cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Saturation based color appearance of objects: A comparison between healthy elderly, young adults, and young adults wearing goggles simulating cataract

Abstract Proper use of light and color in the built environment benefits all users, especially ones with reduced visual functioning such as older adults and low vision individuals. In this study, differences in saturation based color appearance of objects were compared between young eyes, old healthy eyes, and young eyes wearing foggy/yellowing goggles simulating cataract. Four color—Red, Green, Blue and Purple—and three saturation levels were manipulated when holding illuminance and value within each of the 4 colors constant. The perceived value of donning simulation goggles by the young was also assessed. Results indicated that there were no significant differences on saturation based color appearance between the young and the older healthy eye in the test situations. Young subjects wearing goggles rated all color appearance characteristics higher for color red than the young without goggles at all three levels of saturation, indicating that the goggles simulated the yellowing deficiency well. Regardless of visual conditions the color blue was perceived the best in high saturation, but in low saturation, the reverse was true where blue was rated low with regards to color appearance characteristics. Color purple which is more of reddish purple was perceived the best in low saturation. This study indicates that when considering color in the built environment, specifying color only by name (i.e. red, blue etc.) can be problematic. Saturation of the color is an important component and its application can provide individuals of all age groups and visual capabilities a supportive visual environment.
A combined transmission and distribution system co-simulation framework for assessing the impact of Volt/VAR control on transmission system

Conventionally, analysis tools used by utility engineers are designed to work for a single domain i.e. either for transmission or for distribution system analysis. With continued growth of demand side participation in energy transaction, it is imperative that analysis is carried out using an approach that captures the coupling between the transmission and distribution systems. A framework for this combined analysis of transmissiondistribution system is developed in this paper using open-source transmission and distribution system analysis tools. A novel synchronization architecture is used to design a co-simulation framework with tight coupling protocol to study the impact of bulk Volt/VAR control on transmission system. Feasibility of developed approach is demonstrated using combined transmission and distribution simulation of multiple IEEE 13-node distribution feeders interfaced to small and medium scale transmission systems, namely, IEEE 9-bus and IEEE 118-bus test systems.
Fast NeighborNet: Improving the Speed of the Neighbor-Net Phylogenetic Network Algorithm with Multithreading and a Relaxed Search Strategy

Fast Neighbor-Net is a command-line Java program that has fast implementations of the popular Neighbor-Net phylogenetic split network approach. This allows more efficiency in computationally intensive tasks such as larger scale data analysis and bootstrapping. The canonical search phase iteratively finds a pair of connected components that minimizes a distance function in Θ(n^3) time in the input taxa count. A relaxed search strategy has been implemented that has average-case time complexity of O(n^2logn) but with Θ(n^3) worst-case time complexity. This search strategy sacrifices some accuracy for speed. The original approach9s implementation has been improved by using good programming practice. These improvements increased run-time performance by a constant factor of approximately 2 and reduced memory requirements by a constant factor of approximately 6. These search strategies allow multithreading to better use modern CPU hardware. PFAM data of 2000--30,000 taxa were used for testing performance. The canonical implementation with three threads improved average performance by approximately 2.1. The relaxed search has good quality, and the accuracy was tested on a mammal and a eukaryote data set. Kendall tau distance was used as a rough measure of topological similarity for the relaxed and canonical search strategies.
Physico-Chemical Aspects of the Effects of Certain Phytochemicals on Insect Gustation

The chemical bases for host tree acceptance and non-host-tree rejection by the smaller European elm bark beetle, Scolytus multistriatus, were studied. Chemical messengers were shown to interact with chemosensory neurons in the insect’s antennae through formation of an energy-transfer complex. Oxidation-reduction interactions also may occur. Hydroquinone is the most potent known stimulant for S. multistriatus feeding, and p-benzoquinone is inhibitory to feeding. Thus, the difference between stimulation and inhibition of feeding is the loss or gain of one or more electrons. Relative feeding inhibition among a group of variously substituted 1,4-naphthoquinones was positively correlated with the combined redox potential and intra-molecular hydrogen bonding capabilities of each molecule.
Virtue Is Good Business: Confucianism as a Practical Business Ethics

This paper argues Confucianism is a compelling managerial ethic for several reasons: 1) Confucianism is compatible with accepted managerial practices. 2) It requires individuals and organizations to make a positive contribution to society. 3) Recognizes hierarchy as an important organizational principle and demands managerial moral leadership. 4) The Confucian "golden Rule" and virtues provide a moral basis for the hierarchical and cooperative relationships critical to organizational success. The paper applies Confucianism to the H. B. Fuller in Honduras: Street Children and Substance Abuse case.
Min-by-min respiratory exchange and oxygen uptake kinetics during steady-state exercise in subjects of high and low max VO2.

Abstract In order to compare differences in min-by-min respiratory gas exchange and oxygen uptake kinetics during steady-state exercise 17 male subjects (mean age 22.5 yr ± 2.1) were divided into two groups (high max [Vdot]O2 group = 4.85 1/min ± .38, low max [Vdot]O2 group = 3.92 1/min ± .36, t = 5.04, P = <.001). Each subject completed, without work decrement, a submaximum work task of 720 kgm/min for 10 min duration. Both groups exhibited the same steady-state [Vdot]O2 during the submaximum exercise. However, there was a clear tendency for the high max [Vdot]O2 group to take up oxygen to steady-state at a faster rate. In addition, the min-by-min respiratory exchange ratios (R) for the high max [Vdot]O2 group were consistently lower, indicating less total energy production. It was concluded that the ability of the high max [Vdot]O2 group to complete the same amount of external work with less energy produced is indicative of an increased efficiency of some kind.
Effects of apolipoprotein E on nutritional metabolism in dementia.

Purpose of review Various groups have explored the effect of apolipoprotein E (APOE) on neurodegeneration through nutritional and metabolic alterations. In this review, we hope to summarize recent findings in humans as well as preclinical APOE models. Recent findings Metabolic pathways including lipid metabolism appear to play a large role in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease. Carrier status of the E4 variant of the APOE gene is the strongest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, and increasing evidence suggests that E4 carriers may respond differently to a host of dietary and metabolic-related treatments. A new appreciation is forming for the role of APOE in cerebral metabolism, and how nutritional factors may impact this role. Summary Considering the role dietary factors play in APOE-associated cognitive decline will help us to understand how nutritional interventions may facilitate or mitigate disease progression.
Introduction to Conceptualizing Writing

Writing has been the subject of scientific research since the start of the 20th century. The resulting body of research is rich and diverse, owing much of its heterogeneity and multiplicity to the ...
Women and the Art of Magisterium: Reflections on Vatican II and the Postconciliar Church

This paper explores transformations in the understanding of teaching authority and also considers an often neglected group of subjects who have exercised such in the period during and since the Second Vatican Council. In particular, it explores both topics vis-a-vis the role of women in the church, especially their contributions to the church’s exercise of magisterium. The article outlines the need to increase awareness, acknowledgment and appreciation of the contribution of women to the church’s teaching authority and, most importantly of all, to increase further their participation in the same. First, the paper considers (as an important case study), the role played by the few women present in an active capacity at Vatican II. Through posing the rhetorical question, ‘what were they doing there?’, the author argues that these women were teaching with authority, i.e. exercising magisterium. Next, the paper explores some of the confusion and controversies surrounding the notion of what magisterium actually is and who should exercise it, before surveying some further brief examples of how women have exercised magisterium throughout the history of the church. The paper next considers how events in the church have developed from a stance of confrontation toward the more positive steps that have been taken in relation to the role of women in the church under Pope Francis. It concludes with reflections on the future and why attention to aggiornamento for magisterium is essential in order that the church becomes a body of greater and wider co-responsibility, including the indispensable collaboration of women practicing the art of magisterium.
Bullous Pemphigoid with Atypical Skin Lesions and Acute Interstitial Nephritis: A Case Report and Focused Literature Review

BACKGROUND The hallmark of bullous pemphigoid (BP) is widespread tense blisters arising on normal or erythematous skin, often with marked pruritus, the diagnosis of which is confirmed by direct immunofluorescence (DIF). BP is an autoimmune process that can be induced, though rarely, by medications. Drug-induced BP often has atypical clinical presentation, which requires a good understanding of other dermatological conditions with similar presentations, in particular, bullous subtype of erythema multiforme. End organ involvement warrants differentiating it from one of the severe cutaneous adverse reaction (SCAR) syndromes. CASE REPORT A 76-year-old African American male presented with extensive targetoid purplish skin lesions that clinically resembled atypical erythema multiforme, and one tense blister that raised a concern for BP. The patient presented 6 weeks after treatment with cephalexin for a urinary tract infection. Initial workup showed serum eosinophilia, acute kidney injury and eosinophiluria requiring deliberations on SCAR syndromes. A skin biopsy at an intralesional location showed a negative DIF, however, a skin biopsy at a perilesional site showed a positive DIF, confirming the diagnosis of BP. CONCLUSIONS This case demonstrates an atypical presentation of BP induced by drugs. It emphasizes the need for a greater level of awareness of diagnosis and treatment of the various entities that fall under adverse drug reactions in the elderly. It also highlights the need for appropriate choice of skin biopsy techniques (intralesional versus perilesional) to avoid misdiagnosis, as well as lessons on how to approach dermatologic conditions with end organ involvement for hospitalists and other medical professionals who routinely deal with undifferentiated disease conditions.
Reducing off target viral delivery in ovarian cancer gene therapy using a protease-activated AAV2 vector platform.

Abstract Gene therapy is a promising strategy for treating metastatic epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). However, efficient vector targeting to tumors is difficult and off-target effects can be severely detrimental. Most vector targeting approaches rely on surface receptors overexpressed on some subpopulation of cancer cells. Unfortunately, there is no universally expressed cell surface biomarker for tumor cells. As an alternative, we developed an adeno-associated virus (AAV) based “Provector” whose cellular transduction can be activated by extracellular proteases, such as matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) that are overexpressed in the tumor microenvironments of the most aggressive forms of EOC. In a non-tumor bearing mouse model, the Provector demonstrates efficient de-targeting of healthy tissues, especially the liver, where viral delivery is 99% of injected AAV2 has been cleared from the blood by 1 h. Furthermore, mouse serum raised against the Provector is 16-fold less able to neutralize Provector transduction compared to AAV2 serum neutralizing AAV2 transduction (1:200 vs 1:3200 serum dilution, respectively). Thus, the Provector appears to generate less neutralizing antibodies than AAV2. Importantly, serum against AAV2 does not neutralize the Provector as well as AAV2, suggesting that pre-existing antibodies against AAV2 would not negate the clinical application of Provectors. Taken together, we present an EOC gene delivery vector platform based on AAV with decreased off-target delivery without loss of on-target specificity, and greater immunological stealth over the traditional AAV2 gene delivery vector.
Effect of Turbulence Model Uncertainty on Scramjet Isolator Flowfield Analysis

The goal of this work was to quantify the uncertainty in the solution of a scramjet isolator flowfield due to the uncertainty in the closure coefficients of commonly used turbulence models in Reyno...
Understanding the Divergent Logics of Landlords: Circumstantial versus Deliberate Pathways:

AbstractLandlords are important gatekeepers in the rental market, and scholars have studied landlord perceptions across different markets. But differences between landlord logics within a market, w...
Analytic Due Diligence Using an Alpha Cost Index

Effective portfolio managers recognize that not all returns are created equally. Investment strategies can deliver returns that are the result of systematic (market or beta) exposures, nonsystematic (skill or alpha) exposures, and random variation. The relative proportions of alpha, beta, and randomness vary across strategies and even within strategies as they evolve over time. Historically, most investment products have bundled alpha and beta. However, as low-cost, investable proxies for beta grow more pervasive, it is increasingly important for portfolio managers to consider only those actively managed products that are truly delivering incremental alpha. In this article, we introduce a new measure that adjusts product fees to account for the level of alpha delivered—the Alpha Cost Index (ACI). The ACI levels the playing field by penalizing products that charge active management fees but deliver the preponderance of their returns from beta exposures; thus serving as a useful ranking tool for due diligence.
Chapter VIII – Triangular Ducts

Publisher Summary This chapter describes triangular ducts for fluid and mass transfer. The triangular duct geometry is of considerable importance for fluid flow and heat transfer devices. The hydrodynamic entry length solution is available for isosceles triangular ducts with apex angles 2φ = 30, 60, and 90°. The thermal entry length solutions are available for isosceles triangular ducts with 2φ = 60 and 90° for the case of transverse velocity components, v and w, as zero for the simultaneously developing flow. Because of the manufacturing processes employed in a heat exchanger matrix with triangular flow passages, some of the passages will have one, two, or three rounded corners instead of sharp corners. This corner rounding effect has been investigated by Shah for the equilateral triangular duct with fully developed laminar flow, by employing a discrete least squares method.
Analysis on the epidemiological situation of soil-transmitted nematode infections in Liaoning Province from 2006 to 2010

Objective To understand and analyze the epidemiological situation of soil-transmitted nematode infections in Liaoning Province.Methods A city was chosen as monitoring point in every area distributing in the north,middle and south of Liaoning Province.The stool samples of the residents above 3 years old were collected and examined with modified Kato-Katz thick smear “one stool specimen-three slides”,and adhesive cellophane anal swab method was applied for examining the eggs of Enerobius vermicularis in children aged 3-12.Results 6579 persons were investigated from 2006 to 2010,the yearly infection rates were 5.88％,0.67％,0.39％,0 and 0.57％.A declined tendency was showed.The highest infection rate was 1.06％,which appeared in the age group below 10.There were no significant differences between different genders about soil-transmitted nematode infections rates(x2 =2.000,P ＞ 0.05).The age group above 60 had the highest infection rate which was 1.11％,and there were no significant differences between different genders about A.lumbricoides infections rates(x2 =2.000,P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion Liaoning Province was in the low epidemical area of soil-transmitted nematode infections,but high infection rate still existed in the high risk population.It is necessary to continue monitoring in Liaoning Province. Key words: Nematode infection; Soil-transmitted nematode; Monitoring situation; Liaoning Province
When Witches and Wizards Are Narrators: Oral Autobiography, Magical Realism, and Memory

The Western focus on autobiography as individualistic and written literature precludes several oral African versions of the genre. The various African societies that have oral individual and communal narratives where individuals and community members occupy subject positions like the bridal chant, the hunter’s chant, the epic, and the panegyric are not accounted for in the Eurocentric basis of the definition of the autobiographical genre. An oral autobiographical tradition that is least studied and not given adequate attention in the traditional Western definition of the genre is the witches’ and wizards’ tale or confession and that is my focus here. The chapter will discuss autobiography and memory in relation to how witches and wizards remember and narrate their stories of adventures, conquests, failures, and conversion. It will analyze some of the narratives of the witches and wizards to show their stories as autobiographical tales of individuals and part of a community. Along with content analysis of the tales will be their contextual discussion. Also, the paper will discuss magical realism and the narratives, especially how ordinary human beings, the witches and the wizards in this case, acquire supernatural powers and are transformed from ordinary people to dangerous and enigmatic artists and narrators empowered for sinister and propitious activities. The implications of the witches’ and wizards’ narratives for creativity and human development will also be discussed. The oral texts for my analysis are from oral interviews, testimonies, and confessions.
A Hierarchical Model to Enable Plan Reuse and Repair in Assembly Domains

The manufacturing world is moving towards a setup with high mix and medium volume. This requires new production paradigms. The World Robotics Challenge (2018 & 2020) was designed to challenge teams to design systems that are easy to adapt to new tasks and to ensure robust operation in a semi-structured environment. We present a layered strategy to transform missions into tasks and actions and provide a set of strategies to address simple and complex failures. We propose a model for characterizing failures using this model and discuss repairs. Simple failures are by far the most common in our WRC system and we also present how we repaired them.
Timed to save: the added value of accounting for hourly incidence of electricity savings from residential space-conditioning measures

Previous research has recognized that the value of measures that reduce electricity usage depends upon the timing of the savings generated, but the lack of hourly savings shapes has limited the demonstration of this concept. We develop empirical hourly savings shapes for residential space-conditioning measures from nearly 18,000 efficiency projects in California and show how they combine with the diurnal and seasonal variation in electricity system costs. We find that these measures (cooling replacements; windows, doors, and skylights; and other envelope measures) tend to save electricity when system costs are highest and that the hourly savings account for 1.4–1.5 times as much value as non-time-sensitive estimates of efficiency would predict. We present these impact multipliers for each measure to quantify the additional value revealed by the time-sensitive approach. We show that this additional value is similar in an evolving electricity grid with storage, rather than natural gas generation, as the marginal resource.
Distribution of Plasmas in the Magnetosphere

The purpose of this chapter is to review briefly present knowledge on the distribution of plasmas in the magnetosphere and to attempt to find the link between magnetospheric plasmas and auroral particles. The distribution of auroral particles was discussed in the previous chapter. In this chapter, we shall examine, first, plasma characteristics in five domains: the plasma mantle, the polar cusp, the plasma sheet, the Van Allen belt (including the ring current belt) and the plasmasphere. In the second part we examine how plasma particles in different domains contribute to different auroral regions. The last part of this chapter is devoted to a detailed discussion of acceleration processes of auroral particles.
Thermomechanical Characterization of Nickel-Titanium Copper Shape Memory Alloy Films

In an effort to develop a more extensive model for the thermomechanical behavior of shape memory alloy (SMA) films, a novel characterization method has been developed. This automated test has been tailored to characterize films for use in micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) actuators. The shape memory effect in NiTiCu is seen in the solid-state phase transformation from an easily deformable low-temperature state to a 'shape remembering' high-temperature state. The accurate determination of engineering properties for these films necessitates measurements of both stress and strain in microfabricated test structures over the full range of desired deformation. Our various experimental methods (uniaxial tensile tests, bimorph curvature tests and diaphragm bulge tests) provide recoverable stress and strain data and the stress-strain relations for these films. Tests were performed over a range of temperatures by resistive heating or ambient heating. These measurements provide the results necessary for developing active SMA structural film design models.
Do motivations for using Facebook moderate the association between Facebook use and psychological well-being?

Previous investigations of the relationship between Facebook use and psychological well-being have most commonly considered variables relating to the quantity (e.g., time spent online) and underlying motivations (e.g., making new friends) of Facebook consumption. However, previous research has reached contradictory conclusions in that quantity of Facebook use has been linked to both higher and lower levels of psychological well-being. The current study investigated whether these contradictory findings of quantity of Facebook use could be explained by considering users’ motivations for accessing Facebook. We predicted that quantity of use would be positively associated with psychological well-being when users primarily accessed Facebook to maintain existing relationships but negatively associated with psychological well-being when primarily accessed to create new relationships. In a sample of college undergraduates (N = 119), we found that the relationship of quantity of Facebook use on psychological well-being was moderated by the motivation of the user. Quantity of Facebook use was associated with higher levels of psychological well-being among users that accessed Facebook for friendship purposes but was negatively associated with psychological well-being among users that accessed Facebook for connection purposes (e.g., making new friends). We also replicated our results across dimensions of psychological well-being (e.g., anxiety and life satisfaction). The current findings provide initial evidence that quantity and motivations of Facebook use interact with potentially serious implications for psychological well-being and also provide a possible explanation for why quantity of Facebook use can be linked with both positive and negative psychological well-being.
The Irony of the Calculus of Consent: Diaspora for a Budding Research Program

This paper is for presentation at a program on the dismemberment of the economics program at the University of Virginia in the mid-1960s. It is a literary flying buttress to “Virginia Political Economy, Rationally Reconstructed.” Where the earlier paper mostly looks forward from 1963, this paper mostly looks backward. In a “Secret Report” that David Levy and Sandra Peart have discovered, a unique Virginia school of political economy was identified as having formed by 1962. Soon thereafter it experienced a diaspora set in motion by the higher administration of the University of Virginia. With respect to this diaspora, The Calculus of Consent might seem to entail an irony to the extent that a constitutional theory predicated on consensus lacks some of the tools necessary for its own continuation. In other words, and as a piece of revisionist history, the fate of the Charlottesville program might have been different had The Calculus of Consent incorporated into its constitutional framework themes from Carl Schmitt’s treatment of the political.
Inversion of flow measurements for stress and rheological parameters in a valley glacier

Methods are developed for determining the distributions of stress and effective viscosity in a glacier, under the assumptions: the ice is quasi-viscous, the flow is time independent, and acceleration forces are negligible. Measurements of the three-dimensional distribution of velocity are needed for their application. The differential equations of mechanical equilibrium, expressed in terms of viscosity, strain-rate components, mean stress, and their gradients, are viewed as equations to be solved for viscosity and mean stress subject to boundary conditions at the free upper surface. For certain rectilinear flow patterns, unique distributions of stress and effective viscosity can always be derived. For more complicated flow this is not necessarily so. However, it is still possible to choose the best values of rheological parameters in any trial flow law based on the requirement that the residuals to the equations of equilibrium be minimized in a mean-square sense. The techniques are applied to measurements of internal deformation made in nine bore holes on the Athabasca Glacier. At the center line the magnitude of the surface-parallel shear stress increases with depth more slowly than would be expected from a standard shape factor correction or the theoretical distribution of Nye. Correspondingly the lateral distribution of lateral shear stress shows the opposite relationships. In the lower one- to two-thirds of the depth corresponding to a range in effective stress from about 0.5 to 1.2 bars, the gross rheology of the ice is not distinguishably different from the experimentally determined flow law of Glen (n = 4.2, T = 0.02° C) as generalized by Nye. The results do not support the conclusion that the effective viscosity is higher than would be expected from Glen’s experiments as indicated by the more limited measurements of Paterson and Savage. Power-law parameters derived for the different bore holes considered separately show a spread, which suggests some rheological inhomogeneity. However, no definite conclusions can be drawn, because of direct measurement errors at the bore holes and less definable uncertainty in the interpolated distribution of velocity between the holes. The upper one- to two-thirds of the glacier constitutes an anomalous zone in which there is either a strong effect from a complex distribution of stress arising from longitudinal stress gradients or more complicated rheology than in a homogeneous power-law material.
Prospects for Space Telescope in the Search for Other Planetary Systems

The Hubble Space Telescope (ST) will be launched with five dedicated scientific instruments and a capability to do astrometric measurements with the fine guidance sensors. Four of these -- the Faint Object Camera, the Wide Field Camera, the Fine Guidance Sensors and the High Speed Photometer -- can be used in the search for extrasolar planetary systems. The Faint Object Camera will be able to directly detect planets around a few of the nearby bright stars. The Wide Field Camera and the Fine Guidance Sensors can be used astrometrically, both with an accuracy of about 2 mas per observation. The High Speed Photometer possibly can detect planets during occultation of stars by the moon and minor planets. The ST is expected to be launched in mid-1986 and these observations are the among the first planned with the instruments.
Epigenetic impact of curcumin-primed exosomes in amelioration of blood-brain barrier dysfunction (1120.9)

Exosomes are nano-units (<200nm), released from diverse cell types in extracellular body fluids. Since exosomes carry biological information from their cells of origin, the idea is to prepare improved molecular conservatory for therapeutics by priming the cells to release improved cellular contents through exosomes. Curcumin provides a promising treatment for cerebral diseases and therefore, the aim of the study is to establish that mouse brain endothelial cells when primed with curcumin (7.5µM), release alleviated exosomal population to recover blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability. Homocysteine-treated endothelial cells were used as a model of BBB disruption and curcumin-primed (CU-primed) exosomes were utilized to check BBB disruption along with associated epigenetic measurements. We determined that CU-primed exosomes reprogrammed endothelial cells, in part, by alleviating epigenetic alterations and improving junction proteins that ameliorate vascular permeability. These results pave the way for the n...
Cauchy machine for blind inversion in linear space-variant imaging

We revisited the Cauchy machine for solving blind space-variant imaging problem on the pixel-by-pixel basis. Under-determinacy of the pixel by pixel blind matrix inversion was accomplished non-statistically by a dynamic balance by minimizing the thermodynamics free energy H = U-T/sub 0/S where U is estimation error energy, T/sub 0/ is temperature and S is the entropy. Solution was found through algorithm that computes the unknown source vector and unknown mixing matrix using Cauchy machine to find the global minimum of H for each pixel. We demonstrated the algorithm capability to perfectly recover images from the noise free linear mixture of images. Capability of the Cauchy machine to find the global minimum of the 'golf hole' type of landscape has been demonstrated in higher dimensions with a less computation complexity than an exhaustive search algorithm.
Phencyclidine-like discriminative stimulus effects of the stereoisomers of alpha- and beta-cyclazocine in rats.

Stereoisomers of alpha- and beta-cyclazocine were tested in rats trained to discriminate phencyclidine (PCP; 3.0 mg/kg i.p.) from saline in a two-lever, food-reinforced, drug-discrimination procedure. (+)-Alpha-cyclazocine and both (+)- and (-)-beta-cyclazocine substituted for PCP. Neither (+/-) nor (-)-alpha-cyclazocine substituted for PCP, although both compounds had potent, response-rate decreasing effects. When these two drugs were tested in combination with naltrexone, rate-suppressing effects were somewhat attenuated and both then resulted in substantial PCP-lever responding. Thus, PCP-like effects in the alpha series can be masked by opiate effects. (-)-Beta-cyclazocine was the most potent compound for mimicking the PCP discriminative stimulus, being 4 to 5 times more potent than PCP itself. The (+)-isomers in both the alpha and beta series were equipotent and over 10 times less potent than PCP. Thus, both stereoisomers of beta-cyclazocine have PCP-like discriminative stimulus properties and the (-)-isomer, in particular, is a very potent, selective, PCP-like compound. The stereoisomers of beta-cyclazocine have over a 50-fold potency difference for PCP-like effects, evidencing greater stereoselectivity for these actions than is commonly obtained with 6,7-benzomorphans. The stereoisomers of beta-cyclazocine should prove to be useful tools for studying the PCP/sigma-like effects of opioids.
Novel étalon fringe rejection technique for laser absorption spectroscopy

When used for trace-gas detection, laser absorption spectroscopy is usually limited by false absorption signals that are traceable to interferometric effects induced by windows and other pairs of optical surfaces. Here we introduce a new technique that can selectively reject these etalon fringes while preserving the true absorption signal over a wide range of etalon free spectral range to absorption linewidth ratios. We present a theoretical analysis and experimental verification by using a tunable lead salt diode laser.
Effects of modified alternate-day fasting regimens on adipocyte size, triglyceride metabolism, and plasma adiponectin levels in mice

Calorie restriction (CR) affects adipocyte function and reduces body weight. However, the effects of alternate-day fasting (ADF) on adipose biology remain unclear. This study examined the effects of ADF and modified ADF regimens on adipocyte size, triglyceride (TG) metabolism, and adiponectin levels in relation to changes in body weight and adipose mass. Twenty-four male C57BL/6J mice were randomized for 4 weeks among 1) ADF-25% (25% CR on fast day, ad libitum on alternate day), 2) ADF-50% (50% CR on fast day), 3) ADF-100% (100% CR on fast day), and 4) control (ad libitum). The body weight of ADF-100% mice was lower than that of the other groups (P < 0.005) after treatment. Adipose tissue weights did not change. Inguinal and epididymal fat cells were 35-50% smaller (P < 0.01) than those of controls in ADF-50% and ADF-100% animals after treatment. Net lipolysis was augmented (P < 0.05) in ADF-100% mice, and the contribution from glyceroneogenesis to alpha-glycerol phosphate increased in ADF-50% and ADF-100% mice, whereas fractional and absolute de novo lipogenesis also increased in ADF-50% and ADF-100% animals, consistent with an alternating feast-fast milieu. Plasma adiponectin levels were not affected. In summary, modified ADF (ADF-50%) and complete ADF (ADF-100%) regimens modulate adipocyte function, despite there being no change in body weight or adipose tissue weight in the former group.
Observable implications of geometrical and dynamical aspects of freeze-out in heavy ion collisions

Using an analytical parametrization of hadronic freeze-out in relativistic heavy ion collisions, we present a detailed study of the connections between features of the freeze-out configuration and physical observables. We focus especially on anisotropic freeze-out configurations (expected in general for collisions at finite impact parameter), azimuthally sensitive Hanburry-Brown-Twiss interferometry, and final-state interactions between nonidentical particles. Model calculations are compared with data taken in the first year of running at RHIC; while not perfect, good agreement is found, raising the hope that a consistent understanding of the full freeze-out scenario at RHIC is possible, an important first step towards understanding the physics of the system prior to freeze-out.
Neighborhood matters: Patterns and controls on wood distribution in old-growth forest streams of the Colorado Front Range, USA

Abstract We surveyed wood characteristics along four headwater channel segments of the Colorado Front Range with drainage areas of 8–82 km2. Stream lengths surveyed range from 3025 to 8980 m and together include a total of 15,706 pieces of wood. Time since last disturbance in the form of a stand-killing fire varied from 31 to > 500 years. Individual pieces of wood were highly aggregated at length scales of 1 to 150 m. Trends among jams were more weakly developed, but jams tended to be more segregated at lengths 300 m, with jams along individual channels being aggregated, segregated, or random. Multiple linear regressions failed to produce highly predictive models to explain the response variables of wood load, piece dimensions, or characteristics of jams other than jam volume (which correlated with drainage area and wood load); but examination of downstream patterns suggests that local valley and channel geometry (valley-bottom width, gradient, and sequence of longitudinal channel changes) exert a stronger influence on patterns of wood distribution than either time since last forest disturbance or progressive downstream trends associated with increasing drainage area. The longitudinal sequences of wood recruitment sources, forest stand age, and channel geometry together exert an important control on reach-scale wood load and aggregation. Wood loads in streams draining old-growth (> 250 years) forests of the Colorado Front Range are low compared to old-growth sites in other regions of the world, which we interpret to reflect decreased retention of wood recruited to the streams.
Children's use of sample size and variability to make social inferences

Learning to generalize from instances is an important part of the development of inductive reasoning skills. This study examined developmental trends in elementary school children's use of sample size and variability to make inferences about commonly encountered biological and behavioral characteristics. Children in grades 1, 3, and 5, and college students made population estimates based on samples in which both sample size and variability were manipulated. Subjects of all ages used sample size and variability to make their population estimates. Even the youngest children gave significantly lower population estimates for low-variability than for high-variability samples, and for smaller (one or three) than for larger (30) samples. Although the use of sample size depended on variability, this relationship did not change by age group. Variability and domain, however, each independently interacted with age group. Most of the differences in population estimates appeared to be due to sample variability rather than to sample size.
The υ Andromedae System: Models and Stability

Radial velocity observations of the F8 V star nu Andromedae taken at Lick and at Whipple Observatories have revealed evidence of three periodicities in the line-of-sight velocity of the star. These periodicities have been interpreted as evidence for at least three low-mass companions (LMCs) revolving around nu Andromedae. The mass and orbital parameters inferred for these companions raise questions about the dynamical stability of the system. We report here results from our independent analysis of the published radial velocity data, as well as new unpublished data taken at Lick Observatory. Our results confirm the finding of three periods in the data. Our best fits to the data, on the assumption that these periods arise from the gravitational perturbations of companions in Keplerian orbits, are also generally in agreement but with some differences from the earlier findings. We find that the available data do not constrain well the orbital eccentricity of the middle companion in a three-companion model of the data. We also find that in order for our best-fit model to the Lick data to be dynamically stable over the lifetime of the star (approximately 2 billion years), the system must have a mean inclination to the plane of the sky greater than 13 deg. The corresponding minimum inclination for the best fit to the Whipple data set is 19 deg. These values imply that the maximum mass for the outer companion can be no greater than about 20 Jupiter masses. Our analysis of the stability of the putative systems also places constraints on the relative inclinations of the orbital planes of the companions. We comment on global versus local (i.e., method of steepest descent) means of finding best-fit orbits from radial velocity data sets.
Second-line management of metastatic colorectal cancer.

Abstract The treatment of colorectal cancer has increased in complexity in recent years, with patients now receiving many lines of treatment. Standard first-line therapy has evolved with biologic agents used frequently in first-line settings. However, data are lacking to guide treatment decisions upon progression. Now that more is known about the toxicities of commonly used agents, such as irinotecan and oxaliplatin, stop-and-go strategies have been explored to decrease toxicities. The importance of resecting disease and decreasing tumor burden is recognized and there is some ability to get to resection even after second-line therapy. Local therapies, such as hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy, have allowed a select group of patients to be approached with curative intent. This article reviews treatment options after progression on irinotecan-or oxaliplatin-based first-line therapy and highlights some of the difficulties encountered when interpreting data.
Starting technologically innovative ventures: reasons, human capital, and gender

Purpose – Given the importance of technology in competitive advantage, this paper seeks to better understand the factors associated with entrepreneurs' decision to incorporate innovative technologies in new ventures. It aims to explore three questions: “Are the reasons given for starting technologically innovative new ventures (TINVs) different from those given for starting ventures based on traditional technologies?”; “What is the role of human capital in the TINV startup decision?”; and “Do gender differences exist in the reasons and human capital associated with starting a TINV?”.Design/methodology/approach – Data were obtained from the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics II (PSED II), which is a national database of individuals in various stages of starting a business. The overall sample consisted of 950 individuals. Non‐parametric methods and logistic regressions were used to test hypotheses.Findings – Results show that men start the TINV for self‐realization reasons, and that wealth seeking and ...
Image segmentation in digital mammography: comparison of local thresholding and region growing algorithms.

Abstract Local thresholding and region-growing algorithms are developed and applied to digitized mammograms to quantify the parenchymal densities. The algorithms are first evaluated and optimized on phantom images reflecting varying image contrast, X-ray exposure conditions, and time-related changes. The difference between the segmentation results of the two techniques is less than 6% on the phantom images and 11% on the mammograms. The agreement between the computerized procedures and a manual one is in the range of 74–98%, depending on the breast parenchymal pattern and segmentation algorithm. The results show that computerized parenchymal classification of digitized mammograms is possible and independent of exposure.
Atrial natriuretic peptide and dopamine in established acute renal failure in the rat.

Atrial natriuretic peptide and dopamine in established acute renal failure in the rat. Recent studies have shown that atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) alone or combined with dopamine (D) markedly improved renal function when given immediately after an ischemic insult. However, the potential beneficial effect of ANP or ANP-D in the established phase of acute renal failure (ARF) and the duration of this effect have not been examined. In the present study atriopeptin III (APIII) and D, sufficient to maintain mean arterial pressure between 100 and 110mm Hg, or normal saline were given i.v. for four hours to awake Munich-Wistar rats(N = 6 each group) two days after ARF induction with intrarenal norepinephrine (NE). Renal function and morphology were then examined two days after treatment (Day 4). Serum creatinine (S Cr ) was similarly increased in both groups at the time of APIII-D or saline infusion (Day 2). By Day 4S Cr had decreased to the pre-ARF induction level in APIII-D-treated rats(P
Amenorrhea and “man hands”

A 36-year-old multiparous woman presented with amenorrhea and hyperhidrosis of 6 months' duration. Physical examination revealed large, stubby fingers and toes with soft tissue thickening. Serum growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels were elevated and a pituitary macroadenoma was found on computerized tomography (CT).
Preserving Residual Renal Function in Dialysis: What We Know

Residual renal function confers a survival benefit among dialysis patients thought to be related to greater volume removal and solute clearance. Whether the presence of residual renal function is protective or merely a marker for better health is not clear. The basic mechanisms governing the decline or persistence of residual renal function are poorly understood and few studies have examined the role of medical therapy in its preservation. Dialysis modality, inflammatory processes often associated with comorbid diseases (including diabetes mellitus and obesity), volume dysregulation, and vitamin D deficiency are predictive of residual renal function decline. We review potential mechanisms for preservation of remaining glomerular filtration rate among chronic dialysis patients.
Sexual dimorphism in the aging kidney: Effects on injury and nitric oxide system.

Sexual dimorphism in the aging kidney: Effects on injury and nitric oxide system. Background Male gender confers enhanced susceptibility to development of age-dependent kidney damage. In other models of progressive renal disease, development of injury is linked to declines in renal nitric oxide synthase (NOS) capacity. Methods We investigated the in vitro characteristics of the renal NOS system in young (3 to 5 months), middle-aged (11 to 13 months) and old (18 to 22 months) male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. Results NOS activity (pmol [ 3 H]-arginine converted to [ 3 H]-citrulline/mg protein/minute) is reduced in the soluble fraction of renal cortex from old versus young males but not females. In contrast, NOS activity in the soluble fraction of cerebellum is not altered by age or gender. The abundance of endothelial NOS (eNOS) and neuronal (nNOS) is reduced in renal cortex of old versus young males but is unchanged in female cortex. In renal medulla, eNOS protein is reduced with age in both males and females. We found no difference in abundance of either eNOS or nNOS protein in the cortex of young male and female rats. The incidence and severity of glomerular damage increases markedly with age in the male and only slightly in the female. Conclusion These findings indicate that a relative reduction occurs in renal NOS in the male kidney with advancing age, whereas NOS protein and activity is maintained during aging in females. This, together with the marked age-dependent kidney damage seen in the male, suggests that the renal NO deficiency in the aging male rat may contribute to the age-dependent kidney damage.
Early Identification of Shock in Critically Ill Patients

Emergency providers must be experts in the resuscitation and stabilization of critically ill patients, and the rapid recognition of shock is crucial to allow aggressive targeted intervention and reduce morbidity and mortality. This article reviews the physiologic definition of shock, the importance of early intervention, and the clinical and diagnostic signs that emergency department providers can use to identify patients in shock.