cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A method of assessing essential amino acid availability from microbial and ruminally undegraded protein in lactating dairy cows.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to extend a stable isotope-based assessment of AA absorption from rumen-degradable protein (RDP) sources to include determination of essential AA (EAA) availability from microbial protein (MCP). To demonstrate the technique, a study using a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments applied in a repeated 4 × 4 Latin square design was undertaken. Factors were high and low rumen-degradable protein and high and low starch. Twelve lactating cows were blocked into 3 groups according to days in milk and randomly assigned to the 4 treatment sequences. Each period was 14 d in length with 10 d of adaption followed by 4 d of ruminal infusions of 15N-labeled ammonium sulfate. On the last day of each period, a 13C-labeled AA mixture was infused into the jugular vein over a 6-h period to assess total AA entry. Rumen, blood, urine, and milk samples were collected during the infusions. Ruminal bacteria and blood samples were assessed for AA enrichment. Total plasma AA absorption rates were derived for 6 EAA from plasma 13C AA enrichment. Absorption of 6 EAA from MCP was calculated from total AA absorption based on 15N enrichment in blood and rumen bacteria. Essential AA absorption rates from total protein, MCP, and rumen-undegradable protein were derived with standard errors of the mean of 6, 14, and 14%, respectively. An average of 45% of absorbed EAA were from MCP, which varied among 6 EAA and was interactively affected by starch and RDP in diets. Microbial AA availability measured by isotope dilution method increased with the high RDP diets and was unaffected by starch level, except for Met, which decreased with high starch. Microbial protein outflow, estimated from urinary purine derivatives, increased with RDP and was not significantly affected by starch. This was consistent with measurements from the isotope dilution method. Total AA absorption rates measured from isotope dilution were similar to estimates from CNCPS (v. 6.55), but a lower proportion of absorbed AA was derived from MCP for the former method. Compared with the isotope and CNCPS estimates, the Fleming model underestimated microbial EAA and total EAA availability. An average of 58% of the absorbed EAA was converted into milk, which varied among individual AA and was interactively affected by starch and RDP in diets. The isotope dilution approach is advantageous because it provides estimates of EAA availability for individual EAA from rumen-undegradable protein and MCP directly with fewer errors of measurement than can be achieved with intestinal disappearance methods.
The Impact of Police Officer-Involved Shootings on Organizational Policy in the United States

Police officer-involved shootings (OIS) have again been brought to the forefront as a significant national issue following another highly criticized OIS involving an African-American male in the United States. The out roar and debate about acceptable police use of force options has reached critical mass many times over the last few decades. While research has consistently revealed that police use of force, including arrests and verbal warnings, only occurs in approximately 1.5% of police contacts with the public, it has also indicated that the police use of a firearm (OIS) in a suspect engagement is even rarer, estimated to occur approximately 1100 times each year in the United States (with a rate of less than 0.003%). However rare, incidents in which police officers shoot a minority suspect, particularly an African-American, have routinely resulted in allegations of systematic racism, public outcry, demonstrations, and considerable media coverage. The highly acclaimed SHOT database, which examines police OIS in the United States since 2000, has revealed the racial breakdown of the suspect in OIS to be 41% white, 30% black, 25% Hispanic, and 4% Asian/Native American. Further significant findings will be outlined within this chapter. What is surprising is that the rarity of these incidents still results in sensationalization by both traditional and social media (often based on misinformation) and in calls for police policy reform, not only in the United States but also globally.
Sketching Merge Trees for Scientific Data Visualization

Merge trees are a type of topological descriptors that record the connectivity among the sublevel sets of scalar fields. They are among the most widely used topological tools in visualization. In this paper, we are interested in sketching a set of merge trees. That is, given a large set T of merge trees, we would like to find a much smaller basis set S such that each tree in T can be approximately reconstructed from a linear combination of merge trees in S. A set of high-dimensional vectors can be sketched via matrix sketching techniques such as principal component analysis and column subset selection. However, up until now, topological descriptors such as merge trees have not been known to be sketchable. We develop a framework for sketching a set of merge trees that combines the Gromov-Wasserstein probabilistic matching with techniques from matrix sketching. We demonstrate the applications of our framework in sketching merge trees that arise from time-varying scientific simulations. Specifically, our framework obtains a much smaller representation of a large set of merge trees for downstream analysis and visualization. It is shown to be useful in identifying good representatives and outliers with respect to a chosen basis. Finally, our work shows a promising direction of utilizing randomized linear algebra within scientific visualization.
Regulation of Homeostasis and Anoikis by Epithelial Cell Extrusion

Epithelial tissue homeostasis, propensity for tumor initiation from a single transformed cell, and metastatic dissemination reflect a fine balance between proliferation and the newly characterized biologic process called cell extrusion. Cell extrusion ejects live cells from overcrowded epithelia, where these cells may or may not die by anoikis, depending on their genome and microenvironment. Their failure to undergo anoikis may promote tumor metastasis. In addition, damaged, dead, transformed or topologically altered cells are extruded without compromising epithelial barrier function. Some of the biochemical mechanisms underlying these diverse extrusion subclasses are shared, while others are unique, as discussed in this review. Clearly, cell extrusion occurs upstream of anoikis and should be an important focus of interest in this context.
The Condom Use Self-Efficacy Scale in Substance Use Disorder Treatment-Seeking American Indian Adults.

BACKGROUND American Indians (AIs) experience substance use disorder and sexual risk related inequities with elevated rates of sexually transmitted infections, unintended pregnancy, and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Substance misuse is associated with risky sexual behaviors including condomless sex. Objectives: The current study aimed to test the validity of the Condom Use Self-Efficacy Scale (CUSES) and the relationship between self-efficacy and condom use behaviors in AI individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs). Exploratory analyses also examined changes in condom use self-efficacy across SUD treatment. Methods: As part of a larger randomized controlled trial, AI individuals (N = 79) seeking SUD treatment completed baseline measures of condom use self-efficacy and sexual risk behaviors. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated that a 3-factor, 10-item version of the CUSES was a reliable and valid measure in this population. Condom use self-efficacy was associated with condom use behavior and increased during SUD treatment. Conclusions: Overall, it appears that the CUSES is a valid measure in AI individuals, is related to condom use behavior, and increases with SUD treatment. There is a need for future research to integrate these findings into AI cultural values. Addressing sexual risk behaviors in SUD treatment may be an important target and future research is needed to understand predictors of condom use self-efficacy and determine potential intervention targets to reduce sexual risk behaviors and related health inequities.
Evolution of Eli Goldratt's Theories of Management: From Chicken Coops to the Theory of Constraints

This note traces the evolution and broadening of Goldratt's thinking from his OPT finite-scheduling software to his theory of constraints. The note discusses the bottleneck thinking that Goldratt presented in his novel, The Goal, and his book, The Race. Excerpt UVA-OM-0680 THE EVOLUTION OF ELI GOLDRATT'S THEORIES OF MANAGEMENT: FROM CHICKEN COOPS TO THE THEORY OF CONSTRAINTS Eliyahu M. Goldratt completed a fascinating transformation over the last decade. He moved successfully from the realm of basic science (physics) and became an American managerial guru. As he evolved in his many roles, so did his managerial thinking. This paper traces the evolution and broadening of Goldratt's thinking as he moved from physics to the peddling of software to advocating a theory of management that he claimed would save western civilization from itself. Biography Eli Goldratt was a 42-year-old Israeli physicist turned management consultant and philosopher. He received his B.S. degree from Tel Aviv University and later completed his MS and PhD degrees at Bar-Ilan University. In addition to his notoriety as a business consultant, Goldratt held patents in areas ranging from medical devices to drip irrigation and temperature sensors. . . .
Effect of Actuator Delay on Real-Time Hybrid Simulation Involving Multiple Experimental Substructures

Real-time hybrid simulation provides an economical and effective experimental technique for seismic performance evaluation of civil engineering structures in size limited laboratories. Servo-hydraulic dynamics pose challenges for synchronizing restoring forces between substructures. Actuator tracking therefore contributes most detrimental error to real-time hybrid simulation. Post-experiment reliability assessment through actuator tracking assessment is critical to appropriately interpret real-time hybrid simulation results for the performance of structures under investigation. This study analyzes the effect of actuator delays on the accuracy of real-time hybrid simulations involving multiple experimental substructures. Unlike previous studies focusing on the stability of real-time hybrid simulation, this study acknowledges the fact that delay compensation methods are capable of reducing the tracking errors. The modal analysis technique is evaluated for real-time hybrid simulation involving both time delay and nonlinear structural behavior.
Ascertaining the Effect of Reductive Dehalogenation on Chlorinated Hydrocarbon Plume Lengths in Groundwater: Analyses of Multisite Data

Chlorinated hydrocarbon groundwater plume data from a multisite study were evaluated by a variety of statistical techniques (correlation, analysis of covariance, principal components) to quantify the effects of biotransformations (reductive dehalogenation) on plume length. After accounting for the effects of groundwater velocity, source strength, and biases in the data collection process, chlorinated hydrocarbon plume lengths at sites where reductive dehalogenation was occurring were found to be significantly shorter on average, by roughly a factor of two, than those where it was not. Moreover, principal component analyses indicated significant differences in the behavior of chlorinated hydrocarbon plumes between sites with and without evidence of reductive dehalogenation, respectively. The advantage in examining plume behavior from this population-oriented perspective is that overall trends in plume behavior can be evaluated despite site-specific influences such as heterogeneities and unique release hist...
Dual-mechanical-port electric machines-a new concept in design and analysis of electric machines

Conceptually, mechanical port of an electric machine can be doubled and the concept of dual-mechanical-port (DMP) will then give birth to a new breed of electric machines. In this paper, the various possible structures of DMP electric machine are discussed. Basic modeling and analysis issues related to the DMP electric machine are presented. An exemplary design of DMP machine is given and verified by FEM results. Potential applications and future research work are given to conclude the paper.
Negotiating Institutional Design: The Role of Legal Experts in the Creation of the International Criminal Court

This paper studies the early negotiations over international criminal jurisdiction in order to demonstrate how existing institutional arrangements have an independent effect on negotiations over institutional creation by structuring both the decision making process as well as the actual debate over substance, procedure and institutional form. I argue that key institutional features derive from the reliance of states on expert authority in the design process. In particular I investigate the role of international legal experts in the International Law Commission and their work on international criminal jurisdiction between 1949 and 1994. By analyzing debate protocols, commentaries and draft proposals that deal with the question of how to institutionalize a central organization for the pursuit of criminal justice I highlight the productive tension between the search for broad (political) support for the emerging institution, and the principles of legality. Established international legal rules not only circumscribe the debate in providing a legal status quo as an argumentative baseline but the need for new institutional arrangements to be consistent with the established rules system adds a dynamic to institutional design that cannot be controlled by any one state.
Looking for parity nonconservation from strong interactions beyond QCD

For top quarks produced via the subprocess $q\overline{q}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}t\overline{t}$, the longitudinal $t$-quark polarization (${P}_{\ensuremath{\parallel}}$) vanishes in QCD. ${P}_{\ensuremath{\parallel}}$ can be measured by the angular distribution of the lepton in $t$-quark semileptonic decay. New physics contributions that are parity nonconserving will be manifest by nonvanishing ${P}_{\ensuremath{\parallel}}$, which may be large. We illustrate this with the $s$-channel exchange of a massive $X$ gluon with chiral quark couplings.
Effect of pancreatic proteases on plasma cholecystokinin, secretin, and pancreatic exocrine secretion in response to sodium oleate.

Abstract The effect of pancreatic proteases or juice on the sodium oleate-stimulated pancreatic secretion and plasma concentrations of secretin and cholecystokinin in anesthetized rats was investigated. Each rat received sodium oleate in a dose of 0.12 mmol · h −1 via a duodenal tube. Sodium oleate infusion significantly increased pancreatic secretion (volume and protein output) compared with the saline given the control group. The increase in pancreatic secretion paralleled significant elevations of plasma concentrations of secretin and cholecystokinin. To determine a possible role of pancreatic proteases on the responses induced by sodium oleate, saline, chymotrypsin, and trypsin, a combination of chymotrypsin and trypsin or pancreatic juice was infused into the duodenum. The pancreatic secretioo was significantly reduced by pancreatic proteases or pancreatic juice, and the reduction paralleled the decreases in plasma concentrations of the two hormones. These agents suppressed both pancreatic secretion and plasma hormone levels in the following order of magnitude: (pancreatic juice or chymotrypsin + trypsin) > (trypsin) > (chymotrypsin). The reduction of pancreatic secretion by pancreatic proteases was reversed by intravenous administration of secretin and cholecystokinin in physiological doses. It is concluded that negative-feedback regulation of pancreatic secretion is operative in the intestinal phase in rats and that both secretin and cholecystokinin are involved in the regulation.
Specific CP110 Phosphorylation Sites Mediate Anaphase Catastrophe after CDK2 Inhibition: Evidence for Cooperation with USP33 Knockdown.

Chromosomal instability (CIN) is a hallmark of solid tumor biology and is implicated in carcinogenesis. Preferentially eliminating malignant cells by targeting CIN and aneuploidy is an attractive anti-neoplastic strategy. We previously reported that CDK2 antagonism causes lung cancer cells to undergo anaphase catastrophe and apoptosis through inhibition of phosphorylation of the centrosomal protein CP110. Cells with activating KRAS mutations were particularly sensitive to CDK2 inhibition due to down-regulation of CP110 protein levels. This study investigated mechanisms of CDK2 antagonism that mediate anaphase catastrophe via changes in CP110 protein expression and how activated KRAS affects CP110 levels in lung cancers. Site-direct mutagenesis revealed candidate CDK phosphorylation sites of CP110 (residues Ser 170 and Thr 194) critical for conferring anaphase catastrophe by altering centrosome clustering in mitosis. Intriguingly, KRAS mutation can promote CP110 protein degradation by upregulating the ubiquitin ligase SCFcyclinF, which targets CP110 protein for destabilization. Finally, CDK2 inhibitor response was enhanced when combined with knockdown of the deubiquitinase USP33 that in turn accelerates CP110 protein degradation. Thus, this study provides molecular pharmacologic insights into how CP110 expression regulates response to CDK2 inhibition. An improved understanding of in vitro antineoplastic mechanisms of combining CDK2 antagonism with induced CP110 repression provides a rationale for exploring clinical consequences of this strategy. Taken together, preclinical findings obtained from combining CDK2 inhibition with USP33 repression have implications for treating patients with non-small cell lung cancers.
Characteristics of complement-dependent release of phospholipid from Escherichia coli.

The release of 32P-labeled bacterial phospholipid from a smooth Escherichia coli by serum components depends on complement activated by antibody. Phospholipid release in excess antibody tends to be proportional to the concentration of complement as does the release of other cellular constituents. Phospholipids are not simply stripped off during cell lysis. Whereas 94% of the total phospholipid freed from E. coli by mechanical lysis sediments at centrifugal forces sufficient to sediment molecules of 106 molecular weight, similar centrifugation sediments only 50% of the phospholipid released by antibody-complement. In fact, after mechanical lysis more than 50% of the phospholipid sediments at velocities sufficient to bring down cell envelopes. Although the bulk of the bacterial phospholipid is located in the cell envelopes, isolated 32P-labeled cell envelopes and phenol-extracted lipopolysaccharide fails to release phospholipids in the presence of antibody-complement. Moreover, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, which like antibody-complement causes loss of cellular selective permeability and prepares E. coli cell walls for the action of lysozyme, releases only small amounts of phospholipid from E. coli and these are sedimentable. The most likely mechanism of phospholipid release caused by antibody-complement appears to be the activation directly or indirectly of an enzyme which is present only in the intact cells.
Stakeholder communication in service implementation networks: expanding relationship management theory to the nonprofit sector through organizational network analysis

Nonprofits increasingly participate in government-funded service implementation networks (SINs). However, extant research does not explore how organizations might strategically tailor communication to different stakeholder groups or use different communication tools for management. Stakeholders are not a monolithic group, and communicating with stakeholders within SINs is hypothesized to involve different forms of communication than communicating with stakeholders outside of the network. In this paper, relationship management theory is used to examine strategic communication with stakeholder groups within and outside of SINs. Both traditional and emergent (e.g., social media) forms of communication are examined. Survey and interview data on communication within and outside communication networks are analyzed using organizational network analysis techniques. The findings indicate strategic communication in the network differs from strategic communication with stakeholders outside the network. Within the network, organizations place varying emphasis on the use of traditional and emergent forms of communication for management, implying nonprofit managers funded under government grants continue to rely on face-to-face and phone communication and have yet to adopt emerging communication strategies to assist in the management of their programs with their partner organizations. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
THE RELATION OF SERINE--GLYCINE METABOLISM TO THE FORMATION OF SINGLE-CARBON UNITS.

Cultivation of serine-glycine auxotrophs of Escherichia coli in a medium containing serine and a purine base results in a temporary inability of the cells to grow upon transfer to a medium containing glycine as the nutrilite. It could be shown that this failure to grow is due to the inability of the cells to obtain single-carbon units from glycine. The formation of the enzyme system required for the synthesis of single-carbon units from glycine seems to be controlled through repression exerted by the intracellular single carbons. The intracellular concentration of single-carbon units derived from the β-carbon of serine is apparently increased by the addition of a purine base to the growth medium.
Monte Carlo modeling of dopant segregation

Abstract A study of alloy solidification using Monte Carlo computer modeling is reported. This work was undertaken to study non-equilibrium segregation effects such as solute trapping and to gain insight into the interactions between atoms during solidification, which are responsible for these effects. Simulations have been carried out for various growth temperatures, growth rates, surface roughness, liquid diffusivity, equilibrium segregation coefficient, entropy of fusion, and composition of the liquid. Changes in the distribution coefficient ( k -value) from the equilibrium value have been used as a measure of the departure of the behavior of the system from expectations based on equilibrium thermodynamics. The segregation coefficient increases with growth rate, and decreases with increasing liquid diffusivity. The dependence of k -value on various growth conditions is captured by the parameter β , which is defined in Eq. (1). The simulation results are consistent with experiment, and can be described by the analytical model, which is presented in J. Crystal Growth, this issue. doi:10.1016/j.crysgro.2004.07.073 . In the simulations, the occupancy of various interface site configurations was found to be relatively independent of growth rate. The k -value was found to increase for liquid concentrations greater than about 10%.
Case Study: Caudate Glutamatergic Changes With Paroxetine Therapy for Pediatric Obsessive‐Compulsive Disorder

Neurobiological models for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have consistently implicated the caudate nucleus in the pathophysiology of this disorder. OCD symptoms improved markedly in a 9-year-old boy treated with paroxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, for whom pre/posttreatment proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic examinations were acquired to assess the relationship between neurochemical profile in the caudate nucleus, symptom severity, and treatment with paroxetine. Striking changes of the glutamate resonance in the caudate were observed after 12 weeks of paroxetine treatment. These data provide further support for glutamatergic-serotonin pathway involvement in the caudate nucleus of OCD patients.
The Flux-corrected transport algorithm on the NCUBE hypercube

This work describes the implementation of a finite-difference algorithm, incorporating the flux-corrected transport technique, on the NCUBE hypercube. The algorithm is used to study two-dimensional, convectively-dominated fluid flows, and as a sample problem the onset and growth of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability is investigated. Timing results are presented for a number of different sized problems on hypercubes of dimension up to 9. These results are interpreted by means of a simple performance model. The extension of the algorithm to the three-dimensional case is also discussed.
A Preliminary Investigation of Dynamic Assessment With Native American Kindergartners

Purpose: This study examined dynamic assessment as a lessbiased evaluation procedure for assessing the languagelearning ability of Native American children. Method: Twenty-three Arapahoe/Shoshone k...
Ab initio band-structure calculations for alkaline-earth oxides and sulfides.

The electronic structure of the oxides and sulfides of Mg, Ca, and Sr is computed with use of the self-consistent Hartree-Fock method including correlation. Energy-band structure and density of states are presented and discussed in context with the available experimental and theoretical studies. Our results predict that these materials (except MgS) are direct-band-gap materials.
Grouping behavior of inter-pulse time intervals for triggered pulses in an AlGaAs/InGaAs multilayer structure

Triggered pulsing in a multi-quantum well structure which shows s-type negative differential resistance (NDR) was investigated. First return maps of the inter-pulse time intervals (IPTI) show an interesting grouping pattern at slower pulse rates. Oscillations in the pulsing threshold level of the MQW device cause the grouping behavior. This pattern of IPTIs is similar to that of thermoreceptors in fish and mammals. Correlation integrals were calculated for IPTI data sets collected under different operational conditions, and correlation dimensions 8.0, 8.0, 8.5, and 10.0 were found for four different data sets. The calculated correlation dimensions indicate that the triggered pulsing shows a high dimensional behavior and that the correlation dimension increases as the pulse rate decreases.
Chemotropic Response of Antirrhinum majus Pollen to Calcium

A RECENT review1 on pollen tube chemotropism tentatively suggests that the chemotropic factor may be the same chemical entity in many plants. Figs. 1–5 are the evidence that the pollen tubes of Antirrhinum majus grow tropically towards a source of calcium. A stainless-steel mould was used to make sets of three depressions in nutrient agar2 with each depression separated from the other by an agar wall 1 mm thick. The depressions are 3 mm wide, 5 mm long, and 3 ml. deep, with a 2-ml. thick layer of agar underneath the depression. In Fig. 1 dry pollen was placed in the centre or pollen depression, nothing was added to the right or control depression, while solid calcium carbonate (used because of its low solubility) was placed in the left or test depression. Pollen tubes grew well into the test wall, while few grew into the control wall. This procedure is referred to in the rest of this communication as the bioassay. In Fig. 2 single rows of pollen were placed in the pollen chamber adjacent to the test and control walls. Virtually all the pollen tubes on the test side of the pollen chamber grew into the test wall, whereas those on the control side remained within the pollen depression. In Fig. 3 pollen was placed on the surface of the nutrient agar in a line 1 mm from the outer wall of one of the depressions. Solid calcium carbonate was placed in the depression against the outer wall (out of view below picture). Once again, almost all the pollen tubes grew towards the calcium carbonate while very few grew in the opposite direction. Figs. 4 and 5 are essentially the same as Fig. 3, except that the pollen was placed in a slit made in the agar. With calcium carbonate against the outer wall of the depression (left side of picture), the pollen tubes grew towards the source of calcium (Fig. 4), whereas in Fig. 5 with nothing in the depression the pollen tubes grew in both directions. These demonstrations of a chemotropic response to calcium require careful timing of pollen tube germination and growth in relation to the establishment of the concentration gradients of calcium.
Resolution of quantitative traits into Mendelian factors by using a complete linkage map of restriction fragment length polymorphisms

The conflict between the Mendelian theory of particulate inheritance and the observation of continuous variation for most traits in nature was resolved in the early 1900s by the concept that quantitative traits can result from segregation of multiple genes, modified by environmental effects. Although pioneering experiments showed that linkage could occasionally be detected to such quantitative trait loci (QTLs), accurate and systematic mapping of QTLs has not been possible because the inheritance of an entire genome could not be studied with genetic markers. The use of restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) has made such investigations possible, at least in principle. Here, we report the first use of a complete RFLP linkage map to resolve quantitative traits into discrete Mendelian factors, in an interspecific back-cross of tomato. Applying new analytical methods, we mapped at least six QTLs controlling fruit mass, four QTLs for the concentration of soluble solids and five QTLs for fruit pH. This approach is broadly applicable to the genetic dissection of quantitative inheritance of physiological, morphological and behavioural traits in any higher plant or animal.
Practice guidelines for eating disorders

The American Psychiatric Association's (2000) “Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients With Eating Disorders” (PGED) provides useful, practical advice on the clinical and medical management of eating disorders, and an informative summary of the evidence on their epidemiology, nature, and treatment. The main limitation is the methodological adequacy and application of the coding system used to establish level of clinical confidence in treatment recommendations. The PGED represents a mix of science and expert clinical judgment that results in an overinclusiveness and several questionable conclusions. The PGED provides a balanced analysis of pharmacological treatment of anorexia and bulimia nervosa but not binge-eating disorder. Although it notes that cognitive behavior therapy enjoys the most scientific support of any treatment for bulimia nervosa, the PGED misses an opportunity to promote dissemination of this approach. The guideline misleadingly characterizes core cognitive-behavioral treatment strategies as “nutritional rehabilitation.”
Impact of the maze procedure on the stroke rate in patients with atrial fibrillation.

Abstract Objective: The incidence of stroke associated with atrial fibrillation, even in high-risk patients, can be reduced significantly by adequate anticoagulation. However, anticoagulation does not abolish the stroke rate, and unfortunately only 40% of patients with atrial fibrillation actually receive anticoagulant therapy, even in areas where adequate health care is available. Methods: During the past 11.5 years, we have performed the maze procedure for the treatment of medically refractory atrial fibrillation in 306 patients, 58 of whom presented with a history of having had a stroke (n = 40) or transient ischemic attack (n = 18) before surgery. All patients with atrial fibrillation are at an increased risk for these complications, but they are especially prevalent in those patients with previous thromboembolic events and those with other recognized risk factors. Results: Among the 306 patients who had surgery, there were only 2 perioperative strokes (0.7%), and in the 265 patients followed for up to 11.5 years after the maze procedure, there has been only 1 late minor stroke that has now completely resolved. Conclusions: The ability of the maze procedure to decrease the risk of stroke associated with atrial fibrillation so dramatically is likely due to the restoring of sinus rhythm and atrial transport function in combination with surgical removal or obliteration of the left atrial appendage, where most thrombi associated with atrial fibrillation develop. (J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 1999;118:833-40)
Configuration mixing in mass 14 nuclei

Abstract The ground state configuration of C 14 and N 14 have been determined using a zero-range force. Two models have been used, one with O 16 as the core and the other with C 12 as the core. For the sake of simplicity, C 12 is treated as a closed shell of 1 p 3 2 nucleons, and 1 d 2 5 2 and 2 s 2 1 2 configurations are mixed into the ground states of C 14 and N 14 with a spin-dependent zero-range potential. It is suggested that a realistic model would be one wherein an intermediate coupling configuration mixing calculation is made. This is necessary in order to explain the stripping and pick-up data on mass 14 nuclei.
The Passage of Charter Legislation in Virginia: The Role of Resistance, Party, and Regional Tension

The widespread success of charter legislation has fostered a perception that charter schooling is apolitical and has clouded our understanding of the politics of the issue. In a case study of Virginia, we suggest that three important political variables have been largely overlooked to date. The “weak” form of Virginia's charter legislation can be attributed in large part to the schism between Northern Virginia's educationally privileged communities and the rest of the state, the presence of vocal minority opposition, and the fact that teacher organizations did not strongly oppose charter legislation, but did work to ensure that any bill would be mild. In portraying the political gestation of a “weak” law, this study complements existing work that has generally concentrated on “strong” laws in states like Arizona, Colorado, and Michigan. The tortuous struggle for passage in Virginia illuminates many tensions less evident in states where charter schooling passed more easily.
HISTAMINE—FORMING BACTERIA ISOLATED FROM SPOILED SKIPJACK TUNA AND JACK MACKEREL

Bacterial isolates from spoiled skipjack tuna and jack mackerel were examined for their ability to produce histamine in tuna infusion broth. Thirty-one percent of the 470 isolates produced from 0.10 mg/ml to 4.0 mg/ml of histamine in broth. Forty-four of these isolates were tentatively identified as: Proteus morganii (21); Hafnia alvei (13); Proteus species (3); Klebsiella species (1); and unknown (6). Histamine (0.05M) did not inhibit histidine decarboxylase activity, but repressed histidine decarboxylase formation with one strain of Proteus morganii in a synthetic medium.
A comprehensive model for the allosteric regulation of mammalian ribonucleotide reductase. Functional consequences of ATP- and dATP-induced oligomerization of the large subunit.

Reduction of NDPs by murine ribonucleotide reductase (mRR) requires catalytic (mR1) and free radical-containing (mR2) subunits and is regulated by nucleoside triphosphate allosteric effectors. Here we present a new, comprehensive, and quantitative model for allosteric control of mRR enzymatic activity based on molecular mass, ligand binding, and enzyme activity studies. In this model, nucleotide binding to the specificity site (s-site) drives formation of an active R12R22 dimer, ATP or dATP binding to the adenine-specific site (a-site) results in formation of an inactive tetramer, and ATP binding to the newly described hexamerization site (h-site) drives formation of active R16R26 hexamer. In contrast, an earlier phenomenological model [Thelander, L., and Reichard, P. (1979) Annu. Rev. Biochem. 67, 71−98] (the “RT” model) ignores aggregation state changes and mistakenly rationalizes ATP activation versus dATP inhibition as reflecting different functional consequences of ATP versus dATP binding to the a-si...
Improving DVB-S2 performance through constellation shaping and iterative demapping

Because it is widely supported by commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) technology, the DVB-S2 waveform standard has become an attractive solution for military communication links. The waveform uses a combination of amplitude-phase-shift keying (APSK) modulation and low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes. Typical DVB-S2 implementations select signals from the APSK signal set with uniform probability. However, information-theoretic results suggest that performance may be improved by selecting lower-energy signals more frequently than higher-energy signals. In this paper, we propose and analyze a DVB-S2-compatible system that shapes the APSK constellation by selecting signals with a nonuniform probability. The receiver iterates between the APSK demapper, the shaping decoder, and the LDPC decoder. Using 32-APSK and a rate of 3 data bits per symbol, the system described in this paper achieves a gain of over 1 dB relative to a standard DVB-S2 system (i.e. one that does not use shaping or iterative demodulation) in additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) at a bit-error rate of 10−5. About 0.7 dB of the gain can be attributed to shaping, and rest of the gain can be attributed to iterative demodulation and decoding. Lesser gains can be achieved over Rayleigh fading channels.
Aerobrake Guidance Law Synthesis Using Feedback Linearization

Aerobraking maneuvers are currently being considered for use in several space missions. The development of a guidance law for performing simultaneous change of both in-plane and out-of-plane orbital elements with least energy loss is described. The analysis is based on a sixth-order nonlinear point-mass vehicle model with lift, bank angle and drag modulation as the three control variables. The guidance law uses detailed vehicle aerodynamic and the atmosphere models in the feedback loop. The effects of planet oblateness, atmospheric rotation and ambient winds are included in the formulation. The guidance law is in nonlinear feedback form and is simple enough to be implemented on-board an orbit transfer vehicle.
The Unisor Isotope Separator Facility

The UNISOR facility is an Isotope Separator system on-line to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Isochronous Cyclotron (ORIC). The current status of the facility is described including available accelerator beams, targets and ion sources, separator beamlines and source handling equipment, and data acquisition systems.
Image Processing With A Fabry-Perot Interferometer

Two applications of a Fabry-Perot interferometer in image processing are reported. In the first, the angular selectivity of the device is exploited in order to filter the angular spectrum of the input. Operation such as tunable low, band or high pass filtering are demonstrated. The second application uses the fringes of a detuned Fabry-Perct as a spatial carrier frequency tunable in both frequency and orientation. An application in density slicing is demonstrated.
Distortion compensation for accurate overlay in lithography of quasiperiodic patterns

In this paper, we address the problem of ensuring accurate overlay in lithography of patterned substrates with low-order distortions. This problem becomes more important in situations where warpage and thermally induced distortion of high-density quasi-periodic patterns in large flat panel displays (FPDs), or high-density memory cells demand appropriate compensation schemes. A recently developed signal processing technique is used to estimate and compensate for substrate distortion. While avoiding time-consuming (e.g. site-by-site) alignment procedures, the proposed technique permits the use of time-efficient alignment procedures (e.g. global alignment) without compromising overlay accuracy. The proposed technique first estimates the existing low-order distortion of the patterned substrate. After estimating the distortion, global alignment schemes can be used to align the image of next layer to the previous one in a few check points. In the final step, the estimated distortion function can be used for compensating the local misalignments.
Teaching evidence-based practice: the Bachelor of Science in nursing essentials at work at the bedside

Patient safety and quality outcomes are major issues in the health care industry. Many national organizations have pushed these issues to the forefront of health care, demanding that health care professionals, especially nurses, play a vital role and be vigilant in these endeavors. Nurse educators, using The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice, are in a unique position to impact health care systems and patient care by educating and training nursing students in the skills necessary to promote safety and quality outcomes. This article describes a creative, authentic learning experience that is currently being used in a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program. The learning experience is a shared partnership between the clinical agency, the faculty, and the health science librarian to assist senior nursing students in the last semester of their baccalaureate degree program to synthesize and use the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that promote patient safety and optimal outcomes. It is a teaching strategy that incorporates many of the outcomes from the BSN Essentials and aids students to actively seek and deliver care using evidence-based practice.
Conformation‐dependent Raman bands of phospholipid surfaces. 3—head group Ortho‐phosphate stretching vibrations

Vibrational frequencies of diethyl phosphate were calculated for rotamers for which the dihedral angle about the PO and CO bonds varied. The frequencies predicted for the symmetric and antisymmetric OPO stretches, the symmetric and antisymmetric ionic PO2− stretches, and the CC stretches are found to be sensitive to the PO and CO dihedral angles. The results of Raman temperature and solvent studies of diethyl phosphate are reported and are found to be in good agreement with the conclusions obtained from the normal coordinate analyses. Frequencies of diethyl phosphate rotamers having the geometries of crystalline glycerophosphorylcholine (GPC), crystalline GPC CdCCl2, and amorphous GPC CdCl2 were calculated and compared to the Raman spectra of these phospholipid head group models. The normal coordinate analyses are in good agreement with Raman spectra. These results indicate that the observed frequencies of phosphate group vibrations may be compared to the normal coordinate analyses of diethyl phosphate rotamers to monitor conformation in phospholipid head groups (and other organic ortho -phosphates). The Raman symmetric OPO stretch bandwidth may be used to monitor rotational freedom or broadening due to the distribution of differing conformations.
Wastewater-Derived Dissolved Organic Nitrogen: Analytical Methods, Characterization, and Effects—A Review

Wastewater-derived dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) accounts for up to 80% of dissolved nitrogen in nitrified-denitrified effluent. The sturdiness of DON measurements hindered the characterization of DON, especially in wastewater matrix, leading to an unsatisfying knowledge level. Measurement of DON and DON species is imortant not only as a measure of treatibility of wastewater in treatment plants, but also for the possible algal growth-stimulating effects after their discharge into receiving waters. In addition, wastewater-derived DON compounds may act as precursors to several disinfection by-products during intentional or unintentional reuse of wastewater. A review of DON compounds in wastewater and wastewater effluents is given.
An improved technique for studying the conditioned squeak reaction in hooded rats.

(1946). An Improved Technique for Studying the Conditioned Squeak Reaction in Hooded Rats. The Journal of General Psychology: Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 67-77.
Prospective Randomized Comparison of Laparoscopic and Hand-Assisted Laparoscopic Radical Nephrectomy

OBJECTIVES The majority of localized renal cancers are currently managed by laparoscopic radical nephrectomy, with or without the hand-assist device. In this prospective randomized study, we evaluated the patient outcomes with a standard laparoscopic radical nephrectomy (LRN) versus a hand-assisted laparoscopic radical nephrectomy (HALN). METHODS Over a 3-year period, we randomly assigned 21 patients with a localized renal mass of 10 cm or larger to a LRN group with intact specimen extraction or a HALN. The trocar size and sites, the position of the hand-assist device, and the specimen extraction sites were standardized. Patient characteristics, surgical complications, postoperative pain, and convalescence were evaluated. RESULTS Twelve patients underwent LRN and 9 patients underwent HALN. Both groups had similar body mass indices (BMI), mean tumor diameter (LRN, 5.8 cm; HALN, 5.6 cm), and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) scores. The HALN cohort was significantly older (mean age = 68 years) than the LRN cohort (mean age = 54 years) (P = 0.019). Perioperatively, both groups had similar mean times to oral intake and discharge (LRN 2.6 days and HALN 3 days, P = 0.6). Although both groups reported similar postoperative pain scale scores on day 1, at 1 and 3 months. Two patients in each group had complications (LRN 16% and HALN 22%). CONCLUSIONS In comparing HALN and LRN, there was no difference in the majority of operative and postoperative parameters, including hospital stay and postoperative pain. However, LRN patients had a significantly shorter convalescence with quicker return to normal activities and work than the HALN group. Part of the delay in long-term convalescence parameters may be due to the older patients in the HALN cohort.
Solubilities and Ksp Values of the Less Soluble Anion Salts of “Nitron” (1,4-Diphenyl-3-anilino-1,2,4-triazoline)

Abstract The solubilities and Ksp values at 25°C for the following anion salts of nitron are reported: VO4 =, Cro4 =, Cr2O7 =,WO4 =, MoO4 =, BF4 −, NO3 −, NO2 −, SeO3 =, S2O8 =, SCN−, Fe(CN)6 −3, Fe(CN)6 −4, Fe(CN)5NO=, I−, IO4 −, CIO3 −, CIO4 −, BrO3 −, and picrate−. A total of 58 anions were tested.
The effects of user-generated design modifications in a general hospital

The present study investigated the effects of relatively minor design modifications in one wing of a local hospital on the organizational climate of the institution and the behavior of various user groups. Results showed that the changes had positive effects for patients and staff members on mood and morale and on the perceived quality of health care, while visitors reacted negatively to the modifications. Use of the more public areas of the experimental ward increased as a result of the alterations, especially in the evenings when more visitors were present. The positive effects occasionally spread to other wards as well.
US Unions, Trade and International Solidarity: Emerging Issues and Tactics

This article examines the current international solidarity activities of US unions in the context of their campaign against the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the decline of union strength. Unions have linked with environmental, consumer, agricultural and other groups in challenging the premises and predicted impacts of the NAFTA. A grass-roots trinational campaign has developed involving similar groups in Canada and Mexico. Obstacles to the success of these activities are discussed, as are crossborder collective bargaining efforts by US unions. The article assesses union goals in trade agreements and the potential for attaining these under a Clinton presidency.