cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of high-intensity interval training on muscle remodeling in rheumatoid arthritis compared to prediabetes.

Sarcopenic obesity, associated with greater risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), may be related to dysregulated muscle remodeling. To determine whether exercise training could improve remodeling, we measured changes in inter-relationships of plasma galectin-3, skeletal muscle cytokines, and muscle myostatin in patients with RA and prediabetes before and after a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) program. Previously sedentary persons with either RA (n = 12) or prediabetes (n = 9) completed a 10-week supervised HIIT program. At baseline and after training, participants underwent body composition (Bod Pod®) and cardiopulmonary exercise testing, plasma collection, and vastus lateralis biopsies. Plasma galectin-3, muscle cytokines, muscle interleukin-1 beta (mIL-1β), mIL-6, mIL-8, muscle tumor necrosis factor-alpha (mTNF-α), mIL-10, and muscle myostatin were measured via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. An independent cohort of patients with RA (n = 47) and age-, gender-, and body mass index (BMI)-matched non-RA controls (n = 23) were used for additional analyses of galectin-3 inter-relationships. Exercise training did not reduce mean concentration of galectin-3, muscle cytokines, or muscle myostatin in persons with either RA or prediabetes. However, training-induced alterations varied among individuals and were associated with cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition changes. Improved cardiorespiratory fitness (increased absolute peak maximal oxygen consumption, or VO2) correlated with reductions in galectin-3 (r = −0.57, P = 0.05 in RA; r = −0.48, P = 0.23 in prediabetes). Training-induced improvements in body composition were related to reductions in muscle IL-6 and TNF-α (r < −0.60 and P <0.05 for all). However, the association between increased lean mass and decreased muscle IL-6 association was stronger in prediabetes compared with RA (Fisher r-to-z P = 0.0004); in prediabetes but not RA, lean mass increases occurred in conjunction with reductions in muscle myostatin (r = −0.92; P <0.05; Fisher r-to-z P = 0.026). Subjects who received TNF inhibitors (n = 4) or hydroxychloroquine (n = 4) did not improve body composition with exercise training. Exercise responses in muscle myostatin, cytokines, and body composition were significantly greater in prediabetes than in RA, consistent with impaired muscle remodeling in RA. To maximize physiologic improvements with exercise training in RA, a better understanding is needed of skeletal muscle and physiologic responses to exercise training and their modulation by RA disease–specific features or pharmacologic agents or both. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02528344 . Registered on August 19, 2015.
What Do Monetary Contractions Do? Evidence From Large, Unanticipated Tightenings

As the “Volcker shock” is believed to have generated useful information on the effects of monetary policy, this paper develops a simple procedure to identify other unanticipated monetary contractions. The approach is applied to a panel data set spanning 162 countries (over the period 1970-2017), in which it identifies 147 large monetary contractions. The procedure selects episodes where a protracted period of loose monetary policy was suddenly followed by sizeable nominal interest rate increases. Focusing on contractions of significant size increases the signal-to-noise ratio, while they are unlikely to be accompanied by confounding “information effects” (markets interpreting a rate hike as the Central Bank being optimistic about the real side of the economy). A subsequent panel VAR analysis suggests that a 100-basis point rate hike reduces real GDP by 0.5 percent. This reduction in output seems to be persistent, pointing to a certain degree of hysteresis. The price level falls by 1.5 percent, indicating that the medium-/long-run impact of contractionary monetary shocks is not characterized by a neo-Fisherian response. Advanced economies appear to display more price stickiness than emerging/developing countries, as the former combine a more muted price response with a larger effect on output.
Fungal Pigments, Wood Coloring Technology and Their Applications in the Play The Blue Forest

Wood stained with fungal pigments has a long history in fine art, especially wood naturally stained blue-green by fungi from the genus Chlorociboria. Recent innovations have allowed for controlled ...
Long-term sediment accretion and nutrient deposition in a tidal marsh of the Delaware Bay

Long-term sediment accretion and nutrient concentrations were investigated in tidal marsh sediments of the Murderkill River, Delaware. Radionuclides (210Pb and 137Cs), stable isotopes (13C and 15N), organic matter concentrations and nutrient concentrations were measured. Tidal marsh sediment accumulation rates ranged from 0.10 to 0.20 g cm-2 yr-1, and accretion rates ranged from 0.31 to 0.74 cm yr-1. The Carbon (C) to nitrogen (N) ratio (∼24) was higher in the downcore of upstream sites, and a similar C/N ratio was identified in surface sediment cores at the downstream sites. The sediment N concentration in the surface sediments was highest at the upstream sites (mostly ≥1% of N) and decreased downstream. Total nitrogen concentrations were highest from 1910 to 1920 (∼1.5% N), decreased to approximately 0.6% N by 1940, and then remained constant to present. The dominance of the C4 plant Spartina (cordgrass) over C3 plants after the 1940s may be due to an upward movement of saline water associated with hydrologic changes and a rise in relative sea level. Surface sediments in all of the cores have more total phosphorus (TP) than below ground. The downstream site closest to the estuary had an abrupt increase in surface TP (i.e., 0–10 cm). Sediment TP increased slightly from 2003 to present time (i.e., from 0.07 to 0.11% P). Sediment accumulation and accretion rates in the Murderkill River marshes are similar to the accretion rates determined by previous studies in the region.
Young eosinophils rejuvenate ageing adipose tissues

The adipose tissue harbours multiple immune-cell types whose populations are known to be altered in disease conditions. A new study by Brigger et al. shows that restocking fat tissues of old mice with eosinophils prevents age-related declines in physical and immunological functions.
A Head Start: CAR-T Cell Therapy for Primary Malignant Brain Tumors

Oncology is in the midst of a therapeutic renaissance. The realization of immunotherapy as an efficacious and expanding treatment option has empowered physicians and patients alike. However, despite these remarkable advances, we have only just broached the potential immunotherapy has to offer and have yet to successfully expand these novel modalities to the field of neuro-oncology. In recent years, exciting results in preclinical studies of immune adjuvants, oncolytic viruses, or cell therapy have been met with only fleeting signs of response when taken to early phase trials. Although many have speculated why these innovative approaches result in impaired outcomes, we are left empty-handed in a field plagued by a drought of new therapies. Herein, we will review the recent advances across cellular therapy for primary malignant brain tumors, an approach that lends itself to overcoming the inherent resistance mechanisms which have impeded the success of prior treatment attempts.
Metamaterials and Their Parameters

Physicists and engineers have for a long time been interested in designing artificial periodic structures with unusual properties, possibly unattainable in natural materials. This chapter focuses on electromagnetic properties of periodic structures such as photonic crystals (PhCs) and metamaterials (MMs), but some references on acoustic and (to a lesser extent) elastic properties are included.
Enabling Ga2O3’s neutron detection capability with boron doping and conversion layer

There is a growing necessity to develop revolutionary neutron detectors for nuclear energy, nuclear physics, medical physics, astrophysics, biological imaging, nonproliferation, and national security. The often-used Helium-3 (He-3) neutron detector is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain due to He-3 shortages. As an emerging oxide semiconductor material, Ga2O3 exhibits excellent physical properties. These physical merits enable Ga2O3’s potential as a high-performance semiconductor neutron detector for extreme condition applications. Here, two approaches are explored, i.e., applying an exterior conversion layer of boron-10 (B-10) on Ga2O3 and directly doping B-10 into Ga2O3 to demonstrate Ga2O3’s capability for neutron detection. Using Monte Carlo simulation, we show the distinct difference in neutron detection efficiency of Ga2O3 when applying direct doping of B-10 into Ga2O3 vs applying a uniform B-10 conversion layer on top of Ga2O3. Our results exhibit that the theoretically predicted maximum doping level of B-10 in Ga2O3 does not lead to the same detection efficiency as that of a simple B-10 conversion layer when detecting 480 keV gammas. Except for the most thermalized neutrons at 0.01 eV, direct doping simulations are not able to achieve comparable results to that of the conversion layer method.
An Evaluation of AR-Assisted Navigation for Search and Rescue in Underground Spaces

In this study, we evaluated the performance of AR-assisted navigation in a real underground mine with good and limited illumination conditions as well as without the illumination considering possible search and rescue conditions. For this purpose, we utilized the Lumin SDK’s embedded spatial mapping algorithm for mapping and navigating. We used the spatial mapping algorithm to create the mesh model of the escape route and to render it with the user input into the Magic Leap One. Then we compared the spatial mapping algorithm in three different scenarios for the evacuation of an underground mine in an emergency situation. The escape route has two junctions and 30 meters (100 feet). The baseline scenarios are (i) evacuation of the mine in a fully illuminated condition, (ii) evacuation with the headlamp and (iii) without any illumination. In the first scenario (fully illuminated route with the rendered meshes) the evacuation took 40 seconds. In the second scenario (illumination with the headlamp), the evacuation took 44 seconds. For the last scenario (no light source and hence in total darkness) the evacuation took 54 seconds. We found that AR-assisted navigation is effective for supporting search and rescue efforts in high attrition conditions of underground space.
A Simple Measure to Study Multinational Income Inequality

Using the Big Mac Index, we offer a simple measure to study the real income inequali-ty. We provide a multidimensional real income inequality analysis by exploring the Coefficient of Variation and the Big Mac Affordability of households across all in-come deciles of 28 countries for years 2000 to 2013. We look more into a few of the most interesting countries in our analysis in order to have explanations for the wide range of income inequality we observe. We compare Denmark and Mexico as repre-sentatives of the “more equal” and “less equal” countries in our analysis, and we find a visible difference in the share of each decile to the top decile of income between the two countries. However, we observe that, although a more equal country, Denmark has been experiencing a rise in income inequality while a less equal country (Mexico) has been experiencing a reduction in income inequality. We also focus on the United States and study how it compares to Russia, a country that shows a different direction of income inequality compared to the U.S.A. We find that while the wage income inequality in Russia has been correlated inversely with its growth, in the U.S.A., the overall growth and wage income inequality have been positively correlated.
Children and television: Fifty years of research

Contents: J. Bryant, Series Foreword. L.N. Morrisett, Foreword. N. Pecora, J.P. Murray, E. Wartella, Preface. N. Pecora, Introduction. N. Pecora, The Changing Nature of Children's Television: Fifty Years of Research. A.C. Huston, D.S. Bickham, J.H. Lee, J.C. Wright, From Attention to Comprehension: How Children Watch and Learn From Television. M.E. Schmidt, D.R. Anderson, The Impact of Television on Cognitive Development and Educational Achievement. M.E. Schmidt, D.R. Anderson, The Impact of Television on Cognitive Development and Educational Achievement. G.L. Berry, Television, Social Rules, and Marginality: Portrayals of the Past and Images for the Future. M. Rich, Is Television Healthy? The Medical Perspective. N.A. Jennings, E.A. Wartella, Advertising and Consumer Development. J.P. Murray, TV Violence: Research and Controversy. E.P. Lorch, Health, Drugs, and Values. Bibliography.
Saturation-based symbolic reachability analysis using conjunctive and disjunctive partitioning

We propose a new saturation-based symbolic state-space generation algorithm for finite discrete-state systems. Based on the structure of the high-level model specification, we first disjunctively partition the transition relation of the system, then conjunctively partition each disjunct. Our new encoding recognizes identity transformations of state variables and exploits event locality, enabling us to apply a recursive fixed-point image computation strategy completely different from the standard breadth-first approach employing a global fix-point image computation. Compared to breadth-first symbolic methods, saturation has already been empirically shown to be several orders more efficient in terms of runtime and peak memory requirements for asynchronous concurrent systems. With the new partitioning, the saturation algorithm can now be applied to completely general asynchronous systems, while requiring similar or better run-times and peak memory than previous saturation algorithms.
ActiveSpaces on the grid: The construction of advanced visualization and interaction environments

The Futures Lab group at Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago are designing, building, and evaluating a new type of interactive computing environment that couples in a deep way the concepts of direct manipulation found in virtual reality with the richness and variety of interactive devices found in ubiquitous computing. This environment provides the interactivity and collaboration support of teleimmersive environments with the flexibility and availability of desktop collaboration tools. We call these environments ActiveSpaces. An ActiveSpace is a physical domain that has been augmented with multiscale multi-screen displays, environment-specific and device-specific sensors, body and object trackers, human-input and instrument-input interfaces, streaming audio and video capture devices, and force feedback devices—and has then been connected to other such spaces via the Grid.
Original Sin and Judicial Independence

The independence of the judiciary is an enduring and defining objective of the legal profession. Law depends on judges to observe and enforce it. To secure such virtuous judges, they must be protected from retaliation by those who disapprove their decisions and prevented from receiving rewards from those who benefit by them. Those having the greatest stake in shielding judges from intimidation or reward are the profession that shares their dependence on public acceptance and respect. And that task of protecting judicial independence stands today at the very top of the agenda of the American legal profession.
Is Cybercrime one of the weakest links in Electronic Government

This paper provides an insight to the increasing problem of cybercrime in the context of electronic government. It takes examples from the UK government to argue that it is no longer possible to just rely on technical controls while securing electronic government transactions. Reports and studies reflect that illicit acts such as cybercrime are predominantly the result of not only disregard for basic information security and but also lack of awareness about the importance of social issues associated with information technology. Consequently, focusing on the technical controls provides only a partial solution while managing cybercrime particularly in electronic government context.Â
Assessing citizen science data quality: an invasive species case study

An increase in the number of citizen science programs has prompted an examination of their ability to provide data of sufficient quality. We tested the ability of volunteers relative to professionals in identifying invasive plant species, mapping their distributions, and estimating their abundance within plots. We generally found that volunteers perform almost as well as professionals in some areas, but that we should be cautious about data quality in both groups. We analyzed predictors of volunteer success (age, education, experience, science literacy, attitudes) in training-related skills, but these proved to be poor predictors of performance and could not be used as effective eligibility criteria. However, volunteer success with species identification increased with their self-identified comfort level. Based on our case study results, we offer lessons learned and their application to other programs and provide recommendations for future research in this area.
Application of viscous and inviscid computation methods for rocket turbopump systems

This paper examines current research efforts underway at Lewis Research Center which have focused on improving the structural durability of the SSME turbodrive system through more fully examining the aerothermodynamics of the flow system. This objective was achieved by developing three-dimensional viscous and inviscid computer codes to predict the pressure and temperature distributions in the engine flow passages, particularly within the SSME turbines and turnaround ducts.
Microarchitecture of Neocortical Columns

Publisher Summary The neocortical system, with its exquisite variety of function, is built on a series of column-like structures that aggregate to form slabs and pinwheel patterns. The basic unit of the column is a vertical chain of neurons where later stages of the chain reconnect with earlier stages to form a series of recurrent circuits. A simple electrical circuit analogy is presented to represent the recurrent chain and show how stability in the circuit can be achieved through the known biophysical mechanisms of the neuron and synapses. The possible role of recurrent excitation and inhibition is then explored in the context of extracting a signal embedded in noise. An example demonstrates how the recurrent circuits of the neocortex, with neurons connecting on a nearest neighbor basis, provide a means of representing the signal in a relatively noise-free neural code and of allowing the restored signal to scale with the magnitude of the input from the periphery. The projections to other cortical and subcortical regions were provided by neurons in different layers.
Aiming for zero: what makes nations adopt carbon neutral pledges?

Amid widespread inaction in the face of the looming threat of climate change, the leaders of nine nation-states have opted for a bold, seemingly anomalous, course of action by making national carbon neutrality pledges. Because prior research has focused on why states fail to curb emissions, there is a paucity of research on why some states take a different path by committing to drastic emission reductions. This research aims to help fill that gap. First, a content analysis of 252 newspaper articles reveals that New Zealand made the first pledge and eight other states have followed. Second, fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis is used to compare political and social conditions in states with carbon neutral pledges to conditions in a randomly selected group of states without such pledges. Pledge states, compared to non-pledge states, have better governance scores on world indices, an abundant presence of global environmental NGOs, and smaller populations. Pledge states also have lower levels of income...
Tradition Through Modernity: Postmodernism and the Nation-State in Folklore Scholarship

Reviewed Medium: book Authors: Pertti Anttonen Year: 2005 Pages: 215 Publisher: Finnish Literature Society ISBN: 951-746-665-X Prices: $28.00
Safe and efficient isolation of a common inferior pulmonary vein aided by recent advancements in electroanatomical mapping.

An accurate representation of a common inferior pulmonary vein (CIPV) during three-dimensional mapping is difficult, which may lead to concerns regarding the safety of ablation. A preablation computed tomography scan revealed a CIPV with a large common ostium in close proximity to the esophagus. A detailed representation of the CIPV was possible using the new CARTO 3TM (Biosense Webster Inc., Diamond Bar, CA, USA). This allowed for safe and efficient en bloc isolation of the CIPV with no applications required near the esophagus. (PACE 2012; 35:e309–e311)
Modeling of Multiscale Heat Transfer Systems Using Volume Averaging Theory

Abstract This chapter examines application of volume averaging theory for flow and convective heat transfer in multiscale engineered structures. The volume-averaged approach is shown to be an upscaling procedure analogous to other homogenization techniques that are commonly used in transport phenomena, and is applied to the governing equations for laminar and turbulent heat transfer and fluid flow. In the homogenization process information about the underlying fields is lost, which leads to the need to relate these effects on the averaged equations through a closure procedure. The definition of these parameters is discussed in detail, and how they can be obtained from available data or numerical studies. The advantages of the homogenization procedure are shown by applying it to two common heat transfer devices: a heat sink and a heat exchanger. It is found that system performance parameters predicted using the homogenized model are within 5–6% of experimental data, and efficient numerical solution of these equations leads to computational times that are three or four orders of magnitudes lower than those required by direct numerical simulations. The computational savings are exploited by coupling the solution procedure to population-based optimization algorithms, which are used to find an optimum configuration. The result of this coupling is a heat sink with a thermal resistance of 0.058 °C/W, and a heat exchanger with 96% effectiveness.
Impact of channel geometry on two-phase flow in fuel cell microchannels

An important function of the gas delivery channels in PEM fuel cells is the evacuation of water at the cathode. The resulting two-phase flow impedes reactant transport and causes parasitic losses. There is a need for research on two-phase flow in channels in which the phase fraction varies along the flow direction as in operating fuel cells. This work studies two-phase flow in 60 cm long channels with distributed water injection through a porous GDL wall to examine the physics of flows relevant to fuel cells. Flow regime maps based on local gas and liquid flow rates are constructed for experimental conditions corresponding to current densities between 0.5 and 2 A cm −2 and stoichiometric coefficients from 1 to 4. Flow structures transition along the length of the channel. Stratified flow occurs at high liquid flow rates, while intermittent slug flow occurs at low liquid flow rates. The prevalence of stratified flow in these serpentine channels is discussed in relation to water removal mechanisms in the cathode channels of PEM fuel cells. Corners facilitate formation of liquid films in the channel, but may reduce the water-evacuation
Efficient gradualism in intertemporal portfolios

Abstract This paper examines intertemporal portfolio plans under autocorrelation in asset returns, and considers whether these plans conform to the common advice that risky assets be bought gradually and then held in decreasing amounts as the investment horizon approaches. Given elliptical returns, optimal portfolio plans with precommitment must be mean–variance efficient. Then, for ARMA (1, 1) parameterizations with negative autocorrelation, the age effect (gradual diminishing of risky holdings as the horizon approaches) is confirmed, as is dollar-cost averaging (gradual entry into the risky asset) for sufficiently distant horizons. For a numerically analyzed alternative bivariate returns process, only the age effect is confirmed.
Long-Term Outcome of Pediatric Patients with Severe Aplastic Anemia Treated with Antithymocyte Globulin and Cyclosporine

Objective To determine the long-term outcomes in children with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) treated with antithymocyte globulin (ATG) and cyclosporine (CsA) through a retrospective analysis of the pediatric patients treated at our institution in all protocols that included horse ATG (h-ATG) and CsA. Study design Between 1989 and 2006, a total of 406 patients, 20% of whom were children under age 18 years, received an initial course of immunosuppressive therapy (IST) at our institution. Here we report the outcome of 77 children who were treated with an h-ATG plus CsA–based regimen during this period. Results The overall response rate at 6 months was 74% (57/77); the cumulative incidence of relapse at 10 years was 33%, and the median time to relapse was 558 days. The cumulative incidence of evolution after IST was 8.5%; all 3 such events occurred in partial responders. Overall, there were 13 deaths (17%), with 4 occurring within the 3 months after IST in patients who had a pretreatment absolute neutrophil count of Conclusions The long-term survival in pediatric patients who respond to IST is excellent, at about 90%. IST remains a good alternative in pediatric patients who lack an HLA-matched sibling donor and should be offered as initial therapy before possible hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from an unrelated donor.
Metastable Metal Hydrides for Hydrogen Storage

The possibility of using hydrogen as a reliable energy carrier for both stationary and mobile applications has gained renewed interest in recent years due to improvements in high temperature fuel cells and a reduction in hydrogen production costs. However, a number of challenges remain and new media are needed that are capable of safely storing hydrogen with high gravimetric and volumetric densities. Metal hydrides and complex metal hydrides offer some hope of overcoming these challenges; however, many of the high capacity “reversible” hydrides exhibit a large endothermic decomposition enthalpy making it difficult to release the hydrogen at low temperatures. On the other hand, the metastable hydrides are characterized by a low reaction enthalpy and a decomposition reaction that is thermodynamically favorable under ambient conditions. The rapid, low temperature hydrogen evolution rates that can be achieved with these materials offer much promise for mobile PEM fuel cell applications. However, a critical challenge exists to develop new methods to regenerate these hydrides directly from the reactants and hydrogen gas. This spotlight paper presents an overview of some of the metastable metal hydrides for hydrogen storage and a few new approaches being investigated to address the key challenges associated with these materials.
Economic and other determinants of annual change in U.S. fertility: 1917-1976.

Abstract Decomposition of fertility into its age, period, and cohort components demonstrates the empirical importance of age and period. Of the two, less is known about the period dimension. A new measure of fertility, specific to race and birth order, is used to estimate the effects of annual change in unemployment, the marriage and unemployment rate, as well as annual change in contraceptive sterilization and change in the proportion of couples adopting the more effective (pill and IUD) methods introduced in the early 1960s, are all important determinants of fertility change, but their impact varies greatly by birth order.
Interlaminated ice-proximal glacimarine sediments in Muir Inlet, Alaska

Muir Inlet in Glacier Bay, Alaska, is a glacial fjord receiving a tremendous volume of sediment annually. The rate of sediment accumulation is greatest proximal to Muir Glacier (about 9 m yr−1) and decreases away from the glacier. The primary sediment sources are meltwater streams discharging at subglacial and ice-marginal positions to form overflows, interflows, and underflows (continuous turbidity currents). Overflows and interflows interact with diurnal tidal currents and their volume and sediment concentration varies diurnally and annually with meltwater discharge. These effects produce cyclic deposits of a thin fine-grained sand or silt lamina that grades normally to a thicker poorly to very poorly sorted mud lamina. This lamina couplet is termed a cyclopel. Underflows are suggested to occur in this glacimarine environment because of conditions unique to subglacial fluvial systems. Underflow deposits occur only in proximal positions (<0.5 km from glacier face), and are coarse-grained, reverse to normal graded, and exhibit an increase in sorting and sand content up-layer. Ice-rafted debris (identified as particles >177 μm) is ubiquitous, though low (<5% by weight), and occurs as isolated particles, frozen pellets, or as lenses that in cores may have a lamina appearance. Proximally, ice-rafted debris is difficult to identify because proximal sediment is often as coarse-grained. Deposited sediment may be reworked by tidal currents, and sediment gravity flows. Depositional processes operating in Muir Inlet produce interlaminated sand/silt/clay that characterizes sediment proximal to a glacier and fines seaward to mud. Sediment is classified into one of three sediment types: 1. (1) Type I sediment is very fine grained (mean 8.65–7.17 o), low in sand (0.1–11.2%), and very poorly to poorly sorted. It is the dominant sediment type in Muir Inlet, and is transported by plumes and deposited by suspension settling. 2. (2) Type II sediment is fine- to coarse-grained (mean 6.70–3.12 o), low to high in sand (5.1–86.6%), and very poorly to moderately sorted. It represents reworked sediment, proximal plume deposits, or coarse-grained laminae of cyclopels. 3. (3) Type III sediment is coarse-grained (mean 3.89–2.38 o), high in sand (58.0–100.0%), and poorly to well sorted. It is deposited by sediment gravity flows or underflows.
Microwave Energy for Feather Release

Abstract One quart of water and 200 BTU's of energy are used for scalding each broiler carcass in the feather removal process. Microwave energy reduces energy use and eliminates water use in the scalding process. Five broilers were scalded in hot water and tested to determine the amount of force necessary to remove individual feathers. A standard of 3.5 N was accepted as the maximum force required to pull a feather. A total of 193 birds were treated using a Gerling-Moore microwave unit. All of the feather tracts of each bird were tested for feather release and any tissue damage observed. A statistical discriminant analysis completed on the data revealed that satisfactory feather release can be achieved, with the variable being based upon the bird's weight, the power expended, and the exposure time on either of the extremities or torso feather tracts. The use of microwave energy is feasible to replace water scalding, eliminating the polluted water by-product of scalding and saving 68 BTU's of energy for each bird processed. However, a major problem remaining is to develop a means of exposing the extremities of the carcass to less microwave energy than torso feather tracts to prevent tissue damage.
AKT collaborates with ERG and Gata1s to dysregulate megakaryopoiesis and promote AMKL

The requirement that leukemic Gata1 mutations be present in cells harboring trisomy 21 led to the discovery that overexpression of ERG drives aberrant megakaryopoiesis. Given that constitutive PI3K/AKT signaling is a frequent component of hematologic malignancies and the relationship between AKT and Notch in this lineage, we studied the crosstalk between AKT signaling and ERG in megakaryopoiesis. We discovered that constitutive AKT signaling is associated with a dramatic increase in apoptosis of WT megakaryocytes (MKs), but that overexpression of ERG blocks AKT-induced death. We further found that Gata1 mutations protect MKs from activated AKT-induced apoptosis. As a consequence, however, the enhanced signaling inhibits differentiation of Gata1 mutant, but not WT, MKs. Gata1 mutant cells that overexpress ERG with hyperactive AKT are characterized by diminished FOXO1/3a expression and an increased dependency on the c-Jun pathway similar to that seen in acute megakaryoblastic leukemia (AMKL) cell lines, acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with knockdown of FOXO3a, or AML with expression of myristoylated Akt. Additionally, we found that the AKT allosteric inhibitor MK2206 caused reduced cell viability and proliferation of AMKL cell lines. The contribution of aberrant AKT signaling during the ontogeny of Down syndrome-transient myeloproliferative disorder/AMKL indicates that AKT is a therapeutic target in this form of AML.
Constructing equidissections for certain classes of trapezoids

We investigate equidissections of a trapezoid T(a), where the ratio of the lengths of two parallel sides is a. (An equidissection is a dissection into triangles of equal areas.) An integer n is in the spectrumS(T(a)) if T(a) admits an equidissection into n triangles. Suppose a is algebraic of degree 2 or 3, with each conjugate over Q having positive real part. We show that if n is large enough, n is in S(T(a)) iff n/(1+a) is an algebraic integer. If, in addition, a is the larger root of a monic quadratic polynomial with integer coefficients, we give a complete description of S(T(a)).
Attenuation of duck plague virus and its propagation in cell culture.

Duck plague virus, isolated from infected ducks on Long Island, New York, was propagated in duck-embryonic-fibroblast cell culture. Cytopathogenicity and eosinophilic, granular, intranuclear, inclusion bodies were seen in the infected cells. The inclusion bodies appeared as early as 12 hours after virus inoculation and became more pronounced and abundant at 32–36 hours postinoculation with cell culture. Their formation was inhibited by duck plague hyperimmune serum. The first 9 serial passages in cell culture were lethal for duck and duck embryos. In addition, the 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th passages were lethal for chicken embryos. Each of the 5th and 7th virus passages in duck embryo fibroblasts were further passaged in duck and chicken embryo cell cultures. The resulting viruses were nonvirulent for ducks, elicited the development of a relatively low antibody level, but afforded protection against challenge inoculation with duck plague virus. An anamnestic response in antibody level occurred following challenge inoculation which was equal to the antibody level of ducks surviving experimental infection.
Ethnic Identity predicts loss-to-follow-up in a health promotion trial

Background Higher rates of attrition in health research have been reported for African Americans (AAs). However, little is known about which AAs are more prone to drop out and why. One potential predictor that has not been explored is Ethnic Identity (EI). This study examined the association between EI and loss-to-follow-up among AAs enrolled in a health promotion intervention to increase fruit and vegetable intake.
Effects of Long‐Acting Versus Short‐Acting Calcium Channel Blockers Among Older Survivors of Acute Myocardial Infarction

OBJECTIVE: Recent studies have highlighted the potentially harmful effects of short-acting calcium channel blockers, especially of the dihydropyridine type, in patients with coronary heart disease. Some have argued that long-acting calcium channel blockers are safer, but few outcome data exist. The objective of the study was to compare the occurrence of adverse outcomes among recipients of long-acting versus short-acting calcium channel blockers, with dihydropyridines and non-dihydropyridines compared separately. SETTING: The New Jersey Medicare population. DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study using linked Medicare and drug claims data. PARTICIPANTS: Older survivors of acute myocardial infarction (MI) occurring in 1989 and 1990. Eligible subjects had survived at least 30 days after the MI, participated in Medicare and a drug benefits program, and were prescribed a single type of either a long-acting or a short-acting calcium channel blocker within 90 days after the MI. MEASUREMENTS: The two outcome measures were rates of all-cause mortality and cardiac rehospitalization. Using separate Cox regression models for dihydropyridines (nifedipine, nicardipine) and non-dihydropyridines (diltiazem, verapamil), we examined these outcomes for recipients of long-acting compared with short-acting calcium channel blockers. RESULTS: Of the 833 patients eligible for the study, 160 were prescribed long-acting and 673 short-acting calcium channel blockers. Clinical characteristics of long-acting and short-acting users were comparable. During 2 years of follow-up, 221 deaths and 300 rehospitalizations occurred. Controlling for age, sex, race, and indicators of disease severity and comorbidity, the relative risk of dying for recipients of long-acting, compared with short-acting, dihydropyridines was .42 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.21-0.86). For cardiac rehospitalization, the relative risk was 0.57 (95% CI, 0.34-0.94). For the long-acting versus short-acting non-dihydropyridines, the adjusted relative risk of dying was 1.43 (95% CI, 0.88-2.32), and for cardiac rehospitalization, .65 (95% CI, 0.40-1.05). CONCLUSION: Use of long-acting dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers after acute MI was associated with substantially lower rates of cardiac rehospitalization and death compared with use of their short-acting counterparts. More data are needed to address the possibility that long-acting, compared with short-acting, non-dihydropyridines could decrease rehospitalization rates but increase mortality. J Am Geriatr Soc 47:512–517, 1999.
Symmetry of dipositronium Ps2.

We work out the complete symmetry and spin problem for diatomic positronium ${\mathrm{P}\mathrm{s}}_{2}$ for the ground and singly excited states of zero orbital angular momentum. The general form of the wave function for each state is given, with due regard to charge conjugation parity. Annihilation rates are discussed, and correlations to dissociation products are deduced. We indicate how the approach is extensible to larger aggregates: i.e., Ps${\mathrm{P}\mathrm{s}}_{n}$, $ng2$.
SH2 Domain Function Is Essential for the Role of the Lck Tyrosine Kinase in T Cell Receptor Signal Transduction

Tyrosine kinase activity is required for signal transduction through the T cell antigen receptor (TCR). The Src family tyrosine kinase Lck appears to play a key role in the initiation of TCR signaling events. We have investigated the role of the phosphotyrosine-binding Src homology-2 (SH2), domain of Lck in TCR signaling. Lck containing a mutation in the phosphotyrosine binding pocket of the SH2 domain was expressed in an Lck-deficient cell line. We found that, in contrast to wild-type Lck, the SH2 domain mutant was unable to restore even the earliest TCR-mediated signaling events. To investigate the role of the Lck SH2 domain, we examined the association of tyrosine phosphoproteins with Lck. The predominant associated phosphoprotein was the ZAP-70 tyrosine kinase, which has also been implicated in the initiation of TCR signaling. In addition, the ζ subunit of the T cell receptor was found to weakly associate with Lck. Further analysis indicated that the SH2 domain of Lck can directly recognize both ZAP-70 and ζ in immunoprecipitates from TCR-stimulated cells. Our findings demonstrate that the SH2 domain of Lck is essential for the initiation of signaling events following TCR stimulation probably as a result of its ability to mediate an interaction between Lck and the ZAP-70 tyrosine kinase and/or the ζ subunit of the T cell receptor.
Relaxation oscillations in neodymium random lasers

Using the developed analytical model, we adequately describe relaxation oscillations in the Nd0.5La0.5Al3(BO3)4 random laser. Anomalously long series of stimulated emission pulses are observed in the (Nd:BFAP)0.75(Cr:YAG)0.25 random laser.
Ultraviolet photoelectron spectra of cesium halides

Energy distributions of photoelectrons from evaporated films of cesium halides were measured at photon energies of 11-23 eV. The photoelectron spectra show structures that can be identified as relatively high densities of states in the ${\mathrm{Cs}}^{+}$ $5p$ core as well as in the valence and conduction bands. Doublet core states due to spin-orbit splitting are observed for all the cesium halides. The bandwidths of these states are 3.1 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.3 eV for CsCl, CsBr, CsI, and 4.0 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.3 eV for CsF. The valence-band widths for CsCl, CsBr, CsI, and CsF are found to be 1.8 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.3, 2.1 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.3, 2.4 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.3, and 1.7 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.3 eV, respectively. The energy distribution curves of CsBr indicate a valence-band splitting of 0.5 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.2 eV, which is consistent with the spin-orbit splitting of the Br ($4p$) atomic state. The photoelectron spectra also show the triplet structure associated with the excitation from the ${\mathrm{I}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ $5p$ band of CsI as reported recently by DiStefano and Spicer. Some evidence of core-exciton decay can be seen in the spectra of CsCl. The photoemission results are used to estimate the binding energies of the $\ensuremath{\Gamma}$ core excitons of cesium halides.
A fast time domain integral equation based scheme for analyzing scattering from dispersive objects

A fast integral equation-based scheme for analyzing transient scattering from inhomogeneous dispersive bodies is presented. A time domain integral equation in terms of the electric flux inside the body is constructed by invoking the volume equivalence principle, i.e., by equating the sum of the incident electric field and that radiated by equivalent volume polarization currents to the total electric field. The proposed algorithm for solving this time domain integral equation incorporates a recursive convolution scheme that updates the polarization current from knowledge of the electric flux. To reduce the computational cost and memory requirement of the resulting marching-on-in-time scheme, it is augmented with the plane wave time domain algorithm. Numerical results that validate the proposed approach and demonstrate its accuracy are presented.
A GIS-based spatial statistical approach to modeling job accessibility by transportation mode: case study of Columbus, Ohio

Improving job accessibility based on transport connectivity helps to address equity issues. Spatial autocorrelation (SA) is also a focus of interest in transportation planning, but has been neglected in analyzing job accessibility in metropolitan areas. In this study, GIS-based job accessibilities by walking, transit, and car are computed for the metropolitan area of Columbus, Ohio, and three transport-based spatial autoregressive (SAR) models are estimated to account for the SA of job accessibility among neighboring block groups, while controlling for built-environment and socioeconomic factors. SA intensities and extents are compared in order to better understand local spatial clusters of job accessibility across the region. Direct and indirect spillover effects due to an investment change in transportation facilities are estimated and provide important transportation planning information. The results also show that walking-accessed jobs are primarily related to physical settings (e.g., land uses) at the local level. Locations with a higher share of zero-vehicle housing units have better job accessibility by transit. There is a spatial mismatch between Asian population clusters and transit-accessed jobs, possibly because of the car-oriented residential clusters around Honda of America Manufacturing in suburban areas. More importantly, locations with a higher share of single-parent households are at a disadvantage in overall job accessibility. Due to its complex transportation needs, a society friendly to single parents should spatially integrate accessible jobs with other needed activities via land-use and transportation planning. Alternatively, car-ownership programs and non-spatial social supports also might be effective to help secure job opportunities and perform daily life activities.
The Age Distribution of 1250 Spontaneous Carcinomata of the Mammary Gland in Female Mice of the a Strain

The A strain of inbred mice was established by Strong in 1921. Since that time a strict brother-to-sister system of mating has been continued. The present study consists in the analysis of the 1250 cases of spontaneous carcinomata of the mammary gland that have occurred in normal breeding females of this strain. Of these tumors, 808 arose before the stock was moved to New Haven in June 1933; 442 tumors have been observed in female mice since the stock has been in New Haven. On dividing the 808 cases into eight sequential classes of approximately 100 cases each, it is obvious that there was no change in the age distribution of cancer up to the time the stock was moved. Each of the eight classes, as well as the total group, gave a smooth unimodal curve for the age distribution of spontaneous cancer. The two sublines A and A2, which had been produced by a continuous selection toward and away from spontaneous cancer, gave after fifteen generations of ineffectual selection the same age distribution for cancer. All mice before the move to New Haven were kept on the mixed oatmeal diet containing ( a ) rolled oats, ( b ) powdered skim milk, ( c ) meat scrap, and ( d ) salt. The broken line in Chart 1 shows the total age distribution for this group.
A convenient new synthesis of α-fluorocarbonyl compounds

Abstract The reaction between tertiary α-bromo ketones or aldehydes and silver tetrafluoroborate in ether affords α-fluorocarbonyl compounds. Neighboring group participation by the carbonyl oxygen is proposed to account for the products and by-products.
The Assessment of Athletic Ability in Intercollegiate Sport: Instrument Construction and Validation

The job of the intercollegiate coach is multidimensional. Inarguably, the single most important role is player development. While there is not one sure method to lead a team to victory, there are specific criteria that coaches use to assess athletic ability. To date, there is no systematic method for identifying or measuring these criteria. The purpose of this study was to create a quantitative instrument designed to identify the primary criteria coaches utilize to assess athletic ability. During three phases of data collection, 274 NCAA Division I intercollegiate coaches representing 18 sports completed various versions of the Solomon Expectancy Sources Scale (SESS). Factor analytic procedures were performed at each phase. Results identified 30 qualities, housed in four factors, which coaches use to evaluate athletes. The four factors are: Coachability, Team Player, Physical Ability, and Maturity. The utility of this scale is discussed in light of coach education and future research avenues.