cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Developing a Premodern Manuscript Application Profile Using Dublin Core

Librarians and catalogers, particularly at small repositories, often do not have the training or access to experts to fully describe a medieval manuscript for cataloging, much less digital access. But some descriptions must be available to attract researchers to work with the materials, which are often considered institutional treasures. Approaching manuscripts can be daunting for metadata specialists and catalogers. The Dublin Core Premodern Manuscripts Application Profile (PMAP), currently under development, is designed to be an educational and simple tool for medievalists with little knowledge of metadata and librarians with little knowledge of manuscript studies to facilitate discovery of manuscripts in little-known collections.
Thermal conditions at the Gorter-Mellink counterflow limit between 0.01 and 3 bar

Gorter-Mellink counterflow limits (at zero net mass flow) have been measured from 0.01 bar to about 3 bar in relatively wide ducts of rectangular (0.05 cm wide) and circular cross section (0.446 cm inner diameter). The observed limiting temperatures did not show metastable superheating of He II. Instead, they were controlled by the equilibrium state phase boundaries of the superfluid He4. Small departures from the related maximum temperature differences were in part caused by fluid acceleration and finite thermomter sizes, respectively. The measured limiting heat fluxes agree with the prediction based on the equilibrium state limits of the Gorter-Mellink temperature differences.
Studies on Antiantitoxins

A large percentage of antibodies disappear when injected into the blood of human beings or higher animals immediately after the injection probably due to fixation by the tissues. The gradual decline in the remaining antibodies that follows is believed to be caused by excretion and destruction of the body. It is also conceivable that they are bound by anti-immune substances specifically directed against them. We know that antibodies are invariably associated with the globulin fraction of the serum. Whether they are the serum globulin fraction itself is still undecided. The plasma globulins of normal and of immunized animals seem to be indistinguishable in their chemical and physical properties. Hewitt' found it impossible to differentiate by the chemical methods employed, antitoxins or diphtheria toxin-antitoxin floccules from ordinary serumglobulins. Breinl and Haurowitz2 came to similar conclusions. Smith and Marrack3 found that the ultraviolet absorption curves of diphtheria toxin-antitoxin floccules and of pseudoglobulin are identical.
Sodium carbonate prevents NK cell conditioning by interfering with the US signal

The conditioned enhancement of natural killer (NK) cell activity can be blocked by the injection of sodium carbonate solution prior to the association of the camphor odor conditioned stimulus (CS) with the polyinosinic: polycytidylic acid (poly 1:C) unconditioned stimulus (US). We have experimentally dissociated the memory which is formed for camphor odor from that developed for the association of camphor with the US. The memory for the odor of camphor can be allowed to develop one day before the administration of the unconditioned stimulus. Sodium carbonate appears to act within the central nervous system to block the association of the unconditioned stimulus with the conditioned stimulus. The data also suggest that in conditioning of NK cell activity, there are two specific sites for memory of the response, one for the conditioned stimulus and the other for the association of the unconditioned stimulus with the conditioned stimulus.
A New Type of Burgers' Equation

Assuming a similarity hypothesis that achieves the balance of non-linearity, unsteadiness and dissipative effects, a new type of Burgers' equation is obtained. Consideration is limited to those cases where the singular surface theory predicts no growth of acceleration wave. Two examples are given. In these examples the interpretation of the evolutionary character of shock formation from acceleration waves for a non-dissipative system fails. The present work provides such an interpretation. Taylor's solution for a plane shock and self-similar solutions for plane and cylindrical shocks are discussed. Unter Zugrundelegung einer Ahnlichkeitshypothese, die den Ausgleich zwischen Nichtlinearitat, Instationaritat und dissipativen Effekten sichert, wird ein neuer Typ einer Burgers-Gleichung gewonnen. Die Untersuchung ist auf solche Falle beschrankt, bei denen die Theorie der singularen Flachen kein Anwachsen der Beschleunigungswelle voraussagt. Zwei Beispiele werden gegeben, bei denen die Deutung des Entwicklungscharakters bei einer Stosbildung aus Beschleunigungswellen fur nichtdissipative Systeme versagt. Die vorliegende Arbeit liefert eine solche Interpretation. Dabei werden die Taylorsche Losung fur einen ebenen Stos und Ahnlichkeitslosungen fur offene und zylindrische Stose diskutiert.
Phosphorus—nitrogen compounds XVIII: Hydrazides and thiosemicarbazides

Abstract: Phenylphosphono(thio)dihydrazides and phosphorylated thiosemicarbazides were synthesized for anticancer testing, and some of these agents displayed chelation properties. Reactions involving methylhydrazine resulted in substitution of N 1 -protons. A study of diphenylphosphoro and phosphoramidomethylhydrazides also indicated that the N 1 -phosphorylated isomers are predominately formed.
Obstacles to human hematopoietic stem cell transduction by recombinant adeno-associated virus 2 vectors

Recombinant adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV) vectors have proven to be a potentially useful alternative to the more commonly used retroviral and adenoviral vectors for gene therapy in humans. Their safety and efficacy in Phase I clinical trials for gene therapy of cystic fibrosis and hemophilia B have been well documented, and their remarkable versatility and efficacy in a wide variety of pre-clinical models of human diseases have catapulted these vectors to the forefront. AAV vectors have been shown to be particularly well suited for transduction of brain and muscle cells. However, controversies exist with regard to their utility as a vector for gene transfer into human hematopoietic stem cells. On the one hand, some investigators have concluded that AAV vectors do not transduce hematopoietic stem cells at all, and others have reported that stem cell transduction requires enormously high vector-to-cell ratios. On the other hand, some investigators have reported high-efficiency transduction of human hematopoietic stem cells at low vector-to cell ratios. This article will provide a historical perspective as well as attempt to elaborate the reasons behind these controversies which have become clearer by studies focused on understanding, at the molecular level, the fundamental aspects of the life cycle of recombinant AAV vectors.
Cardiorespiratory Fitness and the Paradoxical BMI-Mortality Risk Association in Male Veterans

Objective: To assess the effect of fitness status on the paradoxical body mass index (BMI)-mortality risk association. Patients and Methods: From February 1, 1986, through December 30, 2011, we assessed fitness and BMI in 18,033 male veterans (mean age, 58.4� 11.4 years) in 2 Veterans Affairs Medical centers. We established 3 fitness categories on the basis of peak metabolic equivalents achieved during an exercise test as well as 5 BMI categories. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality. Results: During the follow-up period (median, 10.8 years, comprising a total of 207,168 person-years), 5070 participants (28%) died. After adjusting for age, risk factors, muscle-wasting diseases, medications, and year of entry, mortality risk was higher for individuals with a BMI of 20.1 to 23.9 kg/m 2 (hazard ratio [HR], 1.21; 95% CI, 1.12-1.30) and 18.5 to 20.0 kg/m 2 (HR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.37-1.77) than for those with a BMI of 24.0 to 27.9 kg/m 2 ; mortality risk was not increased for those with a BMI of 28.0 kg/m 2 or greater. When stratified by fitness, the trend was similar for low-fit and moderate-fit individuals. However, mortality risk was not increased for high-fit individuals across BMI categories. When fitness status was considered within each BMI category, mortality risk increased progressively with decreased fitness and was more pronounced for moderate-fit (HR, 2.52; 95% CI, 2.06-3.08) and low-fit (HR, 2.48; 95% CI, 2.03.06) individuals with a BMI of 18.5-20.0 kg/m 2 . Mortality risk was not significantly increased for high-fit individuals (HR, 1.17; 95% CI, 0.78-1.78; P¼.45). Conclusion: A high mortality risk associated with low BMI levels was observed only in moderate-fit and low-fit individuals, and not in high-fit individuals. Thus, fitness greatly affects the paradoxical BMI-mortality risk association. Furthermore, our findings indicate that lower BMI levels do not increase the risk for premature death as long as they are associated with high fitness. Thus, the paradoxically higher mortality risk observed with lower body weight as represented by lower BMI is likely the result of unhealthy reduction in body weight and, perhaps most importantly, considerable loss of lean body mass.
Effects of Nonhomology on Bacteriophage Lambda Recombination

When crosses are performed under conditions severely restricting DNA synthesis, the presence of DNA sequence nonhomologies in the lac region of hplac5 limits the parental material contribution to and the yield of phage recombinant in a region bracketed by the nonhomologies. These observations are consistent with the expectation of a role for branch migration in the formation of heteroduplex structures under these conditions. Under conditions permissive for DNA replication, bracketing a region with nonhomologies has an only modest effect on the yield of recombinants within that interval. In addition, recombinants within such a bracketed interval manifest an excess of coincident exchange events in an adjacent region. These observations suggest the possibility that, under conditions permissive for DNA replication, regions of nonhomology can be included in heteroduplex structures.
A highly concurrent algorithm and pipeleined architecture for solving Toeplitz systems

The design of VLSI parallel processors requires a fundamental understanding of the parallel computing algorithm and an appreciation of the implementational constraint on communications. Based on such consideration, this paper develops a highly concurrent Toeplitz system solver, featuring maximum parallelism and localized communication. More precisely, a highly parallel algorithm is proposed which achieves O(N) computing time with a linear array of O(N) processors. This compares very favorably to the O(N \log_{2} N) computing time attainable with the traditional Levinson algorithm implemented in parallel. Furthermore, to comply with the communication constraint, a pipelined processor architecture is proposed which uses only localized interconnections and yet retains the maximum parallelism attainable.
Internal Electrostatic Discharge Monitor (IESDM)

An internal electrostatic discharge monitor (IESDM) is being developed at JPL that measures the depth profile of potential in dielectrics. The JPL IESDM is described in this paper with an initial test result using electron beam.
Implanted functional electrical stimulation system for mobility in paraplegia: a follow-up case report

A 16-channel functional electrical stimulation (FES) system has been implanted in a person with T10 paraplegia for over a year. The system consists of two eight-channel radio frequency controlled receiver-stimulators delivering stimuli through a network of 14 epimysial and two intramuscular electrodes. Using this system and a walker for support, the subject was able to stand up for 8 min and walk regularly for 20 m. The standing duration was limited by arm fatigue since upper extremities supported an average of 25% of body weight. This was due to suboptimal hip extension and some undesired recruitment of rectus femoris and sartorius with stimulation of quadriceps electrodes. The left quadriceps exhibited rapid fatigue that limited walking distance and duration. The metabolic energy requirements were well within the aerobic limits of the sedentary paraplegic population. At one-year follow-up evaluation all electrodes are functional except one intramuscular electrode. The implant caused no adverse physiological effects and the individual reported health benefits such as increased energy and overall fitness as a result of the FES system use. With further improvements in muscle response through innovative surgical techniques, the 16-channel implanted FES system can be a viable addition to exercise and mobility function in persons with paraplegia.
Combined Effects of Exposure to Salt (NaCl) Water and Oxidation on the Strength of Uncoated and BN-Coated Nicalon™ Fibers

The environmental stability of uncoated and boron nitride-coated (BN-coated) Nicalon fiber has been investigated by studying the effect of annealing in air at 1000°C (2 h) on the strength of the fibers. The results imply that uncoated and BN-coated fibers both degrade in strength, with the BN-coated fiber suffering a higher strength loss. The degradation is significantly enhanced if the fibers are exposed to salt (NaCl) water prior to the air anneal, if the concentration of salt is >0.5 wt%. The BN-coated Nicalon fibers also have been studied at 800° and 900°C; the degradation in strength due to salt water exposure is greater at 800°C than that at 900° or 1000°C.
Adhesion of polyimides to metals and metal oxides

Interface reactions between polyimides and metal/metal oxide surfaces are proposed on the basis of their acid-base strengths. These hypothetical interface reactions are discussed for the purpose of understanding adhesion at these interfaces. Some experimental data are presented to support the hypothesis as it relates to polyimide adhesion to these surfaces. The purpose of this paper, however, is not to present firm conclusions, but to initiate discussion of the concepts within the adhesion community.
35 Diversity and distribution of fusiform microchlorophyte algae from itasca state park, minnesota, and arrowwood national wildlife refuge, north dakota

Several types of fusiform microchlorophyte algae (Monoraphidium, Ankistrodesmus, and related genera) have been characterized from lakes and ponds of Itasca State Park, Minnesota, and Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge, North Dakota. PCR-RFLP analysis of 18s ribosomal RNA genes was used to categorize 29 different isolates from Itasca State Park into 9 different types, and 15 isolates from the Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge samples into 8 different types. 18S ribosomal DNA sequences were determined for at least one isolate from each type for phylogenetic analysis. All of these sequences were different than any sequence published in GenBank. None of the types were found in both Itasca State Park and Arrowwood National Wildlife Refuge. These results suggest that fusiform green algae are highly diverse, with little species overlap in different habitats.
CT image-guided intensity-modulated therapy for paraspinal tumors using stereotactic immobilization.

Abstract Purpose: To design and implement a noninvasive stereotactic immobilization technique with daily CT image-guided positioning to treat patients with paraspinal lesions accurately and to quantify the systematic and random patient setup errors occurring with this method. Methods and Materials: A stereotactic body frame (SBF) was developed for “rigid” immobilization of paraspinal patients. The inherent accuracy of this system for stereotactic CT-guided treatment was evaluated with phantom studies. Seven patients with thoracic and lumbar spine lesions were immobilized with the SBF and positioned for 33 treatment fractions using daily CT scans. For all 7 patients, the daily setup errors, as assessed from the daily CT scans, were corrected at each treatment fraction. A retrospective analysis was also performed to assess what the impact on patient treatment would have been without the CT-based corrections (i.e., if patient setup had been performed only with the SBF). Results: The average magnitude of systematic and random errors from uncorrected patient setups using the SBF was approximately 2 mm and 1.5 mm (1 SD), respectively. For fixed phantom targets, the system accuracy for the SBF localization and treatment was shown to be within 1 mm (1 SD) in any direction. Dose-volume histograms incorporating these uncertainties for an intensity-modulated radiotherapy plan for lumbar spine lesions were generated, and the effects on the dose-volume histograms were studied. Conclusion: We demonstrated a very accurate and precise method of patient immobilization and treatment delivery based on a noninvasive SBF and daily image guidance for paraspinal lesions. The SBF provides excellent immobilization for paraspinal targets, with setup accuracy better than 2 mm (1 SD). However, for highly conformal paraspinal treatments, uncorrected systematic and random errors of 2 mm in magnitude can result in a significantly greater (>100%) dose to the spinal cord than planned, even though the planned target coverage may not change substantially. With daily CT guidance using the SBF, we showed that the maximal spinal cord dose is ensured to be within 10–15% of the planned value.
GAL4-lϰBα and GAL4-lϰBγ activate transcription by different mechanisms

I kappa B proteins regulate Rel/NF-kappa B transcription complexes through a direct protein-protein interaction. In addition, we have previously shown that certain I kappa B proteins (I kappa B alpha and I kappa B gamma) can act as activators of transcription when fused to the DNA-binding domain of GAL4. We now show that a mutant chicken I kappa B alpha protein that cannot interact with Rel proteins in vitro did not activate transcription when fused to GAL4 in chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEF) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and did not inhibit growth in yeast; in contrast, an I kappa B alpha mutant that can still interact in vitro with Rel proteins activated transcription in both CEF and yeast and inhibited growth in yeast. In CEF, GAL4-I kappa B alpha mediated transcription activation was inhibited by co-transfection with an expression vector for a RelA (p65) protein that contained sequences needed for interaction with I kappa B alpha but that was deleted of its transcription activation domain. Therefore, it appears that GAL4-I kappa B alpha activates transcription by interacting with an endogenous Rel family protein in CEF. In contrast, the activation domain from I kappa B gamma behaved as a genuine acidic activator of transcription and did not inhibit growth when expressed in yeast. Since transcription activation and growth inhibition by GAL4-I kappa B alpha mutants in yeast correlated with their ability to interact with vertebrate Rel proteins, our results suggest that these activities of GAL4-I kappa B alpha are mediated through interaction with a Rel-like protein in yeast, which is important for cell growth.
On local regularization methods for linear Volterra equations and nonlinear equations of Hammerstein type

Local regularization methods allow for the application of sequential solution techniques for the solution of Volterra problems, retaining the causal structure of the original Volterra problem and leading to fast solution techniques. Stability and convergence of these methods was shown to hold on a large class of linear Volterra problems, i.e., the class of ν-smoothing problems for ν = 1, 2, ... in Lamm (2005 Inverse Problems 21 785–803). In this paper, we enlarge the family of convergent local regularization methods to include sequential versions of classical regularization methods such as sequential Tikhonov regularization. In fact, sequential Tikhonov regularization was considered earlier by Lamm and Elden (1997 SIAM J. Numer. Anal. 34 1432–50) but there the theory was limited to the class of discretized one-smoothing Volterra problems. An interesting feature of sequential classical regularization methods is that they involve two regularization parameters: the usual local regularization parameter r controls the size of the local problem while a second parameter α controls the amount of regularization to be applied in each subproblem. This approach suggests a wavelet type of regularization method with the parameter r controlling spatial resolution and α controlling frequency resolution. In this paper, we also show how the 'future polynomial regularization' method of Cinzori (2004 Inverse Problems 20 1791–806) can be viewed as a special case of the general framework of Lamm (2005) in the 1-smoothing case. In addition, we extend the results of Lamm (2005) to nonlinear Volterra problems of Hammerstein type and give numerical results to illustrate the effectiveness of the method in this case.
Characterization of plasmid DNA location within chitosan/PLGA/pDNA nanoparticle complexes designed for gene delivery

Poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide-) (PLGA-)chitosan nanoparticles are becoming an increasingly common choice for the delivery of nucleic acids to cells for various genetic manipulation techniques. These particles are biocompatible, with tunable size and surface properties, possessing an overall positive charge that promotes complex formation with negatively charged nucleic acids. This study examines properties of the PLGA-chitosan nanoparticle/plasmid DNA complex after formation. Specifically, the study aims to determine the optimal ratio of plasmid DNA:nanoparticles for nucleic acid delivery purposes and to elucidate the location of the pDNA within these complexes. Such characterization will be necessary for the adoption of these formulations in a clinical setting. The ability of PLGA-chitosan nanoparticles to form complexes with pDNA was evaluated by using the fluorescent intercalating due OliGreen to label free plasmid DNA. By monitoring the fluorescence at different plasmid: nanoparticle ratios, the ideal plasmid:nanoparticle ration for complete complexation of plasmid was determined to be 1:50. Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy and gel digest studies suggested that even at these optimal complexation ratios, a portion of the plasmid DNA was located on the outer complex surface. This knowledge will facilitate future investigations into the functionality of the system in vitro and in vivo.
Improving Fine-Grained Irregular Shared-Memory Benchmarks by Data Reordering

We demonstrate that data reordering can substantially improve the performance of fine-grained irregular shared-memory benchmarks, on both hardware and software shared-memory systems. In particular, we evaluate two distinct data reordering techniques that seek to co-locate in memory objects in close proximity in the physical system modeled by the computation. The effects of these techniques are increased spatial locality and reduced false sharing.We evaluate the effectiveness of the data reordering techniques on a set of five irregular applications from SPLASH-2 and Chaos. We implement both techniques in a small library, allowing us to enable them in an application by adding less than 10 lines of code. Our results on one hardware and two software shared-memory systems show that, with data reordering during initialization, the performance of these applications is improved by 12 percent to 99 percent on the Origin 2000, 30 percent to 366 percent on TreadMarks, and 14 percent to 269 percent on HLRC.
The Development of Cynicism

Two experiments explored the development of cynicism by examining how children evaluate other people who make claims consistent or inconsistent with their self-interests. In Experiment 1, kindergartners, second graders, and fourth graders heard stories with ambiguous conclusions in which characters made statements that were aligned either with or against self-interest. Older children took into account the self-interests of characters in determining how much to believe them: They discounted statements aligned with self-interest, whereas they accepted statements going against self-interest. Experiment 2 examined children's endorsement of three different explanations for potentially self-interested statements: lies, biases, and mistakes. Like adults, sixth graders endorsed lies and bias as plausible explanations for wrong statements aligned with self-interest; younger children did not endorse bias. Implications for the development of cynicism and children's understanding of bias are discussed.
Characterizing the specificity and cooperation of aminopeptidases in the cytosol and endoplasmic reticulum during MHC class I antigen presentation

Many MHC class I-binding peptides are generated as N-extended precursors during protein degradation by the proteasome. These peptides can subsequently be trimmed by aminopeptidases in the cytosol and/or the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) to produce mature epitope. However, the contribution and specificity of each of these subcellular compartments in removing N-terminal amino acids for Ag presentation is not well defined. In this study, we investigated this issue for antigenic precursors that are expressed in the cytosol. By systematically varying the N-terminal flanking sequences of peptides, we show that the amino acids upstream of an epitope precursor are a major determinant of the amount of Ag presentation. In many cases, MHC class I-binding peptides are produced through sequential trimming in the cytosol and ER. Trimming of flanking residues in the cytosol contributes most to sequences that are poorly trimmed in the ER. Because N-terminal trimming has different specificity in the cytosol and ER, the cleavage of peptides in both of these compartments serves to broaden the repertoire of sequences that are presented.
Discharge indices for water quality loads

[1] Effective discharge has been used to describe the streamflow level that is responsible for transporting the most sediment over the long term. Careful inspection reveals that this concept may not have been well defined, and different interpretations have led to conflicting representations. Because total load is ultimately the quantity of interest, we define a new index, the half-load discharge, which is that discharge above and below which half the total long-term load is transported. The value of the half-load discharge is derived for a reasonable model of flows and constituent concentration. The effective discharge has generally been thought to be a relatively common or frequent flood. The half-load discharge is generally a much greater and less frequent flow than commonly used estimators of the effective discharge. Relations provided here for the frequency and magnitude of the half-load discharge provide evidence that it is relatively rare floods that transport most of the sediment over the long term. These ideas apply to other constituents as well.
Pushkin’s “Monument”

In 1945 S. H. Cross reviewed in the American Slavic and East European Review1 V. Nabokov’s translations from Pushkin, Lermontov, and Tyutchev. I am only accidentally interested in this review and in Nabokov’s translations; my purpose is to discuss Pushkin’s “Monument,” and, more specifically, one line—the fourth line of the first stanza. The late Professor Cross disagreed with Nabokov’s translation of this line. This is what Cross wrote in his review: “ ‘Tsar Alexander’s column it exceeds/in splendid unsubmissive height’ contains one error, since aleksandrijskij means ‘of Alexandria,’ referring to the Pharos, and thus has no connection with Alexander I and the column on the Palace Square.”2 To support his views, Cross cited Professor Henri Gregoire’s French translation of that first quatrain, which, by the way, in this translation became a quintain: Mon monument n’est pas l’ouvrage des humains, Et mon peuple y viendra par un sentier, dont l’herbe Ne cachera jamais la trace du pelerin, Il depasse en hauteur, de sa tete superbe, Le Phare des Alexandrins.3
Supporters and restorative justice: how does the intersection between offenders, victims and the community influence perceptions of procedural justice and shaming?

AbstractRestorative justice programmes seek to repair the harm an offence has caused by engaging the offender, the victim and the community in a discussion of the effects the incident had on others and to reach an agreement about proper restitution. Through this process perceptions of procedural justice and reintegrative shaming can be fostered as the offender can participate in this dialogue and is subject to increased social control. Although the presence of others can be beneficial to the restorative justice process, this may not always be the case. Using data from the Australian Reintegrative Shaming Experiments (RISE), we test the influence that others present have on offender perceptions of procedural justice and shaming. We find that the quality of the relationship between offenders and these others, and their mere presence, differentially influence these outcomes. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of these findings.
Early opioid prescription and risk of long-term opioid use among US workers with back and shoulder injuries: a retrospective cohort study.

The number of prescription opioid overdose deaths has increased dramatically in recent years and many prescribers are unsure how to balance treatment of pain with secondary prevention. Guidelines recommend low-severity injury patients not receive opioids early in the course of their care, but evidence supporting this guideline is limited. Data from 123 096 workers’ compensation claims with back and shoulder injuries were analysed to evaluate this guideline. Back and shoulder injury claimants with early opioid use (≤1 month after injury) had 33% lower (95% CI 24% to 41% lower) odds and 29% higher (95% CI 6% to 58% higher) odds, respectively, of long-term opioid use (>3 months) than claimants with late opioid use, after adjusting for key covariates. Stratified analyses indicate that early opioid use does not appear to increase the risk of long-term use except in cases where no diagnosis or only the diagnosis of unspecified shoulder pain is given prior to prescription.
Combined method for evaluating fetal well-being by plasma estriol measurements and ultrasonography.

Abstract Twenty-one patients classified as “high-risk” problems were observed to assess fetal well-being, size, and growth with repeated plasma estriol and ultrasonographic measurements. Estriol levels were of value in the estimation of the fetal condition if fetal size and age were known. When serial plasma estriol measurements and ultrasonographic cephalometry are used together, the fetal well-being, size, and growth may be more accurately assessed and the risk of prematurity greatly reduced. Further combined studies are needed to clarify the relative values of estriol levels and ultrasonography in the assessment of fetal status. The cirteria of normal fetal growth and welfare in high-risk situations must be established in an effort to decrease high perinatal loss rates.
Astrue v. Capato Argument Recap: Old Law, New Technology, and Social Security Benefits

In this, the second in a series of SCOTUSblog postings discussing the 2012 Supreme Court case of Astrue v. Capato, Professor Knaplund summarizes counsel's oral arguments before the Court. The arguments focused on Congressional intent in enacting the Social Security Act, and specifically the meaning of the word "child" in the statute. How the word "child" is defined directly affects the outcome of the case, in which the legal issue is whether a "postmortem conception" child (which is conceived using the decedent's genetic material) is eligible to receive the decedent's Social Security benefits.
Altitudinal Variation in Leaf Gas Exchange, Nitrogen and Phosphorus Concentrations, and Leaf Mass per Area in Populations of Frasera speciosa

Foliar nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations, leaf mass per unit area (LMA), and leaf gas exchange were measured in seven populations of Frasera speciosa along a 1700 m gradient, to assess whether altitudinal variation in net photosynthesis rates was related to foliar N and P concentrations, LMA, and stomatal conductance. A secondary goal was to evaluate whether altitudinal trends in foliar chemistry were independent of phenology of the plants. Leaf N and P concentrations per unit mass changed seasonally in all populations, but increased with altitude throughout the growing season. Leaf mass per unit area decreased with increasing altitude, unlike most other studies which have found LMA to increase with altitude. As a result foliar N per unit area of leaf did not change with increasing altitude. Net photosynthesis rates and stomatal conductance did not change with increasing altitude. Transpiration rates increased, while water-use efficiency and the mole fraction of intercellular CO2 decreased with increasing altitude. The change in LMA was the predominant response to increasing altitude in populations of Frasera, and assuming the decrease in CO2 partial pressure with increasing altitude imposes a constraint on photosynthesis, increased internal conductance and/or increased photosynthetic capacity may have resulted in maintenance of similar field photosynthesis rates among populations.
Silicon Waveguide to Hybrid Plasmonic Waveguide Polarization Rotator and Coupler

We present a polarization rotator and coupler that rotates the TE0 mode in a silicon waveguide and couples to the hybrid plasmonic (HP0) mode. Coupling factor of s60% and polarization conversion efficiency of s90% is achieved.
Image-Derived Assessment of Left Ventricular Mass in Fetal Myocardial Hypertrophy by 4-Dimensional Echocardiography: An In Vitro Study.

OBJECTIVES This study tested the accuracy of new 4-dimensional fetal echocardiography to evaluate left ventricular (LV) mass in an experimental model of fetal myocardial hypertrophy. METHODS Ten fresh rabbit hearts were studied. Fetal myocardial hypertrophy was simulated by fixing different amounts of myocardial tissue to the LV epicardium. A small latex balloon was mounted on vinyl tubing and fixed within each LV cavity. The proximal end of the tube was attached to a pulsatile pump apparatus. The pump was calibrated to deliver stroke volumes of 2 and 4 mL at stroke rates of 60 and 120 beats per minute (bpm). Four-dimensional data were acquired and analyzed with quantification software. Reference values for LV mass were determined by the displacement method. RESULTS Echo-derived measurements of LV mass showed good correlations with reference values at all stroke rates and stroke volumes: at 2 mL and 60 bpm, r = 0.95; at 2 mL and 120 bpm, r = 0.95; at 4 mL and 60 bpm, r = 0.93; and at 4 mL and 120 bpm, r = 0.95 (P< .01 for all values). There was also excellent interobserver (r = 0.98; mean difference of -0.32 g; -4.4% of the mean) and intraobserver (r = 0.98; mean difference of -0.28 g; -3.8% of the mean) agreement. CONCLUSIONS In this controlled in vitro study, high-resolution 4-dimensional echocardiography was shown to accurately assess LV mass and have the potential to evaluate fetal myocardial hypertrophy.
Myeloablative chemotherapy with autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for metastatic breast cancer: immunologic consequences affecting clinical outcome.

Autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation following myeloablative chemotherapy is being increasingly utilized in the treatment of a variety of malignancies. We administered busulfan 16 mg/kg orally, thiotepa 500-700 mg/m2 i.v., and carboplatin 800-1000 mg/m2 i.v. to 56 women with metastatic carcinoma of the breast. Autologous peripheral blood stem cells, which had been collected after a combination of chemotherapy and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, were infused on day 0. The major toxicities of the conditioning regimen included severe pancytopenia, stomatitis, nausea, emesis, diarrhea, fever, and infection. Transplant-related mortality was 1.8%. The incidence of opportunistic viral infections was 42.9%. Fourteen individuals achieved a complete response. The actuarial survival at 1223 days was 13.7% for the entire group of patients; the actuarial survival at 1009 days was 39.3% among complete responders. The functional status of the immune system was determined following transplantation in a subset of patients. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were obtained before and after stem cell infusion, and were analyzed phenotypically and functionally. Proliferative and interleukin-2 synthetic ability of these cells was assessed following stimulation with phytohemagglutinin and anti-CD3 antibody. The response to influenza peptides was also ascertained. Proliferative and interleukin-2 synthetic capacity was markedly impaired for over a year. Memory response was virtually absent for up to 2 years following transplantation. The prolonged and marked immunosuppression following this myeloablative regimen was associated with a high incidence of opportunistic viral infections, and may have contributed to disease relapse and progression especially in patients who failed to achieve a complete response following transplantation.
Many-Faceted Rasch Calibration: An Example Using the Self-Talk Scale

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the application of the many-faceted Rasch model to a personality measure. The authors use the model to calibrate the Self-Talk Scale (STS). Good model–d...
Probit vs. semi-nonparametric estimation: examining the role of disability on institutional entry for older adults.

AbstractPurpose: The purpose of this study was to showcase an advanced methodological approach to model disability and institutional entry. Both of these are important areas to investigate given the on-going aging of the United States population. By 2020, approximately 15% of the population will be 65 years and older. Many of these older adults will experience disability and require formal care.Methods: A probit analysis was employed to determine which disabilities were associated with admission into an institution (i.e. long-term care). Since this framework imposes strong distributional assumptions, misspecification leads to inconsistent estimators. To overcome such a short-coming, this analysis extended the probit framework by employing an advanced semi-nonparamertic maximum likelihood estimation utilizing Hermite polynomial expansions.Results: Specification tests show semi-nonparametric estimation is preferred over probit. In terms of the estimates, semi-nonparametric ratios equal 42 for cognitive diff...
Performance of centrifugal pumps running in reverse as turbine: Part II- systematic specific speed and specific diameter based performance prediction

Abstract This paper, Part II of a two part paper, presents a comprehensive correlation aimed to bring out the accurate prediction of the turbine mode operation of centrifugal pumps. This work uses experimental data of wide range of pumps representing the centrifugal pump configurations in terms of specific speed. Based on specific speed and specific diameter an accurate correlation is developed to predict the performances at best efficiency point of the centrifugal pump in its turbine mode operation. The proposed prediction method yields very good results to date compared to previous such attempts. The present method is compared to nine previous methods found in the literature. The comparison results show that the method proposed in this paper is the most accurate. The proposed method can be further complemented and supplemented by more future tests to increase its accuracy. The proposed method is meaningful because it is based on both specific speed and specific diameter.
A sad journey down history: A conversation with judge Nathaniel Jones about litigating Milliken v. Bradley I (1974), 40 years later

Nathaniel Jones was born May 12, 1926, in Youngstown, Ohio, and served as the general counsel for the NAACP from 1969–1979. During that time, he litigated the Milliken v. Bradley I case before the ...
Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Agoraphobia in Groups

Although agoraphobia has often been viewed as a learned disorder, no author to date has emphasized the cognitive components nor suggested treatment that is both behavioral and cognitive.
ON LOGARITHMIC DERIVATIVES OF SOLUTIONS OF DISCONJUGATE LINEAR nTH ORDER DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the logarithmic derivatives of the solutions of disconjugate linear nth order differential equations. The differential equation is said to be disconjugate onIy if every solution x = x(t) 0 has at most n-1 zeros (counting multiplicities) on 1. The chapter discusses the general method solution of differential equation by replacing differential equation by a suitable first order system. Theorem remains correct if there is no assumption or assertion concerning u0, but if u0 is not otherwise specified, one can always make the trivial choice u0 0.
The politics of global warming: a history lesson and future prospects

Consider the atmosphere from any point on the Earth's surface. Move east, west, north, or south; the atmosphere has no boundaries. If a CO 2 molecule is discharged from a point source in the United States, it can move in any direction, and one year hence it could be over India, Brazil, or anywhere else in the world. Likewise, GHG emissions in India and other nations make their way to the United States and to every other nation. All nations contribute to GHG emissions, some more than others, and all nations are recipients of the emissions. Geographically, the atmosphere is nondiscriminatory. To the extent that GHG emissions contribute to global warming and, in turn, warming contributes to climate change, inherent problems are not local, regional, or national. They are transnational. The problems cannot be solved by any one nation – although some can contribute more than others – but must be addressed by collaboration among all nations. Even the smallest of nations that contribute little to GHG emissions must be involved, for they may well be among those most adversely impacted by climate change and least able to adapt. Whether the problem is perceived as potential or omnipresent, the fact that it is international is indisputable. And the international community has been paying attention. In this chapter, we will examine efforts to address the problem and the mine fields that have impeded substantive progress. As applied to climate change, the chapter is a history lesson in geopolitics, highlighting how difficult it is to achieve consensus among nations of widely disparate cultures and economic conditions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change International agreements have long been used to address environmental issues for segments of the planet as diverse as the atmosphere, the open seas, and Antarctica. A relatively recent agreement is the Montreal Protocol of 1987, which calls for protection of the stratosphere's ozone layer through elimination of industrial chemicals termed chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). Although interest in global warming can be traced to the late nineteenth century (Weart, 2003), it was not until 1988 that the issue began to receive serious attention.
In-depth analysis of cone-beam CT image reconstruction by ideal observer performance on a detection task

We have recently perform evaluations, of the back-projection filtration (BPF) algorithm for cone-beam CT image reconstruction, based on ideal observer performance for signal detection. The metric used is the efficiency, which is here the squared ratio of the signal detection signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) in the reconstructed image and in the projection data. We have generally found that efficiencies fall in the range of 75%–85% for minimum projection-data scans. We hypothesize that the efficiency should approach 100% for minimum data scans. In this work, we evaluate the individual steps in the BPF algorithm to identify, and possibly remedy, the loss of SNR due to the algorithm implementation. For the detection task specified here, the efficiency is improved from 82% to 96% by using this detailed analysis.
Long-term Follow-up of Patients Having False-Positive Multitarget Stool DNA Tests after Negative Screening Colonoscopy: The LONG-HAUL Cohort Study

Background: Studies of colorectal cancer screening by multitarget stool DNA (MT-sDNA) show false-positive (FP) rates of 7% to 13%. It is unclear whether FP patients are at increased long-term risk of adverse outcomes.Methods: We compared subsequent clinical events among patients with apparent FP MT-sDNA with those in patients reported as true negative (TN). This was a retrospective cohort study of participants in pre-FDA approval MT-sDNA studies having nonadvanced or negative baseline colonoscopy findings from a single referral center. Per-protocol and calibrated cutoffs defined FP and TN groups. From the time of stool collection, we measured differences between FP and TN groups in time to death, subsequent cancer diagnosis, and onset of alarm symptoms.Results: Of 1,050 eligible patients, only 6 were lost to follow-up. Median age was 65.6 years [interquartile range (IQR), 56.8-72.3]; 54% were female. Median follow-up time was 4 years (IQR, 3.5-5.3). Eight aerodigestive (lung and gastrointestinal tract) cancers occurred. FP status by calibrated, but not per-protocol, cutoffs was associated with subsequent aerodigestive cancer; however, cumulative incidence did not exceed SEER expectations from the general population. By any cutoff method, FP status was not associated with mortality or alarm symptoms.Conclusions: Although FP status was associated with long-term aerodigestive cancers, new cases were not temporally related and did not exceed incidence estimates from general population.Impact: These observations do not justify aggressive follow-up evaluation for patients with FP MT-sDNA at this time. Larger studies are needed to confirm these early findings. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(4); 614-21. ©2016 AACR.
Is the Application of Islamic Law in Zamfara State a Success or a Failure

This chapter evaluates how Zamfara State operates Islamic law and critically analyzes its successes and failures. The conclusion summarizes the main themes of the book and provides final thoughts by the author.
Outcomes of patients (pts) with renal cell carcinoma and sarcomatoid dedifferentiation (sRCC) treated with nephrectomy (Nx) and systemic therapies (T) over three decades: The MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) experience.

534Background: Pts with sRCC historically have had a poor prognosis. We determined the overall survival (OS) and prognostic factors of pts treated with Nx and T in the cytokine and targeted therapy eras. Methods: This is a retrospective study of pts with sRCC who had Nx and received T at MDACC in the cytokine era (1987-2005) or the targeted therapy era (2006-2015). OS was measured from time of diagnosis until death of any cause or last follow-up. OS times were estimated by Kaplan-Meier plots and were compared using the log-rank test. Cox regression models were used to determine the association of covariables with OS. Results: Among 199 pts with sRCC (80.9% clear-cell) identified, 167 pts (83.9%) have died at a median follow-up of 8.8 years (median OS 16.5 months; 95% CI: 15.2, 20.9). The 1-year, 2-year, and 5-year OS rates were 67%, 38%, and 14%, respectively. There was no significant difference in OS between pts with clear-cell vs. those with non-clear cell histology. Pts with metastatic disease at initi...
Metabolic and Electrolyte Abnormalities Related to Use of Bowel in Urologic Reconstruction

Many urologic reconstructive techniques involve the use of autologous bowel for urinary diversion and bladder augmentation. The resection of bowel and its reimplantation into the urinary system often comes with a variety of metabolic and electrolyte derangements, depending on the type of bowel used and the quantity of urine it is exposed to in its final anatomic position. Clinicians should be aware of these potential complications due to the serious consequences that may result from uncorrected electrolyte disturbances. This article reviews the common electrolyte complications related to both bowel resection and the interposition of bowel within the urinary tract.