is known regarding the epidemiology of clavicle fractures, particularly those of the middle-third and distal clavicle. Medial clavicle fractures are uncommon, and as a result, there is little information available. The purpose of this study is to review retrospectively a case series of medial clavicle fractures treated at a tertiary trauma center. All clavicle fractures treated at our institution over a 5-year period were reviewed by use of all available radiographic studies and medical records. These data were evaluated with respect to several epidemiologic points, including mechanism of injury, associated injuries, fracture orientation, fracture displacement, treatment, and associated injuries. Follow-up data were gathered in 32 of 44 available patients with chart review and telephone survey. We evaluated 57 medial fractures in 55 patients. Patients were typically men in the fifth decade injured as a result of vehicular trauma. Fractures were occasionally missed on chest radiographs but were always identifiable by computed tomography scan. Injuries were most often closed and without neurovascular injury. However, patients almost always had multisystem trauma. Operative treatment was rarely performed, and patients typically had little or no pain at the time of follow-up. Finally, it was found that 11 patients died within 1 month of their injuries, indicating that 20% (11/55) of patients with medial clavicle fractures died as a result of the trauma associated with their injury. Medial clavicle fractures remain a relatively uncommon injury compared with other clavicular fractures. However, they typically are accompanied by significant multisystem trauma and have a high associated mortality rate.
Cracking the almond (Commentary on Prévost et al.).

Recent advances in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have provided an unprecedented peek into the activity of subareas of major anatomical structures in the healthy human brain. However, little is known about subregional activity in the human amygdala, a small, almondshaped corticoid structure in the medial temporal lobe that lacks clear MRI landmarks for compartmentalization of its dozen nuclei. Previous attempts to localize functions within the amygdala using standard fMRI either have relied on gross subdivisions, such as quadrants (Dolcos et al., 2004), or have estimated where the peak activation clusters lie (Davis et al., 2010), sometimes with the aid of probabilistic atlases (Amunts et al., 2005). In pages 134–145 of this volume, Prevost et al. (2011) use high-resolution fMRI to evaluate amygdalar subregional responses during reward and avoidance learning. Their paper makes several important methodological advances, including improved resolution using a tailored fMRI protocol, increased precision due to a region-of-interest-based alignment approach and lack of spatial smoothing, and better specification of behavioral correlates using computational modeling. The results indicate that the centromedial (CM) and basolateral (BLA) divisions make dissociable contributions to avoidance and reward learning, respectively, for coding action value at the time of choice and for evaluating estimation uncertainty of the cue. The CM further correlated with reward value of anticipatory state signals in the avoidance condition. However, a lateral region of the BLA correlated with reward prediction errors at the time of trial outcome during both learning conditions, albeit in adjacent sectors. These findings contribute to the broader literature regarding specialization of rewardand avoidance-based learning systems in the human brain and demonstrate the potential efficacy of high-resolution fMRI for investigating larger amygdalar subdivisions. Yet the findings show that reward and avoidance learning may not be neatly compartmentalized across subnuclear divisions in all aspects, and, curiously, neither region showed increased activation to putative aversive signals (loss of money) in the avoidance condition. Discrepancies between these observations and the clear role of both the BLA and the CM during classical fear conditioning remain to be resolved. Future studies could further validate anatomical localization by considering the known differences in relative connectivity of the CM and BLA with subcortical versus cortical association areas, respectively (Swanson & Petrovich, 1998), as demonstrated by Etkin et al. (2009) using functional connectivity analyses.
Future of osteoporosis genetics: enhancing genome-wide association studies.

Recent technological and scientific advances have provided the tools needed to rapidly scan the genome for genetic variants affecting osteoporosis. In the last two years, genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified several associations contributing to risk of fracture and related traits. These discoveries promise to illuminate important new pathways in bone metabolism, contribute to the development of novel therapeutics and possibly harbor prognostic value. The initial GWAS results, however, suggest that alternative strategies may be necessary to comprehensively identify and characterize genetic risk factors. In this perspective we review the status of osteoporosis GWAS and discuss systems-level approaches that have the potential to provide a much deeper understanding of bone biology.
Time and space reconstruction in optical, non-imaging, scintillator-based particle detectors

Abstract A new generation of ultra-low-background, non-imaging scintillator detectors is being developed to study solar neutrinos and search for dark matter. These detectors generally contain a “fiducial volume,” where the signal to noise ratio is maximal, surrounded by an “active buffer region.” To distinguish between events occurring in the two regions, the position of each event in space and time is reconstructed starting from the spatial and temporal distribution of the photons collected. The object of this paper is the study of the reconstruction, in time and space, of scintillation events in detectors of large dimensions. A general, likelihood-based method of position reconstruction for this class of detectors is presented. The potential spatial resolution of the method is then evaluated. It is shown that for a spherical detector with a large number N of photosensitive elements that detect photons, the expected spatial resolution at the center of the detector is given by δ a ≈ ( c σ / n ) 3 / N , where σ is the width of the scintillator time response function and n is the index of refraction in the medium. However, if light in the detector has a scattering mean free path much less than the detector radius R, so that the information on the time of detection of the photons becomes irrelevant, and only the spatial distribution of the detected photons is of essence, the resolution instead becomes ( R / 2 ) 3 / N . Finally, a formalism is introduced to deal with the common case in which only the arrival time of the first photon to arrive at each photosensitive element can be measured.
Family Characteristics and Educational Expenditures in Japan and the United States

This study examined family expenditures on education for children up to secondary school age in Japan and the United States to compare how family characteristics explain the variations in such expenditures differently in these countries. The data for this study were taken from the 2004 Japanese Consumer Panel Study and the 2004 U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey. The probability of having expenditures on children's educations and the associated costs were analyzed simultaneously using double-hurdle models. Overall, families in Japan spent more when children were older, while families in the United States spent more when children were younger. Furthermore, homeownership status, mother's age, educational attainment, employment status, and marital status explained the variations in expenditures differently for Japan and the United States. The findings of this study supported the conclusions that the present situation reinforces intergenerational economic inequality in both countries and that the current family...
COLONIES OF MEMORY

N INETEENTH-CENTURY WESTERN OBSERVERS of the South Seas often worried that the islanders were losing touch with their past and were forgetting the traditions of their ancestors. In writing about their concerns these commentators frequently identified the missionaries as being responsible for this loss. To a certain degree, their perspective was correct, for one does not have to search far to find examples of the missionaries' culpability. If one looks more closely, however, one learns that the missionaries (especially those representing the London Missionary Society) also preserved part of what they had destroyed by studying and gathering artifacts from the island cultures they had invaded. As time passed, these missionary collections became important to anthropologists, for they were visual reminders of an older, almost extinct Polynesian culture. They became a means through which to recall the past.
THE EFFECT OF HYPOPHYSECTOMY ON THE RESTORATION OF THE LIVER FOLLOWING PARTIAL HEPATECTOMY IN RATS

The intimate relationship between the function of the pituitary gland and general body growth has long since been well established, and the profound effect of hypophysectomy on general body growth is well known. Many attempts have been made also to associate the growth of tumors with the secretory activity of the pituitary gland (1). The remarkable rate of growth exemplified by the restoration of the liver, which occurs after damage to the liver by certain diseases and poisons, and also after partial hepatectomy, has already been the subject of extensive experimental investigations, the historical and histological aspects of which were thoroughly reviewed by Fishback in 1929 (2). A quantitative study of the cell growth that constitutes this restoration of the liver has recently been made by Brues, Drury and Brues in this laboratory (3). In the following experiments we have enlisted the method for partial hepatectomy in rats used by Higgins and Anderson (4), and have measured the restoration of the liver f...
Mechanical properties of extruded dual-phase NiAl Alloys

The mechanical behaviour of dual-phase microstructures, consisting of elongated primary NiAl grains aligned with an intergranular NiAl/X eutectic phase, produced by extrusion of cast NiAl-X (whereX=Cr and W) alloys, has been examined. Chromium, added to create a dual-phase NiAl-based aligned microstructure, resulted in large increases in the yield strength, but only marginal improvement in the toughness. In contrast, tungsten alloying leads to ductility or toughness increases with no significant strengthening. The constitutional hardening rate due to deviations from stoichiometry in Ni rich NiAl was estimated to be about 66 MPa (Ni−1 at%).
A study of a fluorine substituted phenyl based complex as a 3 V electrolyte for Mg batteries

An electrolyte with a wide electrochemically stable window and high efficiency for reversible Mg deposition/dissolution is a key component of Mg battery systems. In the present study, functional-group-substituted phenyl-based Mg battery electrolytes have been prepared by direct reactions between the Lewis acid AlCl3 and various fluorine substituted Lewis bases. The substitution effects of these functional groups on the anodic stability of the electrolyte and the efficiency for Mg deposition/dissolution have been studied by electrochemical analysis and first-principles density functional theory calculations. This study indicates that the para-substituted fluorine complex (4-F-PhMgBr)2-AlCl3/THF is an excellent 3 V electrolyte for Mg batteries with respect to the electrochemical stability and efficiency of reversible Mg deposition/dissolution. Both the experimental results and theoretical calculations are consistent and indicate that electron-withdrawing groups with small steric effects on phenyl rings improve the electrolyte stability and reversibility by decreasing the HOMO and increasing the LUMO energy levels of the complex component, while electron-donating groups have profound detrimental influences. This investigation provides further understanding of the electrolyte chemistry of Mg batteries and advances the design and optimization of new electrolytes.
Thermal Stability, Decomposition Paths, and Ph/Ph Exchange Reactions of [(Ph3P)2Pd(Ph)X] (X = I, Br, Cl, F, and HF2)

Complexes of the type [(Ph3P)2Pd(Ph)X], where X = I (1), Br (2), Cl (3), F (4), and HF2 (5), possess different thermal stability and reactivity toward the Pd−Ph/P−Ph exchange reactions. While 1 decomposed (16 h) in toluene at 110 °C to [Ph4P]I, Pd metal, and Ph3P, complexes 2 and 3 exhibited no sign of decomposition under these conditions. Kinetic studies of the aryl−aryl exchange reactions of [(Ph3P)2Pd(C6D5)X] in benzene-d6 demonstrated that the rate of exchange decreases in the order 1 > 2 > 3, the observed rate constant ratio, kI:kBr:kCl, in benzene at 75 °C being ca. 100:4:1 for 1-d5, 2-d5, and 3-d5. The exchange was facilitated by a decrease in the concentration of the complex, polar media, and a Lewis acid, e.g., Et2O·BF3. Unlike [Bu4N]PF6, which speeded up the exchange reaction of 2-d5, [Bu4N]Br inhibited it due to the formation of anionic four-coordinate [(Ph3P)Pd(C6D5)Br2]-. The latter and its iodo analogue were generated in dichloromethane and benzene upon addition of [Bu4N]X or PPN Cl to [(Ph3...
On the batch means and area variance estimators

In steady-state simulation output analysis, construction of a consistent estimator of the the variance parameter of the process may be desirable in a number of instances. For example, if the process obeys a central limit theorem and an estimator of the variance is available, one may, then, construct an asymptotically valid confidence interval for the process-mean parameter. Centered moments (e.g. bias, variance, skewness, etc.) of an estimator are familiar measures of goodness of that estimator. Also, a central limit theorem involving the estimator provides its asymptotic rate of convergence. We consider here the batch means and the standardized time series area variance estimators, in their nonclassical setting, and provide asymptotic expressions for their centered moments as well as central limit theorems. As a by-product, consistency in the mean-square sense of these estimators is obtained. Our assumption on the process does not include stationarity nor covariance stationarity (although we are in the steady-state context).
Photoionization of excited molecular states. H2 C 1Πu

Abstract We present photoelectron spectra for H2 in the excited C 1Πu, υ = 0–4.J = 1 levels prepared by multiphoton excitation. In accordance with the Franck-Condon principle, the H2+ vibrational state distribution is dominated by Δυ = 0 transitions from the C 1Πu state, illustrating a useful method for preparing vibrationally state-selected molecular ions. Equally important observed systematic departures from Franck-Condon factors, which provide detailed information on excited-state photoionization dynamics of molecules.
Oxygen consumption and ventilation of the antarctic isopod Glyptonotus.

Abstract o 1. The rate of oxygen consumption of the isopod Glyptonotus antarcticus Eights at −1·8°C was measured with an oxygen electrode. The mean rate for eight experiments was 216±24 μl O2/g per hr. 2. This species apparently does not regulate its oxygen consumption under hypoxic conditions. 3. Ventilation frequency was determined by counting pleopod beats during the oxygen consumption determinations. The data show that Glyptonotus maintains a constant ventilation with decreasing oxygen availability.
Supramolecular morphology of two‐step, melt‐spun poly(lactic acid) fibers

Fibers of poly(lactic acid) produced by two-step melt spinning have been studied. The morphology is elucidated with respect to the thermal and mechanical properties of fibers produced at cold-draw ratios of 1–8. With atomic force microscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering, a fibrillar morphology is found, with microfibril diameters ranging from 30 to 60 nm. Shrinkage properties indicate that, with increasing draw ratio, the fibers undergo a transition from class 2 to class 1 within the classification proposed by Keller. A supramolecular model for the morphology of the fibers is presented that entails a highly oriented skin with a core consisting of microfibrils. The orientation of the crystalline blocks within the microfibrils is similar to what has been reported for nylon fibers. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 86: 2828–2838, 2002
A Simulation of the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Electrochemical Light Off Phenomenon

During latter-stage, “start-up” heating of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack to a desired operating temperature, heat may be generated in an accelerating manner during the establishment of electrochemical reactions. This is because a temperature rise in the stack causes an acceleration of electrochemical transport given the typical Arrhenius nature of the electrolyte conductivity. Considering a potentiostatic condition (i.e., prescribed cell potential), symbiosis thus occurs because greater current prevalently leads to greater by-product heat generation, and vice versa. This interplay of the increasing heat generation and electrochemistry is termed “light off”, and an initial model has been developed to characterize this important thermal cycling phenomenon. The results of the simulation begin elucidating the prospect of using cell potential as well as other electrochemical operating conditions (e.g., reactants utilization) as dynamic controls in managing light off transients and possibly mitigating thermal cycling issues.Copyright © 2005 by ASME